Starling sponsors Southampton FC Women as bank’s headcount hits 2,000

Digital neobank Starling has grown its headcount by 20 per cent so far this year, and plans to grow by another 10 per cent before the end of 2022.

As part of the growth, Starling has opened a new London office at The Fruit & Wool Exchange in London’s Spitalfields, where its banking-as-a-service arm Engine by Starling Bank will be based.

“We’re a British Bank full of brilliant talent and we’re opening our doors to more hires as we continue in our mission to change banking for good,” said CEO and founder Anne Boden.

“Our new office is based in between the financial district of the city and London’s Silicon Roundabout—the perfect location for Starling, which stands apart from traditional banks and challenger banks and is firmly in a category of one.”

The latest growth puts its current staffing at over 2,000, with more than 1,000 employees based in Cardiff, 650 in London and 400 in Southampton, where Starling Bank also just announced a major new sponsorship.

Starling has become the official principal partner for Southampton FC Women for the 2022-23 season, following on from the bank’s huge marketing win at the Women's Euros this year.

The bank said this latest sponsorship deal was aimed at helping to keep up the momentum in women’s football, coming after the bank also made £28,000 worth of grants available for emerging players and grassroots football clubs.

Rachel Kerrone, brand and marketing director at Starling, said the Southampton FC deal “reinforces Starling’s commitment to supporting up-and-coming female football players as we try to level the playing field through equal training opportunities and dedicated resources.”