Mike Chambers

Open banking was covered widely at this week's Labour Party Conference, with widespread recognition of its critical role in powering UK economic growth and innovation. A standout moment was our Policy Director, Luke Ryder joining a fintech panel alongside Luke Charters MP, TrueLayer’s Megan Coulson, Financial Conduct Authority's Sacha Sadan, and Startup Coalition’s Charlie Mercer. The discussion explored: ✅ The journey OBL is supporting with industry and regulators to secure a long-term framework for open banking; ✅ How we can accelerate progress towards Open Finance to unlock benefits for consumers, businesses and the wider economy; ✅ The growing collaboration across the ecosystem to make this vision a reality. We were also pleased to participate in Innovate Finance and EY’s roundtable on Tech’s Plan for Change, where open banking was highlighted as a prime example of UK-led innovation. Attendees welcomed the move towards a sustainable, long-term model that supports the full ecosystem and enables continued growth. OBL remains committed to working with industry, policymakers, regulators, and consumer and business representatives to support this flourishing UK sector and ensure open banking continues to play a pivotal role in driving inclusive economic growth. #OpenBanking #OpenFinance #Innovation #FinTech #FutureOfFinance #Innovation #DigitalInnovation #TechInnovation The Labour Party

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Monzo Bank has become the latest bank to join the MTD goldrush as the digital bank announces that sole traders and landlords will be able to file taxes directly to HMRC from their business bank account without the need for separate software. The filing tool, provided via a partnership with Sage Embedded services, supports the quarterly MTD submissions and end-of-year returns, starting from the 2026/2027 tax year. Monzo joins the likes of NatWest Group, Starling and Tide in the race to attract business bank accounts -- a recommended step in the MTD process. Full story in the comments below 👇

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If you ever question why collaboration pays, look at this result: advocacy groups from the #payments industry including UK Finance and The Payments Association have prevented well-meaning but disproportionate regulators from imposing 'creative' but what would have been seriously damaging changes to safeguarding regulations in the UK. The team at Travers Smith led by Natalie Lewis and Matt Humphreys highlight this outcome in their article, explaining how the changes being made will mean EMIs and PIs can continue to compete on a level playing field. World class collaboration. Riccardo Tordera-Ricchi Robert Courtneidge Mitch (Munish) Trehan Neil Harris Jana Mackintosh Nuala Jackson Sophie Boissier Ben Agnew Tom Brewin https://lnkd.in/evjedX7H

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Challenger bank expands after £5 billion boost “We’ve built a resilient, diversified balance sheet that sets us up for sustainable profitability – and we’re still building momentum.” Chetwood Bank has unveiled expansion plans after breaking a £5 billion balance sheet benchmark. The digital lender is opening a Manchester office which will build on existing bases in London, Wrexham and Fleet, leaving it primed to continue its momentum across the UK banking sector. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eZpHStrf Paul Noble

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Trust Retail, part of the Trust Payments Group, has announced implementation of Pennies micro-donation technology at John Bell & Croyden, a London pharmacy dating back to 1798 and a Royal Warrant holder since 1958 #payments Mike Dotson robin winfield Alison Hutchinson CBE Rebecca Malia Full story here 👉 https://lnkd.in/ekBSd3aS

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The British Business Bank has agreed an ENABLE Guarantee transaction of up to £300m with Close Brothers Asset Finance, unlocking fresh lending capacity for smaller UK businesses. Find out more at: https://lnkd.in/e8a_CPzz #CloseBrothers #AssetFinance #BritishBusinessBank #ENABLEGuarantee #SMEFinance

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Neo Banks Need Enterprise-Grade Compliance Now More Than Ever The recent £21 million FCA fine levied against Monzo underscores a growing concern across the digital banking sector: rapid growth without robust compliance is a dangerous combination. Monzo allowed customers to open accounts using addresses like 10 Downing Street and Buckingham Palace—clear signs of systemic gaps in onboarding and monitoring. And they’re not alone. Other fintechs, like Starling, have faced similar penalties due to inadequate financial crime controls. As neo banks and fintech challengers continue to scale, they must move beyond legacy or improvised compliance tools. The financial crime landscape is evolving—so too must the solutions. This is where Pelican comes in. Global institutions, including one of the largest tier one banks in Europe, already trust Pelican’s AI-powered compliance and payments platform. Its enterprise-grade solutions offer: ▪️ Real-time sanctions screening with dramatically lower false positives ▪️ Intelligent onboarding and address verification using Natural Language Processing ▪️ Modular architecture that integrates seamlessly with existing systems ▪️ Automated transaction monitoring to detect anomalies and high-risk behaviours For neo banks and fintechs looking to grow responsibly, Pelican delivers the control, scalability, and auditability regulators demand—without slowing down innovation. Compliance isn’t just a checkbox. It’s a foundation. Get it right from the start. www.pelican.ai

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🎺 We've agreed an ENABLE Guarantee with finance provider 4Syte, supporting a facility of up to £100m. The transaction will unlock additional capacity, increasing 4Syte’s invoice finance and asset-based lending to smaller UK businesses. The funding is being provided by NatWest while the Bank is guaranteeing a portion of the funding and will help to support a doubling of the existing funding facility. “Working with a new delivery partner in 4Syte and alongside an established funder like NatWest, demonstrates our commitment to increasing the diversity of providers in the wider lender market, supporting them at whatever stage of their journey they are on," says Michael Strevens, Our MD, Structured Financial Institution Solutions.

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