Monzo Set to Expand to Ireland After Securing Full European Banking License

Digital bank Monzo is set to expand to Ireland and other European markets after securing a full banking license from the European Central Bank and the Central Bank of Ireland.

Monzo will first expand into Ireland, with its European headquarters and a team located in Dublin, the company said in a Wednesday (Dec. 17) press release emailed to PYMNTS.

The company was founded in 2015 and has been fully regulated in the United Kingdom since 2017, according to the release. In the U.K., it serves more than 14 million customers and over 800,000 businesses.

“Monzo has already proven that by combining the trust of a regulated bank with cutting-edge technology, we can truly transform people’s relationship with money,” Michael Carney, European Union CEO at Monzo, said in the release. “Today marks a significant step forward in our global mission to make money work for everyone.”

In Ireland, Monzo will roll out free savings accounts within months, including personal, joint, business, children’s and instant-access accounts, the release said.

The company’s business accounts feature digital onboarding, automated Tax Pots, integrated invoicing and real-time financial visibility, per the release.

Individuals and businesses in Ireland can register now to join Monzo’s waitlist for early access.

“People here are tech-savvy who value digital-first products that are built around their real life,” Elaine Deehan, country manager for Ireland at Monzo, said in the release. “Banking with Monzo is designed to make managing money effortless—an account with no maintenance fees, packed with clever savings, budgeting and security features, and human customer support on hand 24/7.”

Monzo said in August that in the U.K., it was welcoming more than 300,000 new customers every month and that two-thirds of these new sign-ups were coming from word-of-mouth recommendations.

It was reported in October that Monzo was weighing a new application for a U.S. banking license.

The company jettisoned an earlier application in 2021 after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency indicated that it would be unlikely to give the company its blessing. However, Monzo executives believe a new application would be more likely to win acceptance from the OCC in the wake of a deregulatory push overseen by President Donald Trump, the report said.