After years of scandal, finally a 'civilised' bank

CivilisedBank will initially target medium-sized businesses

CivilisedBank will not have branches but instead operate through a network of local bankers (Getty)

A banking challenger for small and medium-sized business customers is aiming to raise £10m in funding ahead of a launch this year.

CivilisedBank will not have branches but instead operate through a network of local bankers, backed by an IT platform being used for the first time in the UK but employed by other players including France’s BNP Paribas.

The bank, whose name was dreamt up by the brand consultant and non-executive director Jason Scott, is led by chief executive Gordon Dow, the former head of private banking at Santander. It will initially target medium-sized businesses by offering current accounts with deposits, transaction banking, overdrafts, foreign currency exchange, investments, savings and loans. Later it will attempt to break into the retail market.

Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, HSBC Royal Bank of Scotland and Santander control 85 per cent of small business banking.