Starting any business is a bold move but planning and opening a bank is off the scale. Why do it and when did the idea take shape?

I had to do it. Having started as a technologist, I spent more than 30 years in finance and worked at some of the biggest banks in the world.

But after the financial crisis, I realised that everything had changed.

What banks were had changed, what technology they needed had changed, what people wanted had changed.
But what banks were delivering hadn't changed at all. What I realised in 2014 was that the real-time customer experiences we were accustomed to in life were missing when it came to banking. The answer was to start again and build a bank from the ground up. We're bringing all the features of new technology to the mobile and the financial services
market for the very first time.

Where did the level of experience required to take on a project of this complexity come from?

Before Starling, I spent almost 30 years in banking. With technology as the core, I started as a graduate trainee in Lloyds Bank in the early 80s, joined Standard Chartered Bank to run my own team at 25, did a stint at PwC in consulting, and then went abroad to UBS in Zurich for several years before joining ABN AMRO, where I led the transaction banking business across 34 countries.

But I began to see that things were changing and so following the financial crisis, I spent time in the fintech community, looking at how new, small companies were offering something completely different to customers for the very first time.

During those years, I learnt a lot about how technology had really moved on and what we can now provide for the customer.

I never stopped learning - in every role, I  took on more and grew my experience across technology, banking and fintech.

Any serious hiccups in any of the planning stages?

Before Starling, I'd previously raised money to buy a business which I had found particularly easy. But when it came to the challenge of raising money for a startup, I hadn't fully anticipated how much harder it would be.

I was grateful for the help a number of consultancy firms who showed their belief in Starling and provided
me with a team on the basis of being billed when the bank was eventually launched. Without them, I wouldn't have been able to create Starling.

Did it take long to get a banking licence?

I had my first meeting with the regulator in June 2014 and was granted a licence in July 2016. Prior to the new regulations in 2013, you had to get all your systems and all your capital and then you'd be granted a licence and of course you couldn't get the capital without the licence. The hurdles to getting a banking licence are still high - as they should be - but changing the regulations so we can operate with restrictions and then launch with a full licence, is a great innovation coming out of the FCA and PRA.

Banks need capital was it difficult getting investor(s) onboard?

We aren't a simple fintech start up. We're a tech company with a banking licence and banks are difficult to fund, especially an early stage one.

They are not eligible for any of the EIS and SEIS schemes and the early start up stage is outside the risk
appetite of angel investors. 

As I said our early stages were funded by the big four consulting firms. We had to raise a significant amount of capital to get Starling underway.

How did you sell the concept to potential senior staff?

It was easy. Everyone one day wants a job that's meaningful and really makes a difference to people's lives. This is more than just a job, it is about creating something that has never been done before and in an extremely professional and high performing team. 

What's special about us is that we run integrated cross-functional teams where instead of a designated IT department, technology is at the very core of everything we do. There's no separation between business and technology. Designers, technologists, engineers, artists, marketers, people from all over the world are coming together to help build a full-stack bank.

Are you comfortable with the security level your banking system offers its clients? (given recent high profile bank account hacking based frauds)

 No-one should be complacent about cybercrime but we are building our bank with the current threats in mind and an architecture that can evolve to protect our customers. A fantastic team of system security professionals are working tirelessly to ensure our accounts are very secure.  On top of this, all balances at Starling will be protected by the Financial Services Guarantee Scheme. 

Apart from being untainted by PPI, Libor or derivative product selling scandals, why would a customer open a Starling account?

Unlike the established players in the market, we're offering the tools to take the stress away from the everyday management of money. We'll be a fully functional bank, but we don't plan on acting or talking anything like a bank at all.

Starling will offer intuitive tools for your money, so you understand simply, easily, everyday, what is really going on in terms of your financial health. What we're providing will be infinitely smarter than a normal current account. No more unhelpful bank statements or bank jargon, just a truly transparent banking experience.

Exciting times for Starling no doubt, are you close to announcing a launch date?

We're gearing up for the release of our beta very, very soon. We'll hold a full launch early next year. During the period prior to this, we will be testing our product, making sure we can serve customers really well.

If bringing the bank to its opening date is phase 1, what would phase 2 look like?

We don't intend to be a ‘little big-bank'. A little RBS or a little Lloyds. At the moment we're focusing on delivering something to really help people with everyday money. This is phase one. Creating the best ever current account at the centre of a financial ecosystem, providing the best quality products - be they mortgages or investments - tailored to customer needs.

Phase 2 is then delivering the Starling Bank app and that unparalleled experience. Starling consistently will provide customers with a great new way to do money, allowing them to seamlessly control their finances from the palm of their hand and, most importantly, ensuring better financial health and better financial wellbeing.

To join the community and be one of the first in line for a Starling account, please visit www.starlingbank.com