Startup bank Monzo hits 2 million customers in two years
Startup bank Monzo says it is the fastest-growing bank in the UK after gaining more than two million customers in less than 18 months.
The digital challenger bank is gaining more than 35,000 new current account customers every week, according to a statement released by the bank today.
It says the rapid growth means three in every 100 Brits now use its “hot coral” or reddy-orange debit cards for everyday spending.
Features like the ability to send money to others in just a few taps or split bills immediately have proved popular.
The app-only bank says much of its growth has come through word-of-mouth recommendations and referrals.
It recently began a partnership with other banks to offer flexible and fixed-term savings accounts and an easy-access ISA.
The bank told Yahoo Finance UK last October it planned to double its staff headcount to 900 people within a year.
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App-only banks have attracted significant amounts of capital in recent years, with enthusiasm at their rapid growth in popularity and potential to disrupt the traditional banking sector. Several have achieved “unicorn” status through valuations over $1bn, including Monzo last year.
But the rise has not been plain sailing for all of the startups. There were reports in April that Revolut, a UK rival to Monzo, faced an investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority about its culture and compliance after a whistleblower raised concerns.
Revolut also had to hit back at a Telegraph report claiming it had failed to block thousands of potentially suspicious transactions by switching off sanction compliance checks for several months.
Gillian Roche-Saunders, the head of compliance at Bates Wells Braithwaite, told Yahoo Finance UK last month that a bank’s focus “shouldn’t be growth solely.”
