Mark Mullen

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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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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Alongside Bank of England we've worked to rebuild and modernise a core component of the UK's financial infrastructure, marking a major milestone of a multi-year transformation programme. 🤝 The successful transformation of the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) service has enhanced resilience, access, and functionality, as well as delivering new foundations for innovation. Find out more: https://accntu.re/4g1ncJM #UKBanking [Accessibility description: Photo of city lights, overlaid with title 'Bank of England and Accenture announce renewal of the Real-Time Gross Settlement Service', with an Accenture logo in the bottom right.]

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Economic growth starts with strategic investment in our strongest sectors 📈 Sarah Williams-Gardener, the Chair of FinTech Wales, explains how today's Financial Services sector plan builds on Wales' existing strengths to drive sustainable economic growth across the country. This is about more than financial services – it's about creating the high-value jobs and innovative businesses that will power Wales' economy for decades to come 🎥

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📻 BANKING HUBS - THE NEW NORM? Yesterday I was on the Breakfast Show at BBC Radio London talking about Banking Hubs. Hubs are opening across the UK to replace the gap left by bank branch closures. They’re run by the Post Office in partnership with nine major banks and you can use them to do your everyday banking e.g. 💷 paying in cash, ⚡️ paying household bills, and 🪙 using change giving services. Each week, Community bankers from each of the five banks with the largest number of customers in the area come in to help with the more personal stuff like Bereavement services and Fraud advice and protection. They’re set to become the new norm but is the right way to go? 🔗 Link to the show below and thanks to Lauren Stanley and Aaron Paul for having me on. #BankingHubs

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🚀 Accelerating the ambitions of UK smaller businesses Our Growth Guarantee Scheme has reached £2.5bn in total lending, enabling smaller businesses across the UK to invest, expand and thrive. 📍 69% of this lending has reached businesses outside London and the South East 📍 £270m+ has supported businesses in the North West alone 📍 Over £633m has been provided to companies under five years old Chancellor of the Exchequer Rt Hon Rachel Reeves said: "The Growth Guarantee Scheme has made a huge impact on our regional economies, helping smaller businesses across the UK to invest and grow, creating jobs and putting more money in people’s pockets." Launched in July 2024, Growth Guarantee Scheme can be accessed via accredited lenders and provides crucial financing through term loans, overdrafts, asset and invoice finance, supporting up to £2m per facility. 👉 Click through for the key highlights of this milestone. 

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