ClearBank Announces European Expansion after 2025 Growth

ClearBank has marked its 2nd decade with compelling evidence that its infrastructure-first approach could deliver both scalability and sustainable profitability.

The UK clearing bank has achieved its third consecutive year of profitability, driven by accelerated fee income, increasing transaction volumes and ongoing European expansion.

The milestone demonstrates how a strategic pivot towards fee-based revenues and platform-driven growth can reshape the commercial trajectory of a modern financial services provider.

According to the bank's FY2025 results, group normalised revenue rose 34% year-on-year to £121.6m (US$164.2m), while fee-based income grew 51%.

This fee income now accounts for the majority of ClearBank's revenues, reflecting increasing demand for embedded banking, agency services and multi-currency capabilities.

The shift marks a decisive move away from interest-rate dependency towards more predictable, recurring revenue streams.

Infrastructure scale drives commercial momentum

At the core of ClearBank's commercial strategy sits its real-time clearing and embedded banking infrastructure, which now supports more than 17 million accounts, up from 13 million in 2024.

Customer balances increased by 65% to £17.8bn (US$24bn), while payment volumes jumped 57% to reach 262 million transactions.

These figures reflect both new client acquisition and deeper engagement across its existing partner base.

The UK business continues to anchor the group's financial performance.

Normalised revenue increased 32% to £117.7m (US$158.9m), while pretax profit rose 53% to £12.2m (US$16.5m).

ClearBank UK has also secured an Investment Grade (BBB-) credit rating from S&P, strengthening its position as a critical financial infrastructure provider.

CEO Mark Fairless says: "2025 was a year of significant growth, but also one of investing for the future success of the group as we expand our propositions and geographic footprint for 2026.

"We have built unrivalled infrastructure and are scaling it efficiently across new propositions, new jurisdictions and new segments, with the foundations laid for the next phase of our expansion.

"Our UK business profitability has enabled us to further invest for the future while delivering for our clients each and every day. Existing clients are increasingly doing more with us and we are onboarding new clients rapidly.

"We are laser-focused on our purpose – to unlock the potential of our clients – and I'm confident we'll see all the steps taken in 2025 translate to an even more positive 2026."

Embedded banking accelerates partner acquisition

Embedded banking has emerged as a central growth engine for ClearBank's commercial expansion.

The bank has grown its partner base from six to nine, launching savings accounts with LemFi and Coinbase while deepening relationships with Revolut and Capital on Tap.

Capital on Tap reached £1bn (US$1.4bn) in deposits within 12 months of launching its UK savings product, demonstrating the commercial potential of ClearBank's platform-as-a-service model.

The bank also moved into corporate embedded banking during 2025, with PayCaptain becoming its first partner in the segment.

This represents a strategic expansion beyond fintech clients into broader enterprise use cases, diversifying revenue streams and extending platform reach into new market segments.

ClearBank now serves 279 clients, having added 61 during the year. Increased activity across payments, FX and multi-currency services has driven higher platform usage, contributing to a 38% rise in statutory net fee income.

The growth reinforces the shift toward recurring, high-quality revenues that could provide greater predictability for long-term business planning.

European operations enter delivery phase

Alongside UK profitability, ClearBank is investing in scaling its European operations as part of its broader growth strategy.

ClearBank Europe completed its first full year of operations following its 2024 banking licence, onboarding 21 new clients to reach a total of 28.

The business expanded its footprint across 21 EU countries and opened a Paris branch to support growth in France.

By year-end, it reported €44m (US$51.4m) in customer deposits and monthly payment volumes exceeding 1 million transactions. The European expansion represents a calculated investment in geographic diversification that could unlock new revenue channels in the medium term.

"Our performance this year reflects a business delivering exactly what we said it would," says ClearBank Group CFO David Samper.

"Strong growth and profitability in our core UK business, continued scaling and maturation in Europe and ongoing product innovation demonstrate a model that is both resilient and repeatable, reinforced by ClearBank UK achieving an Investment Grade credit rating from S&P.

"Our operational resilience remains a defining strength and the European business is moving firmly into delivery mode, quadrupling our client portfolio and setting the pathway for further growth."