UK's Lendable launches first mobile plan by a fintech in Britain

By Gianluca Lo Nostro (Reuters) -British consumer credit firm Lendable launched a monthly 20-pound mobile plan on Wednesday, the latest financial technology firm to expand into telecommunications to unlock new revenue streams. London-based Lendable, founded in 2014, is the first fintech in Britain to launch such a service. It joins a string of firms in other countries tapping into the telecoms market and seeking to build "super-app" ecosystems that combine banking, shopping and communications. Revolut recently announced plans for its own mobile virtual network operator in Europe, while Klarna will launch a $40 per month plan in the United States. Unlike mainstream providers, these operators do not own the wireless infrastructure they depend on, which allows them to avoid heavy fixed costs while competing on the pricing front. Celebrities have also jumped on the trend. Ryan Reynolds-backed budget brand Mint Mobile was sold to T-Mobile US for $1.35 billion in 2023, while U.S. President Donald Trump's family business has licensed its name to launch a mobile service. Lendable's plan will be powered by U.S.-based tech company Gigs, which provides the operating system, and will be available on the Lendable-owned Zable app, which has 2 million customers. The plan includes unlimited 5G data, calls and texts on Vodafone's network, plus 10GB of roaming across 38 nations. "Expanding (not pivoting) into telecoms is a natural next step for us," Lendable co-founder and CEO, Martin Kissinger, told Reuters in an interview. Kissinger said that unlike other fintechs focused on current accounts, international payments and trading, Zable offers cost-saving options with the aim of lowering bills. When asked about fundraising, Kissinger said Lendable was a profitable and well-funded business. "At the moment, we are not thinking about any kind of listing, as there is still a lot of building to do." He declined to comment on a potential initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro in Gdansk; Editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak)

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