The 500 new roles will support Metro Bank's expanding store network, business banking services, contact centre, switching service and central teams. The high street bank will open up to 12 new stores in the next year in areas including Milton Keynes, Epsom and Brighton, and will continue to support the growing demands of small businesses by expanding its commercial banking team.

This builds on the bank's substantial growth over 2013, which saw its store footprint increase by 60% to close the year on 24 stores. Since its launch in July 2010, Metro Bank has created more than 1000 career opportunities, half of which were created in 2013.

As a community bank, more than 600 of its 1,000 colleagues are based within stores, to ensure local people and businesses receive exceptional service relevant to their local needs. Metro Bank has also been recognised by Mumsnet as being one of the most family friendly companies in the UK, winning a gold award in 2012 and 2013 for its innovative customer and colleague centric initiatives. It is also committed to creating a diverse workforce that represents the communities it serves, and giving opportunities to colleagues looking to build a career with the bank.

Craig Donaldson, Chief Executive, Metro Bank commented: "It's extremely exciting for us to kick off 2014 with such a great announcement. Since we launched in 2010 we've grown at a tremendous rate; thousands of customers are joining the banking revolution every month and to support this we're creating hundreds of new career opportunities for people across London and the South East. Importantly, these aren't just jobs, they're long term careers with real progression opportunities for people as we grow. At Metro Bank we recruit colleagues for attitude and train them for skills, so that we know our people want to provide the best in service and convenience to our customers."