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Draft:Fiinu plc

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fiinu Plc
TypePublic
LSE: BANK
IndustryFinancial technology
Founded2017[1]
FounderMarko Sjoblom
Headquarters
Weybridge, Surrey
,
United Kingdom
Key peopleDavid Hopton (chairman)
Marko Sjoblom (chief executive)
ProductsPlugin Overdraft
Foreign exchange services
SubsidiariesFiinu Brokerage (formerly Everfex)
Websitefiinuplc.com

Fiinu Plc is a British financial technology company based in Weybridge, Surrey, whose shares are traded on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker BANK.[2] The company develops the Plugin Overdraft, an open banking platform through which a lender provides an arranged overdraft to a customer of another bank.[3][4] Through its Polish subsidiary Fiinu Brokerage, formerly Everfex, it also provides foreign exchange services to small and medium-sized businesses.[5] The product was developed after regulatory changes to the British overdraft market in 2020.[6]

Background

[edit]

In 2019 the Financial Conduct Authority announced what it described as the biggest reform of the British overdraft market for a generation, banning fixed fees and higher charges for unarranged borrowing and requiring banks to price all overdrafts at a single annual interest rate from April 2020.[6] Ahead of the change most large banks set arranged overdraft rates of around 40 per cent, roughly double their previous charges, and the regulator wrote to them asking how the rates had been arrived at.[7][8] Fiinu has said that since the reforms about 16.5 million of the 55 million British current account holders lost access to an arranged overdraft, leaving a gap of roughly £10 billion that was being met by unregulated consumer credit, and that its product was designed as a regulated alternative that did not require a customer to switch bank.[3]

Buy now, pay later credit, which the FCA estimated almost 11 million British adults used in 2024, was brought under the regulator's supervision on 15 July 2026, with lenders required to carry out affordability checks before offering credit.[9][10]

History

[edit]

Fiinu was founded in 2017 by Marko Sjoblom, who is its chief executive.[1][11]

In June 2022 Immediate Acquisition Plc, an AIM-listed cash shell formerly known as Immedia Group, agreed to acquire Fiinu Holdings in a reverse takeover valued at £37.5 million and raised £8 million through a placing to fund the deal.[12] The enlarged company was renamed Fiinu Plc and its shares were readmitted to AIM in July 2022, the same month its banking subsidiary received a restricted banking licence from the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority.[3][13][14][15] The subsidiary needed exit capital of between £34 million and £42 million before it could begin trading without restrictions.[16]

In December 2022 the credit reference agency TransUnion agreed to supply open banking and credit data for the platform's eligibility checks.[17]

In April 2023, having been unable to raise that capital, Fiinu applied to withdraw the licence with the stated aim of reapplying once funding was secured.[16] In July 2023 the company said it had not been able to secure the funding, cut jobs, and scaled back operations at its subsidiaries, and its shares fell by more than 60 per cent on the announcement.[15][18][19][20] The regulators accepted the withdrawal, and the company said it would need between £35 million and £42 million to reapply.[14][21]

To reduce costs, the chief executive Chris Sweeney and the directors Jerry Loy and Huw Evans left the board on 31 December 2023, with the chairman David Hopton remaining and deferring his pay.[21][22][23] Sjoblom subsequently became chief executive, and the company shifted from seeking a banking licence of its own to licensing its technology to other lenders.[11][4]

In August 2025 Fiinu completed a reverse takeover of Everfex, a Polish foreign exchange brokerage, for an initial consideration of £8 million in shares, and its shares were readmitted to AIM.[5][2][24] In September 2025 Conister Bank, a subsidiary of Manx Financial Group, signed a master services agreement giving it exclusive rights to launch the Plugin Overdraft in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man for a minimum of three years.[4] In January 2026 the company reported a profitable month at group level, replaced the management of Everfex, and served notices on its former owners alleging breaches of non-compete obligations.[11][25] In 2026 a dispute with the former owners of Everfex led to a requisitioned general meeting at which shareholders rejected resolutions to remove Sjoblom.[26]

Governance

[edit]

In January 2026, following a review of controls at Everfex after the acquisition, Fiinu replaced the subsidiary's chief executive and vice-president, Karol Oleksa and Marta Oleksa, with Sjoblom taking direct charge of the business, and served notices alleging breaches of their non-compete obligations under the share purchase agreement.[11] The company later began arbitration proceedings against the Oleksas and notified their holding company, Granicus Holdings OÜ, of claims for alleged breaches of seller warranties, with the two sets of proceedings seeking damages of more than £16 million.[27]

