← Embedded Finance Index 2026

Mettle

“Can a big UK high-street bank build a credible standalone digital-first SMB banking brand — and use it to defend the freelancer/sole-trader segment from Tide, Starling and Revolut Business?”

Founded2017
HQUnited Kingdom
IndustryFintech / SMB banking
The story

Mettle was launched in 2018 by RBS (now NatWest Group) as a standalone SME digital banking brand, built in partnership with consultancy 11:FS and initially riding PrePay Solutions' e-money licence rather than being a bank itself. After a fractious reboot in 2019 that saw the 11:FS-linked interim CEO exit, NatWest brought development in-house and repositioned Mettle as its digital business account arm for freelancers, sole traders and small limited companies — now marketed as 'Mettle by NatWest' and folded into NatWest Group's banking licence and app ecosystem, tightly integrated with NatWest-owned FreeAgent for accounting and tax.

Last 12 months
—
Product timeline
2018
RBS launches beta of standalone SME digital brand Mettle, initially operating as an agent under PrePay Solutions' e-money licence (not a bank).· banking
2019
Interim CEO David Brear (11:FS) departs; Mettle is rebooted in-house by NatWest Group.· pivot
2020
Mettle begins wider rollout of business banking app under NatWest.· banking
Regulated entities
1
regulatory licence held by Mettle
Licence types, jurisdictions and registered entities are in the Embedded Finance Index report.
The stack
2 layers disclosed in Mettle’s embedded-finance stack
Banking / BaaS
National Westminster Bank Plc (in-house)
Accounting
in the full report
Accounting gap: minor
1 more provider across 1 layer, with confidence-scored evidence and source URLs, are in the Embedded Finance Index report.