Starling Business
Headline partner
Award-winning UK business current accounts built for sole traders, limited companies and finance teams.
An exclusive assembly of founders, CFOs and finance leaders
Business Banking.
National Scale.
Partners
Trusted by industry leaders
The institutions and fintechs defining how British businesses bank, all under one roof.
Tide Business
Headline partner
Banking and admin tools that help SMEs open accounts in minutes and automate invoicing and expenses.
Metro Bank Business
Principal partner
Relationship-led high street business banking with local decision-making and dedicated managers.
Revolut Business
Principal partner
Multi-currency accounts, corporate cards and global payments for companies scaling across borders.
Wise Business
Principal partner
Transparent international payments and local account details across more than 40 currencies.
Virgin Business
Principal partner
Business current accounts, savings and lending backed by the Virgin Money branch network and brand.
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Partnership opportunities
Reach 5,000+ founders, CFOs and finance decision-makers across two days.
Who it’s for
Built for the people who run the money
Whether you bank with Starling, Tide, Metro Bank, Revolut, Wise or Virgin, the programme is designed around the decisions UK business finance teams make every day.
Sole traders & freelancers
Choosing a first business account, separating personal and company money, staying MTD-ready.
Small businesses (1–49 staff)
Card acceptance, cash flow buffers, lending options and cutting the cost of everyday banking.
Scale-ups & founders
Multi-currency accounts, spend controls and growth finance as headcount and revenue climb.
Finance managers & accountants
Reconciliation, automation and integrations between banking, bookkeeping and payroll.
CFOs & finance directors
Treasury policy, banking panels, FX exposure and board-level risk and liquidity planning.
Ops & procurement leads
Supplier payments, expense policy and rolling out new banking tools across the business.
Banking providers represented on stage
- Starling Business
- Tide Business
- Metro Bank Business
- Revolut Business
- Wise Business
- Virgin Business
The largest room of British business finance.
- 0+Attendees
- Business owners, CFOs and finance managers from across the United Kingdom
- 0+Speakers
- Bank executives, founders and finance directors on stage across two days
- 0+Sessions
- Keynotes, workshops and roundtables on lending, treasury and payments
- 0+Sponsors
- Banking providers and fintech partners exhibiting at ExCeL London
Why attend
Eight tracks built for people who own the numbers
Programmed for business owners, directors, CFOs, finance managers and the accountants advising them.
Business banking trends
Where UK business accounts, lending and treasury are heading over the next five years.
Digital finance
Open banking, embedded finance and the operating model of the modern finance function.
Payments
Faster settlement, card programmes, fraud prevention and reducing cost per transaction.
Scaling your business
Funding routes, banking structures and controls that hold up as headcount multiplies.
Cash flow
Forecasting, working capital and liquidity strategies for unpredictable trading cycles.
International banking
Multi-currency accounts, FX exposure and paying suppliers and teams across borders.
AI in finance
Practical automation in reconciliation, credit decisioning, reporting and compliance.
Future of SMEs
Policy, access to credit and the support British small businesses will need next.
Featured Speakers
Chief executives, founders, finance directors and banking leaders sharing what is actually working.
Anne Boden
Founder, former CEO
Starling Bank
Oliver Prill
Chief Executive Officer
Tide
Kristo Käärmann
Co-founder & CEO
Wise
Daniel Frumkin
Chief Executive Officer
Metro Bank
Francesca Carlesi
UK Chief Executive Officer
Revolut
Hannah Bernard OBE
Head of Business Banking
Barclays
Portraits are licensed studio photography used as placeholders; official press images replace them once each speaker's press office supplies them.
Programme
Day one at a glance
Forty-plus sessions across two days. Every slot is designed to be worth leaving the office for.
08:30
Morning
Registration & morning networking
Coffee, badge collection and introductions in the partner hall.
09:30
Morning
Opening keynote
The state of UK business banking: capital, credit and confidence in 2026.
10:45
Morning
Panel discussions
Challenger banks and incumbents debate the future of the business current account.
12:15
Midday
Lunch & structured networking
Curated tables by sector, company size and finance function.
13:30
Afternoon
Workshops
Hands-on sessions on cash flow forecasting, FX exposure and payment operations.
