FinTech giant Starling Bank is eyeing either a US banking license or an acquisition to enter and expand in the US market.聽
The news comes as the London-based company has begun to feel the pressure from rapidly growing rivals such as Revolut and Monzo.聽
Its profit was 拢223m in its March 2025 accounts, down from 拢301m in the previous year, while it was hit with a 拢29m fine due to 鈥渟hockingly lax鈥� regulatory failings in October 2024.
In an interview with Sifted, CFO Declan Ferguson highlighted the opportunities that could be there for the bank following the return of Donald Trump to The White House.
鈥淚 think there is a really interesting opportunity to own and operate a regulated bank in the US,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think that was there two years ago but under the current administration, there鈥檚 a vast and deep pool of opportunity.
鈥淚n trying to unlock that market, we want to own and operate a case study there.
鈥淲e鈥檙e at the early stages of that, but our thesis at the moment is that it would mirror a significant part of our UK banking operations.鈥�
The firm鈥檚 banking-as-a-service offering, Engine, could be key to it becoming a powerhouse – with the arm鈥檚 contribution to group income up 284% year-on-year at 拢8.7m.
Ferguson confirmed that the bank would be replatformed through its SaaS arm as a case study for the technology, should Starling go down the acquisition route.
Despite not having branched out yet like Monzo and Revolut, the business has over 4m customers and 拢12.1bn in deposits in the UK.
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