LHV Bank, a leading provider of Banking Services and SME Lending solutions, announces it has been authorised as a credit institution by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), becoming the first institution to receive a banking licence without restrictions in 2023.
This milestone achievement allows LHV Bank to accept customer deposits and transition from operating under the temporary permissions regime as a branch of Estonian retail bank AS LHV Pank (LHV Pank) to being a fully authorised and regulated bank by both the PRA and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The decision to pursue a UK banking licence was made in 2021, and LHV submitted its application in March 2022. Following a close collaboration with the PRA and the FCA, the bank has secured the licence in just over a year, demonstrating its commitment to regulatory compliance and high standards.
Madis Toomsalu, Chairman of LHV Bank, stated, “Receiving the licence without restrictions in just over a year since submitting our application validates the exceptional work of our team and the professional operation we’ve built. We expect LHV Bank to achieve profitability by the end of our first year of operations. Our ability to generate additional capital internally positions us strongly for further growth in the dynamic UK banking market.”
Erki Kilu, the CEO of LHV Bank, added, “In addition to our existing Banking Services and SME Lending activities, we plan to start accepting retail deposits later this year and expand our banking solutions offering to e-commerce businesses, maintaining the same level of convenience, reliability, and security that our existing clients have come to expect.”
Connecting Traditional Banking and New-Generation Financial Services
A new-generation financial institution, LHV Bank connects the traditional banking sector with cutting-edge financial services, delivering best-in-class, cloud-native payments and banking infrastructure. Operating in the UK since 2018, LHV is a member of all major UK and EU payment schemes and, as such, its extensive offering includes real-time multi-currency payments, current and savings accounts, acquiring, indirect scheme access, open banking, and FX solutions, which are used by over 200 leading fintechs like Airwallex, Currencycloud, Truelayer, and Wise.
With a team of 130 employees and offices in London, Leeds, Manchester and Tallinn, LHV Bank enables its portfolio companies to serve over 10 million end-customers. Last year, the bank processed over 25 million payments valued at over £90 billion. Through its offering, its client base has access to a pool of 500 million potential clients across the UK and Europe, making LHV Bank one of the largest providers of Banking Services.
