Latest
Reporting and analysis on the institutions, products, rules, and technology shaping UK finance.
- · Banking and payments
Secure Trust Bank profit rises 9.4% as app sign-ups grow
Secure Trust Bank's adjusted pre-tax profit rose 9.4% to £31.3m in the six months to 30 June 2026, as net lending grew 4.9% and its retail finance app passed 660,000 registrations.
- · AI & Finance
Bank of England boosts funding to tackle frontier AI risks
The Bank of England's Court approved extra funding for frontier AI work on 16 July 2026, without disclosing the amount or programme. Here's what it signals for UK banks' cyber defences.
- · Open Banking
Beyla and Visa plan AI-powered open banking for UK SMEs
Beyla has agreed a multi-year Visa collaboration to link consented open banking data to AI cash-flow tools for UK SMEs. Card issuing and payments remain subject to FCA and Visa approval.
- · AI & Finance
AI risk climbs up UK financial firms' systemic risk list
Bank of England survey data show 63% of respondents now cite AI among their five greatest-impact risks, up from 31% previously, even as confidence in stability stays high.
- · Digital Banks
Starling's 5% easy-access saver: new-customer rules explained
Starling Bank's new 5.00% AER easy-access saver is for new customers only, capped at £25,000, and half the rate is a six-month bonus sitting on a variable 2.50% underlying rate.
- · Explainers & Guides
Why FCA authorisation won't guarantee crypto firms a bank account
The FCA's crypto authorisation gateway is open, but a licence will not force a bank to offer an account. Here is why registration, authorisation and a bank's own risk decision are three separate things.
- · Open Banking
Virgin Money open banking outage disrupts Tink users
Tink says a bank-side token fault has knocked out 100% of users on its Virgin Money account-information connection since 4 October 2026, disrupting budgeting and aggregation apps.
- · Fintech News
Finastra launches supply-chain finance platform for banks
Finastra has launched a platform linking supplier onboarding, invoice financing, risk checks and secondary-market distribution, but UK banks still carry the underlying credit and operational risk.
- · Banking
Gresham launches AI tool to configure bank reconciliation rules
Gresham's new Control Studio lets staff describe reconciliation needs in plain language while deterministic engines still do the matching, leaving open questions about approval and audit evidence for UK firms.
- · Crypto, Stablecoins & Tokenisation
Luxembourg clears native tokenised fund units
The CSSF has confirmed Luxembourg funds may issue units natively on DLT within existing rules. UK managers servicing Luxembourg funds face new operational questions, separate from the FCA's own UK tokenisation framework.