Starling Bank unveils Banking-as-a-Platform APIs
Starling Bank is launching its own Banking-as-a-Platform APIs to allow businesses to offer their own retail banking payments services, such as card issuing as an API.
Anne Boden, Starling
This new offering allows to develop and scale new customised products, “without the need for long development lead-times and complex legal arrangements”. solarisBank in Germany already does the same thing.
Anne Boden, chief executive of Starling Bank, says: “Platform strategies have taken off in many other industries, with Airbnb, Uber and Apple becoming major players in the markets for accommodation, transport and music and yet owning no properties, vehicles or content themselves.”
Some of the products businesses can offer are savings, current accounts, or debit cards.
These businesses can pick and choose individual components and features, as they use Starling’s banking licence – which means they do not need to be regulated themselves.
Raisin UK is Starling’s first business client for this offer, an online savings marketplace that allows customers to pick savings deals on the market to meet their individual needs.
Through Starling’s API, Raisin UK will be able to open accounts for each customer, collect their deposits and place them at their network of partner banks that participate in its marketplace.
Starling says its API can be implemented with just a few lines of code. The bank is directly connected to various payment schemes, including Faster Payments, SEPA, Bacs, and Mastercard Debit.
Read more about Starling’s own marketplace here.
Starling’s main rival is Monzo, as they both offer similar offerings. Now Starling is aiming for more business, and it’s upping its cosmetic game.
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