London bank acquires lending company in £2.5m deal

A London bank has today announced the acquisition of a lending company for £2.5m.

Metro Bank has agreed to acquire Retail Money Market for an initial consideration of £2.5m, with additional consideration of up to £0.5m payable 12 months after completion, and further consideration of up to £9m payable on the third anniversary of the completion of the transaction.

The transaction will be funded from existing cash resources, while the final fair value and goodwill elements will be determined as part of the company’s year-end accounting process.

Daniel Frumkin, CEO at Metro Bank, commented: “The ability to enhance our offer of unsecured lending to our customers is an important strategic ambition as we continue to evolve the bank and increase our returns.

“RateSetter is an established business with a strong technology platform and a talented team who have deep experience in the consumer unsecured lending market.

“This acquisition therefore accelerates our plans, helps us to better meet the needs of our customers and further strengthens our position as the UK’s best community bank.”

Rhydian Lewis, CEO at RateSetter, added: “I am excited at the prospects of this combination. RateSetter and Metro Bank share a focus on delivering something better for the customer and the strategic logic of pairing Metro Bank’s strong deposit base with our lending capability is compelling.

“Metro Bank is admired for its fresh approach to banking and I am looking forward to helping the bank expand its offering and meet more customer needs.”