Banking in the UK

Atom Bank – Based in Durham (the north east of England), is the first bank in the UK built exclusively for smartphone and tablet users. You can open a savings account with Atom app in 10 minutes. The Bank was named Best Online Lender (What Mortgage Awards).

Barclays plc – Headquartered in London, it is one of the leading international financial institutions and the second largest bank in the UK.

British Business Bank – A government-owned economic development bank located in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England.

Charity Bank Ltd, established in 2002, is Britain's first not-for-profit bank providing low-cost loans to charities and social enterprises.

Charter Savings Bank – The UK online and phone-based bank offering savings accounts with competitive and sustainable rates.

First Direct – An online retail bank based in Leeds and Hamilton (near Glasgow). It was the UK's first telephone bank and today offers deposit products, current accounts, mortgages, credit and debit cards, personal loans, life, travel and home insurance, mobile banking and other services. It is the UK's #1 brand for customer satisfaction according to Customer Service Institute. First Direct services are also available at Post Office branches.

Metro Bank plc, located in Holborn, London, is the revolution in British banking. The company’s stores are open 7 days a week from 8 am to 8 pm on weekdays. As of March 31, 2020, it reported total assets of £21 billion and loans £15 billion.

Monzo Bank – A digital, mobile app-only bank established in 2015. More than 55,000 people open a Monzo account every week. The company has offices in London and Cardiff (UK), and Las Vegas and Los Angeles (USA). Monzo recently won Best Banking App at the British Bank Awards. If you have just moved to the country, opening an account is simple. The Bank doesn’t ask you for proof of address because it verifies your date of birth instead.

Monese Ltd – A mobile-only banking business offering mobile current accounts and debit cards for people with no UK address, no credit history or utility bills.

Revolut Ltd – A digital banking startup offering mobile app-based current accounts, debit cards, international money transfer, currency and cryptocurrency exchange. You can convert 29 currencies directly into Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and XRP. The company is backed by some of well-known investors. In December 2018, it received an EU banking license by ECB (European Central Bank).

Smile – A full-service online retail bank providing current and savings accounts, gold and classic credit cards, mortgage loans and insurance.

Starling Bank is an app based UK bank founded in 2014. It offers current accounts, debit cards, personal and business loans and international transfers including US dollar transfers, Rand transfers, and Baht transfers. When you make an international money transfer via Bank’s app, a 0.4% fee to the transaction will apply. Starling was named Best British Bank, Best Current Account Provider and Best Business Banking Provider at the British Bank Awards.

Tandem Bank – A British challenger bank that offers journey credit card, cashback credit card and a fixed saver account. The company operates as a division of Tandem Money Limited.

NatWest Group plc (formerly The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS)) – One of the leading financial institutions in the United Kingdom with over 66,500 employees, £800 billion in total assets and £452 billion in deposits as of December 2020.