Triodos Bank secure UK Banking Licence
May 2019
Dutch bank, Triodos NV, has followed in the footsteps of RCI Bank in acquiring a UK banking licence ahead of the UK's departure from the European Union (EU). Triodos Bank UK will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Triodos NV, effective as of 01 May 2019. This follows similar action by other European banks, including RCI Bank, who continue to adapt and adjust their operations following the UK's vote to leave the EU in 2016.
Triodos Bank is headquartered in the Netherlands. The bank operates across Europe with offices in the UK, Germany, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands, as well as an agency in France. Triodos Bank works to "change the world for the better" as one of the world's "most sustainable banks" and has offered sustainable financial products in this quest since 1980.
The bank has operated in the UK market since 1995 using the passporting permissions enjoyed by banking institutions across the EU under relevant legislation. Such passporting allows a bank within a member state to operate in other member states but to be mainly supervised by the home market regulator. In the case of Triodos Bank NV, the UK operation was regulated by the Dutch Central Bank with limited regulation in the UK from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulatory Authority (PRA).
Since the UK vote to leave the EU on 24 June 2016, many European banks have worked closely with regulators to ensure continued access to the UK market post-Brexit. Following lengthy discussions and approval from the UK High Court of Justice using a Part VII transfer mechanism under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, Triodos Bank NV has completed a legal transfer of its UK activities to Triodos Bank UK Ltd.
Following this restructure, customers of Triodos Bank UK are now protected under the Financial Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS is the UK's compensation fund of last resort such that if Triodos Bank UK runs into difficulty, depositors will be protected up to their prevailing compensation limit.
Triodos Bank UK are currently offering Instant Access Savings products that pay up to 1.00%, Regular Savings products that pay up to 1.75% and Fixed Rate Bonds that pay up to 1.30% over a 3 year term.
The UK arm is led by Bevis Watts, who has been with the bank for three years.