Jaidev Janardana, CEO of UK digital bank Zopa.
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LISBON, Portugal – British online lending company Zopa expects to double profits this year and increase annual revenue by more than a third due to strong demand for banking services, its chief executive told CNBC.
Zopa has reported 2023 revenue of £222 million ($281.7 million) and is expected to cross the £300 million revenue milestone this year, representing annual growth of 35%.
Forecasts for 2024 are based on unaudited internal data.
The company also said it expected pre-tax profits to triple by 2024 after reaching £15.8m last year.
Zopa, a regulated bank Backed by Japanese giant SoftBankplans to expand into the current account space next year as it looks to focus more on new products.
The company currently offers credit cards, personal loans and savings accounts through its mobile app – similar to other digital banks such as Monzo and Revolut that do not operate physical branches.
“Business is going very well. All of our metrics are meeting or exceeding plan through 2024,” Chief Executive Jaidev Janardana told CNBC on Wednesday.
He said the strong results were due to the gradually improving economic sentiment in the UK, where Zopa operates exclusively.
Commenting on the UK’s macroeconomic conditions, Janardana said, “While it has been a tough few years, as far as consumers are concerned, they are still feeling slightly less pain this year than last year.”
Markets “remain tight”, he noted, adding that fintech products such as Zopa, which often offer higher savings rates than commercial banks, become “even more important” in times like these.
“The proposition became more relevant, and although it was stressful for customers, we had to be more restricted in who we could lend to,” he said, adding that Zopa was nonetheless able to grow.
Janardana said the top priority for the future business is product. The company is developing a current account product that will allow users to spend and manage their money more easily, just like mainstream banking providers HSBC and barclays bankas well as fintech upstarts such as Monzo.
“We believe consumers can have more in the current account space,” Janardana said. “We expect to launch our current account to the public sometime next year.”
Janardana said consumers can expect a “smooth” experience from Zopa’s current account product, including the ability to view and manage bank accounts across multiple accounts from a single interface and access to competitive interest rates on savings.
IPO ‘not top of mind’
Zopa is one of a number of fintech companies considered potential IPO candidates. About two years ago, the company said it planned to go public, but later decided to shelve those plans as high interest rates hammered technology stocks and the IPO market froze in 2022.
Janardana said he does not believe a public listing is a priority, but noted there are signs the U.S. IPO market will be more favorable next year.
Janardana said this should mean Europe is more open to IPOs later in 2026. He didn’t say where Zopa would eventually be launched.
“It’s not my biggest concern, to be honest,” Janardana told CNBC. “I think we’re still fortunate to have long-term shareholders who are supportive of future growth.”
Last year, Zopa Hired two senior staffappointed Peter Donlon, former chief technology officer of online credit card retailer Moonpig, as its chief technology officer. The company also hired chartered accountant Kate Erb of KPMG as chief operating officer.
The company raised $300 million in a 2021 funding round led by Japanese technology investor SoftBank, and investors last valued it at $1 billion.
