Simon Rabin

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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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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🚀 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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📢 Allica Bank CEO Richard Davies was quoted in The Times yesterday about how a few smart regulatory tweaks could unlock £500 million more in SME lending this year 🚀   He covered:   🏦 Why high street banks are pulling back from SME lending 💰 How UK businesses think about debt, and how to build confidence ⏩ Why speed of decision-making matters more than ever   We’re proud to back the UK’s established SMEs that make up the beating heart of the UK economy – and too often get overlooked.   With over £3 billion already lent, we’re transforming relationship banking with great rates, smart people and powerful technology. And with the right support from regulators, we could do even more.   Let’s make it easier for established SMEs to get the money they need to thrive 💼   👉 Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/e8bbt8S2   #SMEs #businessbanking #fintech #regulation #growth

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OakNorth Bank is no shiny Monzo or Revolut. But what the UK challenger bank lacks in loud logos and viral advertising, it makes up for with a squeaky-clean reputation. Chief risk officer Mark Steele tells Farah Khalique in a sit-down interview at The Banker's HQ on how the lender is expanding into the US in a characteristically cautious way. While many of its digital peers have admitted to embarrassing compliance failures, system outages and swallowed multimillion pound fines in recent history, OakNorth has been quietly building a reputation as one of Britain’s most disciplined and consistently profitable mid-sized banks. With an average liquidity coverage ratio of nearly 500 per cent — more than four times the regulatory minimum — and not a single public enforcement action, it appears to excel at risk management and maintaining its reputation. Visit the comments (switch to 'most recent views') to read the full piece. Photo" Carmen Reichman.

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Paying 5, 50 or 250 people shouldn’t take an hour. But for many UK founders, bulk payments are still slow, manual, and capped by outdated systems. That's why we recently launched bulk payments – and why this story kicks off our new blog series, Built for Better Business Banking, written by our Business Banking team. In the first post, James Berry, Senior Product Manager of Payments, shares how we designed a faster, simpler way to handle high-volume payments – with fewer steps, and now in-app approvals. Read it here → https://lnkd.in/etePZfQH #BuiltForBetterBusinessBanking #bulkpayments

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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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