2016 was a milestone year for the bank, from listing on the London Stock Exchange, to opening six new stores in communities across London and the South. This year, the pace is set to continue, with the release of its upgraded mobile app, to the launch of a fully integrated online account opening platform, as well as plans to open up to 12 brand new stores.

Craig Donaldson, Chief Executive Officer at Metro Bank commented: “This year is already set to be another exciting one for Metro Bank and in order to support our ambitious plans we’re looking for 500 new colleagues to join our growing team. We’re proud to invest in the development of our people, with a dedicated university that supports colleagues in their career progression and promoting over 20% of our workforce last year alone. We’re very much looking forward to welcoming new colleagues who are just as passionate about revolutionising banking as we are.”

The jobs that will be up for grabs over the next 12 months range from customer-facing roles in its stores and contact centres, to head office positions at its central London HQ. The additional roles will boost the bank’s workforce to over 3,000 colleagues.

Metro Bank burst onto the high street in 2010 with a focus on putting customers’ needs first and has grown to more than 900,000 customer accounts, over 2,500 colleagues and 48 stores across London and the South, with plans to open in Peterborough, Oxford and Canterbury later this year.

Following record levels of customer demand, Metro Bank has also revealed that it is boosting its number of business bankers on the high street by 30% over 2017, as it continues to invest in its business services.

Ian Walters, Managing Director Business Banking at Metro Bank explained the decision to expand the team: “For years now, businesses have been underserved by banks and over time this has chipped away at their relationship, exacerbated by unremitting cost-cutting measures. There’s enough obstacles to overcome as a business-owner, your bank shouldn’t be one of them.

“At Metro Bank, we’re committed to investing in supporting local businesses and giving them the flexibility and help they need to develop. Our new Local Business Managers will provide a welcoming presence on the high street, and will be there to assist businesses at every stage of their development.”

The bank prides itself on offering traditional relationship banking, with each high street store boasting at least one business manager to assist local customers and credit teams on hand ready to meet customers face-to-face. What’s more, lending decisions are based on not just the customer’s balance sheet, but the people and plans behind the organisation, allowing the bank to take a common sense approach to supporting its customers.

As a bank without legacy systems, Metro Bank has had the opportunity to design its services with its customers in mind, taking into account the challenges that many of them are going through. Accounts can be set-up in a matter of hours without an appointment; stores are open seven days a week, early in the morning to late at night to suit the needs of busy organisations; and free in-store coin counters provide a practical solution for many trading businesses.

The expansion of the team closely follows the news that the bank has launched a £1bn fund for business and commercial customers in 2017, as well as strong quarter three results, which revealed a 73% year-on-year increase in lending, with loans to business and commercial customers representing 35% of total lending. The bank also reported a 66% year-on-year growth in deposits to £7.3billion, 52% of which was from business and commercial customers.