Allica revealed as the UK’s fastest-growing fintech ever

Allica Bank is the fastest-growing UK fintech in history, according to Deloitte’s UK Technology Fast 50 awards.

The list ranks technology companies based on their revenue growth over the past three years, with Allica topping the 2023 list with growth of 85,438% for the period.

Taking the top spot for 2023 with such strong growth puts Allica as the third-fastest growing company across any sector in the 26-year history of the awards.

This is excluding the revenue Allica generated from its acquisition of AIB’s British business, in line with the Fast 50 rules. If this was included Allica’s growth rate would have been 135,000% – the fastest ever for a technology firm.

Deloitte’s data reveals that Allica has also taken the crown of the UK’s fastest-growing fintech in history, an accolade previously held by fellow challenger bank Revolut, who topped Deloitte’s UK Technology Fast 50 in 2019 with revenue growth of 48,477%.

Note: where a company has appeared in more than one year, this chart shows their highest rate achieved.

Allica Bank – a challenger bank dedicated to serving established businesses with between 10 and 250 employees – last year also became one of the quickest UK fintechs to become profitable, just over two years since opening its doors to lending.

The bank has reported a stellar business and financial performance in the last few years:

• In mid-2023 it reached a milestone of £2 billion of deposits.
• SME lending balances increased by £782m, up 139%, to £1.35bn, in 2022 (£566m in 2021).
• Net operating profit of £6.9m in 2022.
• In late-2022, Allica successfully raised £100 million of capital from TCV, the growth tech investor backing Netflix and Spotify.
• Winner of Best Business Finance Provider at the 2023 British Bank Awards, AltFi’s Editor’s Choice 2022 award, and the SME Neobank of the Year in the global 2023 Qorus SME Banking Awards, among over 15 other awards won in the last 12 months.

Allica CEO, Richard Davies, says the firm’s mission is to gain 10% market share in the next five years.

“To be recognised as the winner of this year’s awards was brilliant, but finding out that we had the third-highest growth rate across any sector over the 26-year history of the awards has been incredible. I am so proud of the whole Allica team

“For me, though, this is only the beginning. We still have vast amounts to do to bring much better business banking to the established SME segment in the UK.

“This established SME segment makes up a third of our jobs and economy and they deserve so much more.”

Allica – campaigning for change

As well as gaining market share, Allica is campaigning to change the world of SME banking for the better.

Research conducted by the bank in autumn 2023 revealed the SMEs are missing £7.5 billion a year in savings interest on their hard earned cash. Allica is now calling on the wider banking industry to give SMEs a better deal on their savings.

Read more about the campaign here.