Therese Chambers, Joint Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight, stated, "Starling's financial sanction screening controls were shockingly lax. It left the financial system wide open to criminals and those subject to sanctions." This highlights the serious deficiencies in Starling's ability to manage risks associated with financial crime, which the FCA has deemed unacceptable.
The FCA has specifically pointed out that Starling allowed approximately 49,000 high-risk customers to open accounts between September 2021 and November 2023, despite prior warnings. This statistic underscores the lack of effective controls that should have prevented this from occurring.
Following the FCA's review, Starling was required to cease onboarding high-risk clients until it improved its anti-money laundering processes. Nevertheless, the bank still managed to onboard a significant number of such customers, indicating issues in compliance and risk management within the institution.
Since its inception, Starling has reportedly grown from 43,000 customers to 4.2 million by 2023. However, this rapid expansion belies serious operational and oversight challenges in their financial crime prevention protocols, raising questions about the sustainability of their growth.
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