Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, Triodos bills itself as Europe's leading sustainable bank, with outposts across the European Union.

The bank has been active in the UK for over twenty years, offering savings, and loans to organisations and projects that are “making a positive difference to society”.

With the UK's previous standard bearer for ethical investing the Co-Op running into trouble, Triodos sees a fresh opportunity to challenge the hegemony of the UK banking sector, in which 75% of current account holders hold their money with the nation's top four financial institutions.

In true challenger fashion, the bank has opened a waiting list for prospective account holders and is planning a phased approach to launch online and via a mobile app commencing in June.

Staying true to its ethical values, the account comes with an eco-friendly contactless Mastercard debit card made from natural plastic using renewable resources.

"We're taking a bold, and fairer, approach to charges on the account," the bank states on its Website. "We believe 'free banking' is a myth, because someone always pays. So, rather than charging excessive penalties to a minority of customers to subsidise a 'free' account, we think a fairer approach is for all customers to pay a modest monthly fee (£3) towards the costs of the banking service provided."

Triodos, which already offers current accounts in Holland, Spain and Germany, has set its sights on doubling UK customer numbers from 45,000 to 90,000 over the next two years.