Starling Bank, (/Üstıırlæć/) Is A UK Bank, Occasionally Referred To As A Digital Challenger Bank Or Neobank, Offering Current And Business Bank Accounts In The UK. Starling Bank Is A Licensed Regulated Bank, Founded In January 2014 By Former Allied Irish Bank Chief Operating Officer Anne Boden. Since Its Inception, It Has Secured Over £500 Million In Funding.
The Bank Offers A Limited Range Of Personal And Business Banking Services Through Its Mobile App, Which Includes Services Such As Individual Current Accounts, Joint Accounts, Business Accounts And Euro Accounts. Focusing On Technology And User Experience, Starling Bank Has Emerged As An Alternative To Traditional High Street Banks. The Bank Is Headquartered In London, UK. It Is Licensed By The Prudential Regulation Authority And The Financial Conduct Authority.
History
Starling Bank Was Founded By Anne Boden In January 2014 As A Digital Challenger Bank. The Company Received A Banking License From The Prudential Regulation Authority And The Financial Conduct Authority In July 2016. It Launched A Beta Version For Individual Current Accounts In March 2017.
In 2016, Starling Raised £48 Million. Founder Anne Boden Announced In December 2017 That The Bank Intended To Apply For The RBS Relief Fund. In February 2019, Starling Raised £75 Million From Merian Global Investors. The Following Week, The Company Announced That It Had Raised £100 Million From The Capability And Innovation Fund In The Form Of A Grant. In March 2021, Starling Announced A £272 Million Funding Round With Investors Including Fidelity, Qatar Investment Authority And Millennium Management.
The Bank Has Partnered With Other Companies To Offer Some Of Its Services. In March 2017, Starling Began Processing Global Payments Using Wise. In November 2018, The Company Partnered With Post Offices To Allow Account Holders To Deposit And Withdraw Money At Any Post Office Branch.
At The End Of 2020, The Times Reported That Large Banks Were Considering Buying Starling. The CEO Of Tarling Denied The Report And Said They Were Aiming For An Initial Public Offering By 2022.
In Its Annual Report To 31 March 2022, Starling Announced That It Had Become The First Challenger Bank To Achieve Profitability, Reporting A Pre-tax Profit Of £32.10 Million On Revenue Of £188 Million. This Was Up From A Pre-tax Loss Of £31.50 Million The Previous Year. Starling's Founder Boden Attributed It To Its Foray Into The Mortgage Market, Growing Its Total Mortgage Loan Book To More Than £2 Billion. In June 2022, The Company Revealed That Customers Had Opened 3 Million Starling Current Accounts, Including More Than 460,000 Commercial Current Accounts.
In Its Annual Report To 31 March 2023, Starling Announced It Became The First Challenger Bank To Be Profitable For Two Consecutive Years, Reporting A Pre-tax Profit Of £195 Million And Revenue Of £453 Million. It Was Also Announced That Founder And CEO Anne Boden Will Step Down As CEO Effective June 30, 2023. Anne Will Continue To Serve As A Member Of The Board, And Current Starling Chief Operating Officer John Mountain Will Serve As Interim CEO Of Starling.
In March 2024, The Company Announced The Appointment Of Raman Bhatia As Its New Permanent CEO, Joining From OVO Energy. Bhatia Will Officially Assume The Position In The Summer, Succeeding John Mountain.
In Its Annual Report For The Year Ending 12 June 2024, Starling Announced It Was The First Challenger Bank To Be Profitable For Three Consecutive Years, With A Pre-tax Profit Of £301.10 Million And Revenue Of £6.8822 Billion.
Locations
Starling Has No Physical Branches. The Company Has Offices In London, Cardiff, Southampton And Manchester.] For Customers Who Want To Deposit Cash Into Their Accounts, It Works With Post Offices To Offer Its Services At Branches And Other Designated Locations Across The UK
Tarling Bank Offers Contactless Debit Cards MasterCard. As Of September 2019, Starling Cards Are Not Part Of The LINK Network.
Starling Changed The Design Of Their Cards In July 2018 To A Vertical Card Design With Colors Of Turquoise And Navy. In March 2021, Starling Announced That Their New And Replacement Debit Cards Will Be Made From 75% Recycled Rigid PVC Plastic.
In Addition To Physical Cards, Starling Bank Offers Its Customers The Ability To Create Multiple Virtual Cards Within The App. These Virtual Cards Can Be Used For Online Shopping And Can Be Set Up. Customers Can Also Set Limits, Block And Unlock Their Virtual Cards For Security And Control. The Ability To Create Multiple Virtual Cards Allows Customers To Easily Divide Their Spending Into Different Categories, Such As Entertainment, Groceries Or Travel, Making It Easier To Track Spending.
Mobile Apps
The Focus On Technology And User Experience Has Been A Key Differentiator For Starling Bank. The Bank Serves Customers Primarily Through Mobile Banking Apps On IOS And Android.
Features Of The Starling Mobile App Include Instant Transaction Notifications, Freezing And Unfreezing Customers' Cards To Prevent Unauthorized Transactions, Classifying Transactions For Later Analysis, Creating Separate "targets" To Store Money Separately In Customers' Primary Balances, And In-app Chat With Client Server Representatives. The Bank Also Offers A "settlement" Feature Where Customers Can Send Money To Their Contacts. The App Also Features Real-time Notifications And Spending Insights To Help Customers Make Informed Financial Decisions. In 2017, Starling Claimed To Be The First UK Bank To Support Apple Pay In-app Settings.
Engine
In February 2022, Starling Created A Subsidiary Business For Its Banking-as-a-service Platform Engine, Through Which It Plans To White Label Other Companies, Allowing Them To Use Its System To Process Payments, Card Transactions And Open Customer Accounts
Fleet Mortgages
In July 2021, Starling Announced The Acquisition Of Specialist Buy-to-let Mortgage Lender Fleet Mortgages For £50 Million. At The Time Of The Acquisition, Fleet Mortgages Was Managing Around £1.75 Billion In Mortgages. Starling Said Fleet Mortgages Would Retain Its Brand And Management Team.
Mustaven
In June 2022, Starling Purchased A £500 Million Mortgage Portfolio From Specialist Lender Masthaven. Masthaven Has Announced Plans To Wind Down Its Operations By 2023 By Selling Its Mortgage Book.
Awards
Starling Bank Has Won The Best British Bank Award At The British Bank Awards For Five Consecutive Years - 2018 To 2022.
Starling Bank Has Won The Best British Bank Brand Award From Which For Four Consecutive Years - 2021 To 2024.
Starling Bank Wins Best Mobile Banking App And Best Children's Account At The 2024 British Bank Awards
