For context, read this profile alongside the global bank map and the neobank overview. It is a case study in a fully licensed SME challenger, not a product recommendation. Primary source: Allica Bank.
While fintech wallets argue about partner banks, Allica Bank operates on a full UK licence and became a unicorn on 25 February 2026: a $155m Series D at a valuation of ≈$1.2bn led by Ventura Capital. The bank came second in the FT's 2025 ranking of Europe's fastest-growing companies, and in March 2026 an RFI Global survey of over 4,000 companies named it Britain's most recommended business bank.
For the owner of an established British business this is a rare combination: a digital product, a live relationship manager and state deposit protection in a single institution. Below are the fees, the rates, the competitive field and the economics — as of August 2026.
Background
The history is longer than it looks. The company was founded in 2011 as CivilisedBank, reached a licence with restrictions in 2017, handed it back in order to finish building its technology platform, and passed authorisation again in 2019 — this time as Allica. The real acceleration began with the arrival of CEO Richard Davies in July 2020: before that he was COO of Revolut, where he built the global banking platform, and the first CEO of OakNorth in 2013–2014, taking it through licensing; earlier still he held senior positions at HSBC, TSB and Barclays.
Davies's bet is the "established SME" segment with 5–250 employees. According to a June report by Oxford Economics for Allica, such companies account for 35% of private sector employment and 37% of its turnover, while the SME lending gap accumulated over 25 years is estimated at £65bn. The high street holds their current accounts but has cut personal managers and overdrafts; neobanks are busy with micro-businesses. A vacuum formed in the middle — and Allica is filling it.
The first leap came through an acquisition: in December 2021 Allica took from Ireland's AIB a GB SME loan portfolio of ≈£600m along with ≈2,000 clients. A run of deals followed: in August 2024 it bought bridging lender Tuscan Capital, and in October 2025 fintech Kriya with its invoice finance and embedded payments. Capital was raised in stages: a £110m Series B (Atalaya, 2021), a £100m Series C (TCV, December 2022) and a $155m Series D in February 2026 — Ventura Capital, GLG, Sona Asset Management plus existing investors TCV and Blue Owl, with part of the round structured as an Additional Tier 1 instrument.
The 2025 results, announced in April 2026: a third consecutive profitable year, with underlying pre-tax profit up 34% to £43.7m and revenue up 27% to £371.3m. The loan book added 23% to reach £3.7bn, deposits grew 29% to £5.7bn, and users of the flagship account more than doubled: up 133%, to over 14,000. Penetration of the target segment passed 6%; the stated goal is 10% by the end of 2028.
Products and pricing
The flagship is the Business Rewards Account: a current account with no monthly fee where the average balance is £10,000 or more (otherwise £25 a month; the fee is waived with an active credit product). Cashback on card spending is 1%, rising to 1.5% above a £4,000 monthly threshold. Inside the account sits a Savings Pot with instant access and a yield of up to 4.08% AER (rate card dated 19 December 2025): a 2.83% base plus boosts — 0.5% for 15 or more outbound payments a month, 0.5% for six months for switching via CASS, and 0.25% as a welcome rate for three months on deposits of £50,000 or more.
The deposit range is broader: as of August 2026 the 12-month business fix pays 4.00% AER on amounts from £20,000 to £2m, with 6- and 24-month fixes and notice accounts also available. In February 2026 an overdraft of £25,000 – £2m was added, with an automated decision in a matter of days; an application can be filed before the account is opened. The bank is aiming at the "overdraft gap": on its own research, since 2000 the volume of UK SME overdrafts has shrunk by more than 80% — from £18bn in today's prices to £2.7bn — while their share of SME lending has fallen from 31% to 5%.
The lending side has four lines. Commercial mortgages: owner-occupied £150,000 – £10m at LTV up to 80% with a 1.5% arrangement fee, investment property £150,000 – £15m at LTV up to 75% with a 2.0% fee, healthcare up to £15m; terms run to 30 years, and exiting a five-year fix follows a 5-4-3-2-1% ladder by year. Asset finance: £25,000 – £2.5m for machinery, vehicles, robotics and medical equipment, terms up to 7 years, advances up to 100%, a £295 documentation fee. Growth finance: £1–15m for companies with turnover from £5m, terms of 3–6 years, a term loan or revolver for MBOs, acquisitions and expansion — priced individually. Plus bridging finance through the former Tuscan, now Allica Bridging.
Onboarding for the Business Rewards Account is designed for companies registered for at least 12 months, with a balance of £50,000 or more or an active Allica loan; the credit lines usually require two years of full accounts and registration in England, Scotland or Wales. This is a filter in its purest form: the bank deliberately screens out start-ups and "thin" accounts, concentrating on working businesses with turnover. Across all lines £1.3bn of new credit was advanced in 2025.