Ahead of the annual general meeting on 24 July 2026, Granicus, which held about 10.7 per cent of the company's shares, circulated a letter to shareholders criticising Fiinu's account of the Everfex acquisition and its financial performance for 2025.[27][28] Fiinu responded that a significant part of its reported loss related to a non-cash goodwill impairment and to integration, investigation, and restructuring costs arising from the acquisition, rather than to its underlying operations.[27][28] All directors were re-elected at the meeting.[27]

Four days later Granicus requisitioned a general meeting under section 303 of the Companies Act 2006, proposing an ordinary resolution to remove Sjoblom as a director and an advisory resolution calling on the independent directors to review the company's executive leadership and governance.[27] The board recommended that shareholders vote against both resolutions, describing the requisition as disruptive and intended to distract from its claims against Granicus.[27] Sjoblom was the company's largest shareholder with a holding of 31.42 per cent.[27]

At the requisitioned general meeting on 11 September 2026 both resolutions were defeated on a poll, with the resolution to remove Sjoblom receiving 31.65 per cent of votes cast in favour and the advisory resolution 31.92 per cent.[26] The chairman, David Hopton, said the result closely matched the vote at the annual general meeting and that the board unanimously supported Sjoblom.[26]

References

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  1. 1 2 "Fiinu Holdings Limited, company number 10544700". Companies House. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  2. 1 2 "IN BRIEF: Fiinu resumes trading on AIM as BANK after Everfex takeover". AJ Bell. Alliance News. 27 August 2025. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Venkataramakrishnan, Siddharth (8 August 2022). "Smaller fintechs are still hiring up despite economic downturn". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "Fiinu and Manx Financial partner on white-label overdraft services". AJ Bell. Alliance News. 16 September 2025. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Fiinu to acquire FX firm Everfex in £12m reverse takeover". FinTech Futures. August 2025. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  6. 1 2 "FCA confirms biggest shake-up to the overdraft market for a generation" (Press release). Financial Conduct Authority. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  7. ↑ Schraer, Naomi (28 January 2020). "Martin: 'FCA subtly slaps banks' wrists – and provides some relief for overdraft prisoners'". MoneySavingExpert. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  8. ↑ "FCA requests explanation on banks' 'harmful' overdrafts". Finextra. January 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  9. ↑ "New buy now pay later rules to begin in July, FCA confirms". AM Online. 27 February 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  10. ↑ "FCA regulations begin on Buy Now Pay Later". Fair4All Finance. 16 July 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Fiinu takes legal action after replacing Everfex leaders". BusinessCloud. 5 January 2026. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  12. ↑ "Immediate Acquisition raises GBP8 million to fund Fiinu acquisition". Morningstar. Alliance News. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  13. ↑ "UK Fintech Fiinu Obtains Banking License, Joins AIM with £53M Valuation". Crowdfund Insider. July 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  14. 1 2 "Fiinu 2 Limited". Financial Services Register. Financial Conduct Authority. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Fiinu plummets after still being unable to raise money to apply for banking licence". Proactive Investors. 12 July 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  16. 1 2 "Fiinu shares slump following withdrawal of banking licence". MarketScreener. Alliance News. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  17. ↑ "TransUnion, Fiinu Bank offer plugin overdraft solution". The Paypers. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  18. ↑ "Fiinu unable to reapply for withdrawn restricted UK banking licence". MarketScreener. Alliance News. 12 July 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  19. ↑ Khairnar, Shruti (12 July 2023). "Fiinu to scale back operations amid continued efforts to source fresh funding". FinTech Futures. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  20. ↑ "Fiinu still seeking bank licence application funding as loss widens". LSE.co.uk. Alliance News. 17 August 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  21. 1 2 Cameron, Hugh (29 December 2023). "Fiinu up after board changes to finance banking licence re-application". LSE.co.uk. Alliance News. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  22. ↑ "Fiinu Plc, officers". Companies House. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  23. ↑ "Fiinu puzzled by share jump; focus on licence reapplication". MarketScreener. Alliance News. 9 January 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  24. ↑ "Fiinu agrees to terminate GEM share subscription facility". Hargreaves Lansdown. Sharecast. 1 September 2025. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  25. ↑ "Fiinu reports profitable month, alleges non-compete breaches at Everfex". Hargreaves Lansdown. Sharecast. 5 January 2026. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  26. 1 2 3 "Result of Requisitioned General Meeting" (Press release). Fiinu Plc. 11 September 2026. Retrieved 14 September 2026 – via Investegate.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Symcox, Jonathan (30 July 2026). "Shareholder looks to oust Fiinu CEO amid £16m legal action". BusinessCloud. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  28. 1 2 "Fiinu Responds to Shareholder Letter Ahead of AGM". Share Talk. 6 July 2026. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
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