US open banking fintech Plaid confirms UK launch

As reported by Financial Newson, the company has been hiring senior managers to lead its European operations. The company now says that it will hire more than 25 people by 2020, and has opened its first UK office. Plaid is also plotting an expansion into mainland Europe.

The company sells software that gives its customers — who tend to be challenger banks, robo-advisers and other financial startups — access to the consumer-account data held by established banks and other big players.

The firm has two paying customers in the UK, one of which is the money management app Emma. In the US, Plaid’s customers include payments companies Stripe and Venmo, the trading platform Robinhood, the crypto-trading outfit Coinbase and LendingClub, the digital lender.