Starling Expands SME Banking Capabilities with Ember Acquisition

Starling Bank has acquired Ember, a London‑based fintech offering an all‑in‑one accounting and tax platform tailored to small business owners. This is Starling’s first acquisition since Fleet Mortgages joined the group in 2021.

With HMRC’s Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self‑Assessment (ITSA) requirements coming into effect in April 2026, Ember provides timely support to business customers by simplifying financial management and tax submissions.

Starling maintains a strong regional presence in Wales—operating a major office in Cardiff’s Brunel House, which has recently been expanded substantially—and recently became a Partner of Fintech Wales in January 2024. Read more on Fintech Wales.

Adeel Hyder, Managing Director of SME Banking at Starling, said:

“Ember’s platform is beautifully designed to simplify complex accounting tasks through a user‑friendly interface that businesses love. As Starling ramps up the roll‑out of best‑in‑class solutions for small businesses, we will build, partner or buy as best meets the needs of our customers.”

Daniel Hogan and Aaron Shaw, co‑founders of Ember, added:

“We created Ember to take the pain out of accounting for small businesses—helping people make faster, clearer financial decisions without the stress. Making Tax Digital has created a real call to action for SMEs and Ember provides the solution to this. Our deal with Starling Group will mean that we’re setting a new standard for how banking and accounting should work together—seamlessly integrated and refreshingly simple.”

This acquisition underlines Starling’s ambition to deliver integrated, user‑centric financial tools for SMEs, while reinforcing its commitment to supporting Welsh fintech growth.