BaaS provider Griffin secures UK banking licence

Griffin can now officially operate as a bank, allowing it to hold a limited amount of deposits and start to offer payment services.

Griffin, a UK-based BaaS provider, has received its preliminary banking licence. 

The fintech received authorisation, with restrictions, from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).   

Griffin, founded in 2017, can now officially operate as a bank, allowing it to hold a limited amount of deposits and start to offer payment services.  

A Griffin spokesperson told FinTech Intel that this means the fintech can hold a maximum of £50k of deposits in total, while it must cap payments at £1k.  

While in the preliminary stage, Griffin will further develop its systems and controls, grow its team, and continue to evolve its BaaS product portfolio as it works to become a fully-fledged but API-first bank. 

Griffin plans to begin working with a select group of customers who will receive early access to its BaaS products as it prepares for general availability.  

David Jarvis, chief executive officer and co-founder of Griffin, commented: “Becoming a bank is testament to the determination of our team, who have been tirelessly building a modern core banking system, a resilient operational backbone and a robust compliance framework.”  

John Weguelin, chair of the board at Griffin, added: “The team will continue to work closely with the regulators in building an API-first bank while delivering best-in-class customer experience.”  

Rob Straathof, chief executive officer of Liberis—a Griffin customer—said: “Griffin’s proposition is to offer a suite of banking products that will help embedded finance platforms like Liberis deliver more value to small businesses and differentiate our proposition in a competitive market.” 

Image: Griffin  

Learn more about Griffin: Griffin announces two hires to support growth and compliance 

Josh Poyser Josh Poyser is an editor at FinTech Intel. He has written about fintech for several years and appeared at FinTech Connect 2023 on the 'Unlocking Success: The Art of Fintech PR' panel.