For the past decade, the United Kingdom’s fintech sector has been the top-ranking investment destination in Europe. The extensive adoption of the internet and mobile devices and a favourable regulatory environment provided new financial industry players with numerous opportunities for rapid growth.

As a result, the United Kingdom has become home to over 25 fintech unicorns that have grabbed the attention of fintech-focused VC funds by offering innovative products to individual customers and businesses. Let’s explore the top 10 most funded fintech startups in the UK that are shaping the future of finance.

10 fintech startups in the UK that secured the most funding

1. LendInvest

• Founded: 2008
• Founders: Christian Faes, Ian Thomas
• Total funding: $2.8bn
• Product/Service: a property lending and investing platform

The most funded UK-based fintech startup, LendInvest, has grown into a mature financial technology company since its launch in 2008. LendInvest offers short-term, development, and buy-to-let mortgages across the United Kingdom.

Focusing on their goal to make property finance simple, they designed a platform that dramatically streamlines the process of getting a mortgage. It connects borrowers with investors, providing a choice of loan products catering to various needs.

LendInvest has received multiple industry awards and has been profitable since 2015. Their funders and investors include global institutions such as Citigroup, J.P. Morgan, HSBC, and National Australia Bank.

2. Prodigy Finance

• Founded: 2007
• Founder: Cameron Stevens
• Total funding: $2.4bn
• Product/Service: flexible financing for international graduate students

The runner-up on our list of the most funded UK fintech startups, Prodigy Finance, has received $2.4bn in total funding.

The story started in 2007 when three MBA students realised that traditional banks failed to address the needs of international applicants. They required collateral, guarantors, or documentation students didn’t have, thus motivating the founders to make education accessible by using innovative technology.

Among other variables, their inclusive model evaluates each applicant on their potential, not just current circumstances and credit score. Prodigy Finance has already supported over 30,000 students in getting their master’s.

3. SumUp

• Founded: 2012
• Founders: Daniel Klein, Jan Deepen, Marc-Alexander Christ, Stefan Jeschonnek
• Total funding: $2.1bn
• Product/Service: payment processing solutions for small businesses

SumUp provides a streamlined digital payment solution for small businesses, giving access to quality financial services to over 4 million stores, cafes, and other venues regarded as too small for most payment providers.

Launched in 2012 as a one card reader offering, today SumUp offers a wide range of readers and remote payment solutions (invoices, gift cards, payment links, etc.). The SumUp app also allows merchants to accept card payments by tapping a bank card against an iPhone.

SumUp works in 33 countries, offering local language support, processing payments in various currencies, and following data protection regulations specific to each region.

4. Checkout.com

• Founded: 2012
• Founder: Guillaume Pousaz
• Total funding: $1.8bn
• Product/Service: payment processing

Checkout.com is a payment platform that streamlines accepting and processing digital transactions. A powerful suite of tools and APIs allows the fintech to support multiple payment methods and currencies.

Checkout.com offers a range of tools that help prevent fraud, such as Intelligent Acceptance, Authentication, Identity Verification, and Fraud Detection. They also assist merchants in flexibly managing funds, providing a comprehensive view of their balances across all geographies and currencies through a single dashboard.

5. Revolut

• Founded: 2015
• Founder: Nikolay Storonsky, Vlad Yatsenko
• Total funding: $1.7bn
• Product/Service: digital banking services

One of the fastest-growing fintech startups in the UK, Revolut boasts more than 35 million users today. The company was founded in 2015 as a digital banking and financial services provider. The Revolut app offers a comprehensive suite of features catering to the versatile needs of individual users, such as mobile payments, currency exchange, international money transfers, cryptocurrency trading, and budgeting tools.

In addition, Revolut delivers a range of financial services tailored for businesses, providing them with tools to manage their finances, streamline transactions, and optimise international payments.

6. Wise

• Founded: 2015
• Founder: Taavet Hinrikus, Kristo Käärmann
• Total funding: $1.7bn
• Product/Service: cross-border payment transfers

Following a clear goal to provide a more transparent and cost-effective alternative to traditional banks for cross-border transfers, there’s little surprise that Wise has reached unicorn status.

Wise allows individuals and businesses to send money internationally at lower costs than traditional banks. This innovative fintech platform enables users to hold and manage money in multiple currencies within a single account.

Wise employs the peer-to-peer model, removing the need for intermediaries, which translates to fair exchange rates and transparent fee structure.

7. Lendable

• Founded: 2014
• Founder: Martin Kissinger, Victoria van Lennep, Paul Pamment, Jakob Schwarz
• Total funding: $1.6bn
• Product/Service: an online personal loans platform

Lendable focuses on providing lending solutions to individuals and businesses that make applying for a loan quick and hassle-free. The platform utilises sophisticated algorithms that analyse massive amounts of data, including the applicant’s credit history and financial circumstances, to offer them the most competitive interest rates.

Similar to other innovative fintech businesses, Lendable strives to be client-centric, offering flexible loan products to accommodate a wide range of borrowing needs. For example, you can borrow from £1,000 to £20,000 with a 12 to 60-month repayment period.

8. Landbay

• Founded: 2013
• Founder: Gray Stern, John Goodall
• Total funding: $1.6bn
• Product/Service: a peer-to-peer lending platform

Landbay is an online peer-to-peer lending platform that allows investors to invest in the UK’s buy-to-let mortgage market. It matches investors’ funds to buy-to-let mortgages, ensuring that each loan is secured by real estate.

The online platform worked with both individual and institutional lenders until 2019. Today, Landbay is fully institutionally funded. 

Landbay is known as one of the most socially responsible fintech businesses in the United Kingdom. The company offers a Green mortgage range with more competitive rates for energy-efficient homes. They recycle or repurpose technology hardware, recycle paper, and use energy-efficient lighting and sensor switches in their office. A great example to follow!

9. FNZ

• Founded: 2003
• Founder: Adrian Durham
• Total funding: $1.4bn
• Product/Service: investment platforms for financial institutions and wealth management firms

Founded 20 years ago, FNZ undoubtedly has the longest history across our list of the top-funded fintech companies in the UK. FNZ employs a platform as a service delivery business model to provide an end-to-end service, from investment front office and tax wrappers to investment back office.

FNZ calls themselves automation experts. They utilise cutting-edge technology, including artificial intelligence, to help customers focus on personalising their experience by automating tasks. 

10. Curve

• Founded: 2015
• Founder: Shachar Bialick
• Total funding: $1.3bn
• Product/Service: a payment card

Curve is a payment card that can aggregate multiple debit and credit cards through its mobile application, letting users make payments and withdrawals from a single card.

The Curve card offers a range of features to help users effectively manage their money and control their financial wellbeing. The app provides prompt insights and instant notifications to keep you in the loop about what you’ve spent, when you’ve spent, and where you’ve spent it. With Curve, you can switch payments from one card to another up to thirty days after you’ve made the payment. 

The app uses bank-level security, never saving sensitive data on your phone. Furthermore, if you lose your physical Curve card, it can be locked in the app with a single swipe. 

Let’s innovate finance together

 While the UK’s fintech market seems to be having its best time ever, there’s still room for growth and innovation. If you have an idea of an innovative solution, DeepInspire can help.

We have decades of experience in the fintech scene, extensive fintech product knowledge, and deep expertise in working with startups. Get in touch with our team to discuss your amazing idea today.