How to start your own bank-style app in the UK (without being a bank)

By SendPay Business · 13 September 2026 · 3 min read

"Start your own bank" is one of the most searched phrases in UK fintech, and almost everyone who searches it means something more achievable than a bank: an app under their own name where their customers hold a balance, get a card, send money and pay by link. This guide explains what that is, what it is not, and how to launch one.

A bank-style app is not a bank, and that mattersWhat you can launch under your own brandHow the build works

A bank-style app is not a bank, and that matters

A bank takes deposits and is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority. That takes years and tens of millions in capital. A bank-style app is different: the accounts, cards and payments are provided by regulated partners, and you put your brand, your users and your fees on top.

SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits. Balances on the platforms built here are held with regulated partners and are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Being clear about that with your users is part of doing this properly.

What you can launch under your own brand

An everyday account with balances in pounds, euros and dollars, account details in the customer's own name, and a branded card. A money transfer app that sends abroad and shows the rate first. A payment-link product for invoices and subscriptions. A marketplace that pays its sellers. Each is a template in the builder, and each carries your name, your colours and your domain.

How the build works

Pick the template closest to your idea, type your platform name, choose your colours and preview the complete site before you pay. Verify who you are with a selfie, pay for the build against your own invoice, and the platform goes live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.

Pick a template: account, transfers, cards, crypto, payment links, marketplace or memberships.
Name it and brand it. The site changes as you type.
Preview every page of the finished platform.
Verify with a selfie and pay your invoice.
Go live on your own domain and invite your first users.

Permissions: the honest answer

If your platform holds customer money or moves it, you will usually need your own registration or authorisation in the UK: HMRC registration as a money service business for transfers, FCA cryptoasset registration for an exchange, and our card partner's approval for a card programme. We tell you which applies to your platform, in writing, before you pay, and we introduce you to specialists who handle the applications. We are not licensed advisers and do not guarantee any outcome.

What it costs and what you keep

Platforms are a one-off build, from £2,500 for a money transfer platform to £5,000 for the full business account platform. After that the fees are yours to set: 1%, 2.9% or nothing. On £10,000 of payments at 2.9% your platform keeps £290. Your users sign up with you, not with us.

Build it

Create your own financial platform.

Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.

Build my platform →

Questions people ask

Can I really call it a bank?

No. "Bank" is a protected term in the UK. Call it an account, a platform or an app. Your users still get a balance, a card and account details in their own name.

How long does it take to launch?

The build takes minutes. The platform goes live within 24 hours of your order being confirmed, and permissions, where needed, run on their own timetable.

Do I need my own company?

You can sign up from almost any country. To launch, your platform trades under a UK company: your own, or one we help you register.

What happens to my users' money if my platform stops?

Balances are held with the regulated partners, not with your platform or with SendPay Business, so a platform closing does not take its users' money with it. Your terms tell users who holds what.

How can SendPay Business help me start?

Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. We tell you in writing which permissions apply, introduce the specialists who handle them, and put your platform live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.