The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have named the first cohort of banks and building societies accepted into their joint Scale-up Unit, which is intended to provide tailored regulatory support to fast-growing and innovative firms. The six firms are Allica Bank, ClearBank, Monument Bank, Nottingham Building Society, OakNorth Bank and Zopa Bank. Support will focus on helping firms navigate the regulatory landscape as they develop new products, attract customers and enter new markets, with PRA and FCA officials meeting with firms as a group and individually over the coming months. The engagement is also intended to feed back into improvements to regulatory processes more broadly, and the Scale-up Unit is positioned as complementing existing early-stage support programmes. The regulators plan to open expressions of interest for a second cohort later in 2026, with further detail to follow. The Scale-up Unit remains open on an ongoing basis to requests for support from smaller, fast-growing insurers, and the FCA also plans to open expressions of interest in the spring for a separate solo-regulated scale-up cohort covering a wider range of sectors.
Bank of England 2026-02-03
UK Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority announce first six firms to join the joint Scale-up Unit
The Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority have announced the first cohort of six banks and building societies in their joint Scale-up Unit, aimed at providing tailored regulatory support to fast-growing firms. The initiative will help these firms navigate regulatory challenges, with plans to open expressions of interest for a second cohort later in 2026 and ongoing support available for smaller insurers.