Starling Bank, a UK-based challenger bank, has raised £40 million (around $49.2 million) in the latest funding round from its existing investors.
Officially announced on Friday, the round was led by Harry McPike’s JTC and Merian Chrysalis Investment Company Limited, both of which are among the existing backers in the bank.
This adds to a £60 million (almost $73.79 million) round the London-headquartered bank closed in February this year.
The challenger bank is targeting specifically small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individuals across the UK and Europe.
According to the bank, it has more than 1.4 million current accounts, including 155,000 business accounts, holds a 2.6 percent share of the UK’s SME banking market.
It already has £500 million ($614.95 million) of SME lending on its balance sheet, with further commitments raising the total to almost £1 billion ($1.23 billion).
Commenting on the massive funding, Anne Boden, founder and chief executive of Starling Bank, said: “This additional funding from our existing investors demonstrates their commitment both to Starling and to our small business and personal customers who need our support now more than ever.”
With the latest funding, the challenger bank has raised a total of £363 million (almost $446.45 million) since its launch in 2014.
The fresh proceeds will help the bank to “continue its rapid growth and help it provide much-needed support to small business customers who have been hit by the Coronavirus emergency.”
The banking platform is going digital
The demand for challenger banks is skyrocketing globally, and with the COVID-19 pandemic, their market is projected to grow even further.
Earlier this month, N26, a German digital bank, raised $100 million in its Series D funding round with a valuation of $3.5 billion.
Revolut, another UK-based neobank, raised $500 million earlier this year, becoming the country’s most valued Fintech startup.
