Vanquis Banking Group buys money-saving app Snoop

Specialist bank Vanquis Banking Group has acquired money-saving app Snoop, providing Snoop with “significant scale” and capital to grow.

Former chief executive officer of Virgin Money Jayne-Anne Gadhia founded and chaired Snoop.

Several recent media reports had suggested she was in talks to sell the app.

The terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed, although Vanquis stated that it will have “minimal impact on the Group’s regulatory capital”.

Following the deal, Snoop will have access to Vanquis Banking Group’s 1.7 million customers and will also be able use the capital injection to grow its proposition.

John Natalizia, chief executive officer of Snoop, said: “Snoop’s ambition is to make everyone better off, and we believe that personalisation is the most powerful way to empower people to take control of their finances and make a real difference to their spending habits. Our cutting-edge technology, which leverages Open Banking, allows us to do just that.

“Today’s announcement strengthens our purpose, and Vanquis Banking Group is the perfect partner to help the business grow.”

Snoop scooped two awards at the Open Banking Expo Awards 2022 for the second consecutive year.

The app was named the winner in the Best App – Consumer and Best Use of Open Banking Data categories, with the judges remarking on how “user centric” it is.

“Vanquis Banking Group is uniquely positioned to become the leading lender to underserved consumers,” said incoming chief executive officer of Vanquis Banking Group Ian McLaughlin.

“Snoop’s technology will enable the Group to provide a differentiated proposition to its customers, with tools enabling them to manage their finances better and save them money.”

He added that the combination of Vanquis’ customers and scale, along with Snoop’s market leading technology, “will allow us to go from strength to strength”.