UK challenger Kroo expands partnership with ClearBank

UK challenger bank Kroo has selected ClearBank, which provides clearing and embedded banking services for financial institutions, to provide access to all UK payment schemes as well as accounts for its operational funds.

Kroo expands partnership with ClearBank

Founded in 2016, Kroo began as a digital-only prepaid card provider and is now building a “mobile-only social bank” focused on app-based transactions, combining payments with wider sustainable finance initiatives.

Kroo secured a full UK banking licence in June 2022 and plans to launch personal current accounts in the coming months.

ClearBank has worked with Kroo since 2019 in its journey towards becoming a fully regulated bank, providing technical and regulatory support to accelerate the process.

“Specifically, ClearBank provided operational accounts, access to UK payment schemes and the technical integrations that allowed Kroo to build its banking stack before gaining full regulatory approval,” ClearBank says.

Charles McManus, CEO at ClearBank, adds the company understands “the importance of regulation and a full banking licence when it comes to garnering trust from consumers and scaling”, and it hopes to continue working with firms such as Kroo to help them “evolve into fully fledged banks”.