Competitive landscape
The field is best read by roles. The high street — Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest — holds the bulk of SME current accounts but has wound down overdrafts over a quarter of a century and moved managers into call centres. Pressure from below comes from digital accounts for micro-businesses: Starling with its free tariff, Tide and Zempler with conveyor-belt onboarding — their economics are tuned for freelancers and micro-companies, and a business with 50 employees and secured borrowing needs finds it cramped there.
OakNorth is the closest in spirit: also a licensed and profitable mid-market lender, but with noticeably larger tickets and without a current account as the anchor of the relationship (Davies, incidentally, was its first CEO). Allica's niche is the full stack for the middle of the market: a current account with cashback, deposits and five lending lines under one brand. Market drift helps: on British Business Bank data, challengers and specialist lenders already account for around 60% of gross SME lending.
What it means for the client
For a client's operating UK company, Allica is a full bank with FSCS protection up to £120,000, in force since December 2025: an alternative both to the lumbering high street and to wallets with no balance sheet of their own. Spare cash works in the Savings Pot and the fixes, expansion is served by secured lending with an overdraft, and cashback of 1–1.5% turns operating spend into a small but steady return.
The service model is built around a live relationship manager — a scarce format for the 5–250 employee segment; a primary banking NPS of +76 shows the format is in demand. Onboarding is tuned for UK-resident companies with a clear operating history; structures with non-resident beneficial owners go through full banking KYC, which is quick only when the source-of-wealth file is ready. Pure holding layers and freshly minted SPVs will struggle to find a product here.
Under the hood
The unit economics of a licensed challenger are visible in pure form: deposits (£5.7bn) fund secured SME lending (£3.7bn), and on the 2025 accounts this machine delivered a net interest margin of 4.7% against 4.5% a year earlier. Cashback and the Savings Pot boosts are the price of attracting cheap operating balances: a current account gathers liquidity more cheaply than term deposits bought on the market. CET1 at year end was 13.4%, headcount grew 21% to 799 people, and £30m went into R&D and the bank's own AI.
M&A here is the assembly machine. The AIB book delivered a ready portfolio and interest income from day one; Tuscan brought bridging expertise and a broker network (the bridging book grew 85% in 2025 to £121m); Kriya brought invoice finance, embedded payments with integrations at Halfords and Stripe, and a target of £1bn of working capital by 2028. Each purchase closes a product gap faster than in-house development would. The book's structure at the end of 2025: commercial mortgages £2.4bn, asset finance £507m, growth finance £171m.
The Series D with its Additional Tier 1 tranche is a lesson in itself: banking growth runs into regulatory capital, and rounds have to be structured around PRA requirements, hybrid instruments included. The timeline is a sobering benchmark: eight years from founding to a full licence, another seven to unicorn status. A banking licence pays for itself when the deposit base is matched by an in-house credit asset carrying a margin; at Allica that came together after a change of team, a portfolio purchase and a series of rounds.
Regulation and status
Milestones: 2011 — founded as CivilisedBank; 2019 — full UK licence and the Allica name; 2020 — arrival of Richard Davies; December 2021 — the AIB portfolio; December 2022 — £100m Series C (TCV); August 2024 — the Tuscan acquisition; October 2025 — the Kriya acquisition; February 2026 — $155m Series D at a valuation of ≈$1.2bn; April 2026 — a third profitable year. The bank is supervised by the PRA and the FCA, and deposits are covered by FSCS. The Series D money is earmarked for a first expansion beyond the UK; the specific market has not yet been named, and preparatory costs are already reflected in the accounts.
FAQ
Are deposits at Allica protected by the state?
Yes — this is a full bank, licensed in the UK since 2019: deposits are covered by FSCS up to £120,000 per depositor (the limit has applied since 1 December 2025) across all accounts in aggregate. Balances above the limit are sensibly spread across institutions.
Which companies is Allica suited to?
Established SMEs with 5–250 employees: the Business Rewards Account requires registration for at least 12 months and a balance of £50,000 or an active loan from the bank, while the credit lines usually require two years of full accounts. Young start-ups and pure holding layers will struggle to find a product here.
What rates and cashback does Allica offer?
As of August 2026: the Savings Pot pays up to 4.08% AER with boosts for active use of the account, and the 12-month business fix pays 4.00% AER from £20,000. Card cashback is 1% on spending and 1.5% above £4,000 a month.
What does Allica lend against, and within what limits?
Commercial mortgages from £150,000 to £15m at LTV up to 75–80%, asset finance of £25,000 – £2.5m over terms up to 7 years, growth finance of £1–15m for turnover from £5m, an overdraft of £25,000 – £2m and bridging through Allica Bridging. Pricing on larger deals is individual, and two years of accounts are the standard requirement.
How does Allica differ from fintech wallets for business?
By its own balance sheet and licence: money sits in the bank itself under FSCS, credit is advanced from its own funding, and service is built around a personal manager. Fintech wallets hold funds at partner banks and live under a different protection regime.