Afin Bank, a new digital bank planning to serve the African diaspora living and working in the UK, is set to begin lending next year, after securing a banking licence from the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).
Afin Bank plans to help people from Africa who find it difficult to get mortgages because of their nationality, visa status or lack of credit history in the UK, despite doing vital jobs and running their own businesses.
The new digital bank was granted a banking licence with restrictions, meaning the aggregate amount of deposits held by the firm cannot exceed £50,000. Afin Bank will offer a range of FSCS-protected savings products to savers with a UK passport, as well as UK residents from Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and The Gambia.
With plans to start lending next year, it will offer residential and buy-to-let (BTL) mortgages to people living in England and Wales, as well as BTL mortgages for borrowers investing in the UK property market.
Afin Bank’s CEO is Jason Oakley, who co-founded SME lender Recognise Bank in 2021. Announcing the Bank’s new banking licence, Oakley said: “This is an important milestone for Afin Bank and demonstrates that we are well on our way to offering vital financial services to the African diaspora who are currently poorly served by mainstream providers.
“These are professionals working in vital sectors such as law, finance and health, as well as in many of our major corporate firms, or they are creating wealth and opportunities in the UK. Yet they have found it difficult to get the financial support they need until now.
“Afin Bank will tear down the barriers these under-served customers face and give them the products they need from a bank they can trust. More than just helping them overcome these challenges, Afin Bank will be a bank where customers will feel welcome and people with diverse backgrounds are valued.”
Supporting nationals from West Africa and beyond
The inspiration for Afin Bank came from the real experiences of Africans living in the UK, particularly from West Africa, struggling to build banking relationships in this country. Initially, Afin Bank will target African nationals, of which there are more than 1.5 million living in the UK. As the bank grows, it hopes to appeal to borrowers from other under-served diaspora communities.
Afin Bank is backed by a parent company, WAICA Reinsurance Corporation Plc, one of the largest reinsurance companies in Africa. WAICA has committed £60million to Afin Bank, demonstrating its belief in the UK financial services sector and Afin Bank’s goal of supporting an under-served customer base.
Monica Velasquez, chief technology officer at Afin Bank, was previously the CTO of Recognise Bank’s award-winning platform and a solutions engineer at Mambu. Velasquez said: “Advanced technology is now a baseline expectation for financial services. At Afin Bank our goal is to deeply understand the barriers our customers face and create innovative, customer-centric solutions swiftly.”
In addition to an app, Afin Bank will use intermediaries and brokers for its lending products. The bank will also build partnerships with groups and organisations that are part of the African community, including cultural networks and associations.
