According to an insider at the Royal Bank of Scotland, the bank has set an internal target of switching more than 1m users from Natwest to its latest project, a “next generation mobile-only bank”, in time for its debut in the third quarter of 2018.
A report from Forbes notes that it is unclear whether the new bank will go live as part of a beta programme first, and indeed whether or not that beta would be available to public users. It also suggests that RBS has built an 80-strong crack team of experts and developers to work on the new mobile bank, situated in a Piccadilly office in London, away from prying eyes.
In another interesting move, the insider has said that RBS’ mobile-only bank will be pursuing a marketplace business model, aiming to forge third-party partnerships as its primary source of revenue over lending. This is a model that is now well-known in the digital banking sector, hailed by dominant players like Monzo and Starling Bank as the future of next generation banking.
A spokesperson for RBS commented in a statement: “Our industry is changing rapidly and therefore we need to keep pace with this by launching new approaches to better serve our customers.”
"We will not comment on media speculation, but we’re focussed on using automation and technology to deliver a more efficient banking experience that better reflects the changing way our customers now bank.”
