Lending Director

In the latest episode of The Fintech Show, Rivo Uibo from Tuum, Gabriel Viera from Zenus Bank, and Daniel Rowlands from LHV Bank discuss the evolution of Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS), and the revenue generating possibilities it presents.As the space matures, priorities are changing. Seamless onboarding is one major goal but compliance is also key.Watch the episode to find out about:Open APIs are presenting very real opportunities to scale.How Zenus Bank are enabling LATAM super apps to offer U.S. banking services.The challenges facing Open Banking growth?The Evolution of Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS)The BaaS market has matured. For one, it is growing. It was valued at $15.9 billion in 2023 and is expected to expand to $64.7 billion by 2032. Commenting on the demand for this technology, Tuum co-founder Uibo suggests that banks are now under pressure to stay relevant in an increasingly competitive landscape, seeking new revenue streams while leveraging their existing infrastructure.Initially, many BaaS providers targeted fintechs with relatively simple offerings but as the market evolves, compliance and economic viability have become critical focus areas

Following its authorisation as a credit institution by the Prudential Regulation Authority in May 2023, LHV Bank has grown significantly. It has reported a profit after tax of £6.4 million in its first year of operation as a licensed bank, providing solid foundations for ambitious development plans in 2024.Erki Kilu, CEO, LHV Bank said: “With a clear focus on customers with an entrepreneurial spirit, we have built products and services that are simple and transparent, underpinned by market-leading tech and excellent customer service. The relevance of our services is demonstrated in the results achieved in 2023 which now set us on a strong path for further growth in 2024.”LHV Bank’s Banking Services business has built a strong customer base which saw 2023 payment volumes increase to a record volume, processing 47.7 million payments by year end. Building on this success, at the start of 2023 LHV Bank broadened its offering to encompass SME lending and later in the year launched its personal savings accounts.By year end LHV Bank’s SME loans business in the UK had built a £69 million lending portfolio, supporting commercial real estate investment entities and trading SMEs. The banking licence received in 2023 enabled LHV Bank to launch its first personal savings offering in September on the Raisin platform, followed by the Flagstone platform in December. Deposits with LHV Bank were at £207 million at the end of the year.Other key developments in 2023 included the business transfer from UK branch, to its newly licenced entity

LHV Bank, one of the UK’s newest licenced banks, has increased its share capital by £20.9m to support its growth ambitions. Following the additional capital investment by the Bank’s sole shareholder, LHV Group, completed in the last week, the share capital of LHV Bank is £75m.In the last year, LHV Bank transferred its Banking Services business from its UK branch to the licenced bank. The capital needs were, therefore, also transferred to the Bank. As the business volumes of both its Banking Services and SME Lending operations increase rapidly, the already profitable Bank still needs additional capital to ensure its capital adequacy remains high.Erki Kilu, CEO, LHV Bank said: “The additional capital from our sole shareholder will give the lending brokers with whom we work continued confidence that they can rely on us as a long-term partner. It will also enable us to strengthen the retail bank offering planned to launch later this year.”LHV Group is listed on the Nasdaq Baltic and is the largest domestic financial group in Estonia. LHV Group’s strong financial standing is underlined by its earned net profit of £120m and 29% net ROE in the last year