| Type: | Public limited company |
| Atom bank plc | |
| Location: | Durham, England, UK |
Atom Bank plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It is the United Kingdom's first bank built for smartphone or tablet, without any branches,[1] and the first digital-only challenger bank to be granted a full UK regulatory licence.[2] The company is based in Durham, England.[3]
Atom is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the PRA.
Atom was founded in July 2013[4] by Anthony Thomson, co-founder of Metro Bank[5] and Mark Mullen, previous CEO at First Direct.[6]
In June 2015, Atom was granted a banking licence[7] and before launch in November 2015, Spanish bank BBVA agreed to invest a substantial stake in Atom.[8] The company launched to the public in April 2016, after its regulatory authorisation restrictions were lifted, initially to those who had expressed an interest previously and had been given a registration code.[9] It launched more widely in October 2016 and today it offers mortgages and savings accounts, along with secured loans for small businesses.[10]
In 2017, Atom was named by LinkedIn as one of UK's top 25 startups and ranked 14th alongside companies such as Deliveroo, Uber and Airbnb,[11] and in 2019, Atom ranked second in business analyst Beauhurst's list of 50 top fintech UK startups and scale-ups. It was the only company from outside London in the top 20 of the list.[12]
In November 2023, Atom raised £100 million from BBVA, Toscafund and Infinity Investments Partners.[13]
In June 2024, Atom Bank criticized large UK lenders for their "indifferent" customer service while celebrating a record year of profits, reporting a £27 million operating profit, about seven times higher than the previous year, and its first annual pre-tax profit since launching a decade ago. Atom saw a 39% increase in customer borrowing to £4.1 billion and a 55% rise in residential mortgage balances, maintaining low business costs and raising £100 million from investors.[14]
Atom has apps for iOS and Android phones,[10] offering biometric security, with customers able to sign in via face ID or voice ID.[5]