Zopa Bank moves into Manchester’s Dalton Place
The fintech’s decision to move into the office on John Dalton Street will see space provided for an initial 50 employees, but future expansion could eventually see more than 500 Zopa staff working in Manchester.
According to the London-based challenger bank, Manchester was chosen for the office due to its “thriving tech ecosystem, strong financial services presence, and deep talent pool”.
Iain Kendrick, chief people officer, Zopa Bank, said: “With more than 85% of our customers based outside the capital, expanding into Manchester allows us to be closer to our diverse, nationwide customer base, access new talent, and accelerate our ambitious growth journey.
“Manchester has the energy, connectivity, and capability we need to support our next stage of expansion as we make Zopa a top-choice employer across regions.”
Dalton Place is owned by Karrev and is home to WeWork. Karrev has acquired the 77,000 sq ft asset from Tesco Pension Fund for around £28m in 2023.
Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council, said the move “further bolsters [Manchester’s] reputation internationally as an important centre for fintech”.
Zopa provides current accounts, unsecured personal loans, point of sale finance, car finance, credit cards, savings accounts, and tools for improved financial management and health.
Currently, Zopa has 900 employees serving more than 1.5m customers and has recently expanded into everyday banking with ‘Biscuit’, a mobile-centric bank account.
Other challenger banks including Starling and Metro already have a presence in Manchester.
Zopa Manchester office will initially provide space for 50+ employees, with roles focused on product, engineering, and specialist operations. It could grow tenfold over time.
Superb news. 30 years of good governance and forward thinking is really starting to pay dividends for the city. Long may it continue. Now Whitehall back us with a rapid transport system befitting of one of the largest and fastest growing none capital cities in Europe and the the UK can finally start to become less dependent on London.
By Bob
Aaaaarggh ! Up to 500 employees not working from home! This goes against everything my inner monologue has been telling me and therefore I choose not to process it. So there.
By Homie