A new clearing bank set up to compete with Britain’s biggest high street lenders is holding firm on its $1bn-plus valuation after receiving a further injection of capital from its backers.
Sky News has learnt that The Bank of London, which launched in 2021, has secured $40m of additional funding from existing shareholders.
The round was jointly led by Mangrove Capital Partners and 14W venture capital, with ForgeLight, another investment fund, also participating.
A person close to The Bank of London said the extension to its Series C fundraising, at a continued $1.1bn valuation, was expected to be announced this week.
The company, which is led by Anthony Watson, a former Barclays executive, claims to be the world’s first purpose-built global clearing, agency and transaction bank
The latest funding takes the total amount raised by The Bank of London to $160m.
A spokesperson for The Bank of London said on Tuesday: “The Prudential Regulation Authority has lifted mobilisation restrictions to its authorisations for The Bank of London – meaning we can operate in an unrestricted way as the sixth principal clearing bank of the United Kingdom.
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“Our investors believe in our vision to reshape banking for the betterment of all, powered by our unique patented technologies and our differentiated banking models.”
The Bank of London has gatecrashed a market dominated by the likes of Barclays and HSBC, but which also includes another new entrant in the form of ClearBank, which launched in 2017.
The company says it is on track to hire more than 3,000 people globally over the next five years, with the bulk initially in the UK.
