The bank, which aims to be the UK’s “first bank designed for digital”, has raised £25m in funding from a variety of City investors, with Woodford’s equity income fund becoming a major part of the company’s shareholder base.
The investment represents just the second bank the manager has bought over the past decade; Woodford opened a small position in HSBC earlier this year but later sold the stock on fears of ‘fine inflation’.
The manager is one of 30 investors to have joined the latest funding round.
Polar Capital and former Brewin Dolphin COO Simon Still are among Atom’s original 40 investors.
“We continue to make progress through the necessarily testing regulatory approval process and are well on with building the products, services and technology that will make Atom stand out,” said Atom CEO Mark Mullen.
A number of challenger banks have surfaced in recent months as firms identify opportunities to take market share from the UK’s largest players, the majority of whom remain firmly in the regulatory spotlight for a variety of misdemeanours.