15:00
Afternoon
Fintech showcase
Live product demonstrations from the platforms reshaping business finance.
16:30
Afternoon
Closing keynote
What the next decade of SME finance demands from banks, boards and regulators.
Talks worth clearing the diary for
View full programme- Day 1 · 09:30
Credit in a higher-for-longer world
SME Lending
Day 1 · 09:30Main Auditorium- How lenders are repricing SME risk in 2026
- What underwriting teams look for in your accounts
- Preparing a facility request that gets approved
James Whitfield
MD, Business Banking, Thames Union Bank
- Day 1 · 11:15
From data sharing to decision making
Open Banking
Day 1 · 11:15Hall 2- Turning transaction feeds into live cash forecasts
- Variable recurring payments beyond direct debit
- Choosing an aggregation partner without lock-in
Daniel Okonkwo
Founder & CEO, Ledgerline
- Day 1 · 14:00
Managing currency exposure without a treasury desk
Treasury & FX
Day 1 · 14:00Workshop Studio- A hedging policy that fits a 20-person finance team
- Cost of multi-currency accounts vs forward contracts
- Board reporting on FX in one page
Priya Raghunathan
Finance Director, Havelock Retail Group
- Day 2 · 10:00
Rebuilding payment operations for instant settlement
Payments
Day 2 · 10:00Hall 2- Where batch processing still costs you working capital
- Fraud controls that survive real-time rails
- Reconciliation automation that finance teams trust
Eleanor Hartley
Chief Executive Officer, Northgate Commercial Group
- Day 2 · 11:45
The compliance agenda every CFO should own
Regulation
Day 2 · 11:45Main Auditorium- Consumer Duty spillover into business products
- Practical KYB without stalling onboarding
- What supervisors expect from your audit trail
Panel of four
Regulators, banks and in-house counsel
- Day 2 · 14:30
Financing the next hire, site and acquisition
Growth
Day 2 · 14:30Workshop Studio- Debt, equity and revenue-based finance compared
- Modelling headroom before you commit
- Structuring a deal your bank will support
Roundtable
Founders and finance leaders, 40 seats
Networking
Meet the UK’s business leaders
Two days of deliberate introductions rather than crowded halls. Sit with the founders, CFOs, finance teams and banking professionals who can move your business forward, and leave with relationships rather than a bag of leaflets.
- Structured introductions with founders, CFOs and finance teams matched to your sector
- Private meeting rooms for one-to-one conversations with banking partners
- An evening reception for directors, investors and advisers overlooking the docks
We restructured how our group holds cash within a month of attending. The treasury sessions alone paid for the whole finance team's tickets.
Marcus Elden
Chief Executive Officer, Elden Logistics
The most senior room I have been in outside of a boardroom. Honest conversations about lending, not a sales pitch.
Sofia Marchetti
Founder, Northwind Studios
I left with three banking partners shortlisted and a clear FX policy. That never happens at a conference.
Rachel Adeyemi
Finance Director, Calder Manufacturing
Venue
ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock
One Western Gateway, London E16 1XL. 24–25 August 2026, doors from 08:30.
ExCeL London
One Western Gateway, Royal Victoria Dock, E16 1XL
By rail
Custom House (Elizabeth line) and Prince Regent (DLR) both sit at the venue entrance. 12 minutes from Liverpool Street.
By air
London City Airport is 6 minutes away by DLR. Heathrow and Gatwick are within 70 minutes on the Elizabeth line.
Where to stay
Delegate rates at Novotel ExCeL, Aloft London and Good Hotel, all within a ten-minute walk of the hall.
On site
Registration in the North Entrance. Cloakroom, quiet rooms and dedicated meeting pods for delegates.
Covered by the press that covers British business
Financial Times
Media partner
The Economist
Media partner
Sifted
Fintech media
AltFi
Fintech media
City A.M.
Press partner
UK Finance
Industry body
Federation of Small Businesses
Industry body
The Banker
Press partner
Registration
Reserve your seat
Places are allocated by role to keep the room senior. Complete the form and our delegate team will confirm your registration within one working day.
- Dates
- 24–25 August 2026
- Venue
- ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock
- Delegates
- 5,000+ owners, directors and finance leaders
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