ClearBank

ClearBank is a London clearing bank founded in 2015 that opened in 2017, when it was described as the first new UK clearing bank in more than 250 years. It does not serve shops or consumers. Its customers are other financial firms, among them e-money institutions, payment companies, card acquirers, digital banks, building societies and crypto platforms, which need sterling or euro accounts and a route into the payment schemes without joining them directly. Tide, TrueLayer, Coinbase, Chip and Raisin are among the clients it names.

ClearBank Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 754568) and is a direct participant in Faster Payments, Bacs, CHAPS and the cheque Image Clearing System, settling at the Bank of England. Its Faster Payments limit is £1 million per payment. ClearBank Europe N.V. in Amsterdam received a European Central Bank banking licence in 2024 and connects clients to SEPA Credit Transfer, SEPA Instant and T2. It has since opened a Paris branch and says it had passported into 21 EU countries by early 2026.

Clients get operating and virtual accounts, Confirmation of Payee and its EU counterpart, embedded and agency banking, and multi-currency accounts with FX in more than 30 currencies through correspondent banks. In 2025 the group's normalised revenue reached £121.6 million, it had 279 clients and it handled 262 million scheme payments.

It suits regulated payment and fintech firms that want sterling and euro rails with direct scheme access behind them. A merchant looking to take card payments needs an acquirer instead, and ClearBank does not publish its prices.