Afin Bank Gets Green Light To Offer Mortgages And Savings Products To African Diaspora In The UK
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A digital lender Afin Bank recently secured the regulatory green light that will allow it to start offering savings products and mortgages to African diaspora living and working in the UK.
Afin Bank Secures The Necessary License To Start Servicing African Diaspora
Helping UK-based people from Africa is what the digital lender was created for, and with the regulatory nod of approval, it will finally be able to make a real change in its clients’ lives.
Afin received a banking license Authorization with Restrictions, which will allow it to start lending next year. It was created to help people from Africa who have encountered difficulties in getting mortgages in the UK due to their nationality, lack of credit history in the country, or visa status.
However, the new bank will be able to bring a positive change by offering residential and buy-to-let (BTL) mortgages to people living in England and Wales. On top of that, it will be issuing BTL mortgages for borrowers in the West African Countries of Ghana, Sierra Leone, and The Gambia who are investing in the UK property market.
In addition, the bank said that it is planning a range of FSCS-protected savings products meant to be offered to users who have a UK passport, in addition to those from Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, and The Gambia.
How Will It Work?
Afin Bank is a new venture that is backed by £60 million from its parent Waica Re, which is one of Africa’s largest reinsurance firms. It is led by the former CEO of digital SME lender Recognize Bank, Jason Oakley.
The way it will work is that all of its products and services will be available to the customers directly through the Afin app. However, the same products and services will also be available through brokers and intermediaries, for those who prefer to take that path.
Right now, the bank is working on building partnerships with various organizations and groups that are in some way connected with the African diaspora, including cultural networks and associations.
According to Oakley, getting the regulatory approval is a massive milestone for Afin, and it demonstrates that the bank is on its way to offering vital financial services to Africans living in the UK, where they are poorly served by the local mainstream providers. He added that many of them are professionals working in vital sectors, including health, law, and finance, as well as in numerous corporate firms.
Some are creating new wealth or other kinds of opportunities in the country, but for various reasons, they are not receiving the financial support they need.
