Keel pivots from neobank to BaaS platform, enters crowded UK infrastructure market

A UK fintech has abandoned its consumer banking ambitions in favour of selling payments and open banking infrastructure to other companies, joining a competitive and consolidating banking-as-a-service segment.

Keel has emerged from stealth as a banking-as-a-service provider, offering ledger management, open banking capabilities and access to domestic and international payment rails such as Faster Payments, Bacs, CHAPS, SEPA, SWIFT, ACH and Fedwire. The company previously operated as a neobank before deciding the infrastructure layer offered a more viable business.

The pivot is worth noting less for what Keel itself offers — its capabilities are broadly comparable to established players such as ClearBank, Griffin and Modulr — than for what it says about the economics of UK consumer banking versus infrastructure provision. Several BaaS providers have faced regulatory and commercial pressure in recent years, and the segment has seen both exits and consolidation. Keel enters at a moment when buyers are more discerning about counterparty resilience and regulatory standing. Whether there is room for another entrant will depend on whether Keel can differentiate on reliability and compliance rather than feature lists alone.

Editorial note: The neobank-to-infrastructure pivot is a meaningful pattern in UK fintech, and the story offers a window into the competitive dynamics of BaaS at a time of ongoing consolidation.

Sources: UK BaaS platform Keel emerges from stealth — Finextra | Keel unveils fintech infrastructure business after pivot from neobank — Tech.eu

Lloyds highlights open banking data as route to credit inclusion

Lloyds Banking Group’s latest financial empowerment report identifies open banking transaction data, alongside rent and utility payments, as a means to extend credit access to underserved consumers.

In a report published on its corporate site, Lloyds argues that incorporating alternative data sources — such as rent payments, utility bills and open banking transaction data — into credit scoring could unlock mainstream credit for consumers currently excluded by traditional models. The report frames this as part of a broader financial wellbeing strategy.

The substance is not new: the use of open banking data in creditworthiness assessment has been discussed since PSD2’s early days, and several fintechs already offer it. What is notable is a UK high-street bank stating it publicly and tying it to a corporate strategy document. For open banking advocates, this is useful evidence that incumbents see commercial and reputational value in data-driven inclusion, not just regulatory compliance. Whether Lloyds is actively building these capabilities or simply acknowledging the direction of travel is not clear from the report alone.

Editorial note: A major UK incumbent publicly endorsing open banking data for credit scoring is a meaningful signal of mainstream adoption, even if the underlying idea is well-established.

Sources: Lives empowered, a nation empowered — Lloyds Banking Group