Same Day Business Bank Accounts in the UK

Paola Faben Oliveira

18.06.24 (last updated)

7 minute read

If you’ve just started a new business you’ll need smart ways to manage your company finances, which can be set up and used, with just a phone or laptop. Getting a same day business bank account can be a quick and easy option to make sure you can start to send and receive business payments in no time at all. This guide to instant business account options in the UK walks you through all you need to know.

One of these options is Wise Business, a powerful international account that you can open and manage online.

💡 Learn more about Wise Business

What is a same day business bank account?

A same day business account is an account you can apply for, and start using, within a day or so. Instant business account providers are often specialists which operate digitally, as they can offer fast application, verification and onboarding processes using an app.

It’s helpful to remember that there are a couple of steps to opening a business account - the application process and the verification of documents. As the customer you’ll need to submit your application and supporting documents, which can often be done in just a few moments. But that’s not all that needs to happen - the bank or provider also needs to complete verification, checking your ID, address and business information.

Sometimes this can be a quick and straightforward process - but in some cases this can take a day or two. Double check you’ve submitted everything required when you apply for your business account, to help the process move as smoothly as possible.

Providers that offer quick to open business bank account

We’ve picked out some great options for UK sole traders and business owners, looking for instant or near instant account opening. Accounts are usually provided by specialist digital providers, including some which are backed by UK banking licences, and others which operate as e-money businesses overseen by the FCA in the UK.

Here’s a quick overview of the anticipated account opening time for the providers we’ve picked.

Provider	Account opening time
ANNA Money	Within 10 minutes in many cases
Tide Bank	Within 10 minutes for over 50% of customers
Wise Business	Can be within 24 hours, but may take longer if additional verification is needed
CountingUp	Within minutes
Starling Bank	Within 24 hours
Mettle	Within 72 hours
Revolut Business	Within 24 hours

ANNA Money business account

ANNA¹ stands for Absolutely No Nonsense Admin, and offers fast business bank accounts you can open within 10 minutes². Because your account comes with a virtual debit card, in some cases you’ll be able to start spending, sending payments and receiving transfers pretty much instantly once your account is verified.

You can apply for an ANNA Money business account either online or in the ANNA app, by completing your personal and business information³ and uploading a few documents⁴. Accounts are offered to UK residents who have a registered limited partnership or limited company, and to sole traders. Charities aren’t yet able to open ANNA accounts.

ANNA has 3 different account types to suit different business needs - a pay as you go model, or 2 different accounts which have monthly fees. If you choose to pay monthly you unlock more features, and can pay either 14.9 GBP/month for the standard account, or 49.9 GBP monthly for the big business account tier.

Learn more in our full review of the ANNA Money business account

Tide Bank

Tide⁵ offers accounts for owners of UK registered businesses, and to freelancers and sole traders who are registered with HMRC. You must be over 18, and all customers need to provide a valid photo ID as part of the application process. You may also be asked to provide further documents - but as the whole application and onboarding is done through the Tide app, it’s easy enough to snap and upload images of your paperwork with just your phone.

For more than half of all customers, Tide’s instant business bank account application process takes under 10 minutes⁶. Even with more complicated business models which require extra verification, Tide can be pretty speedy - over 80% of accounts are verified and open within 48 hours.

Tide offers 4 different account tiers, from a pay as you go model which has no ongoing fees, through to the Cashback account which is 49.99 GBP a month and which offers additional features and transactions as part of the package.

Considering getting an easy to open business bank account with Tide? Read this

Tide business banking review

Wise Business

Wise Business offers accounts for UK business owners, sole traders and freelancers.

wise-business-product

To complete the verification process you’ll be asked to upload clear images of some documents including a photo ID for the business owner and anyone with over a 25% stake in the company, as well as information relating to your business entity⁷.

Read more about the Wise Business account requirements in the UK

Wise stands out because of its powerful international features which allow you to hold and exchange 40+ currencies and get paid like a local with bank details for 8+ currencies. You’ll be able to send 160+ countries, for paying suppliers or contractors, and use your local account details to allow customers to pay in their preferred currencies. Whenever you want to switch from one currency to another you can do so easily within your account, with the mid-market exchange rate and low costs from 0.33%.

Wise Business accounts have no ongoing fees, with a one time 45 GBP account opening charge. Once your account is up and running you’ll just pay low, transparent fees for the services you use.

Get started with Wise Business 🚀

CountingUp

CountingUp⁸ accounts can be opened within the CountingUp app, in just 3 or 4 minutes. You’ll need to provide a photo ID and take a selfie - and you’ll also have to provide some more information about your business for verification.

Account features include invoicing and billing support, a dashboard to help you see all your finances in real time, receipt capture and automatic transaction categorisation.

CountingUp offers 3 different accounts split out by the level of deposits you’re likely to make every month. Monthly fees are from 3 GBP to 18 GBP, with additional transaction fees based on how you use your account on an ongoing basis⁹.

Before you sign up with CountingUp, check out this review

same-day-business-account

Starling Bank

Starling¹⁰ has different account options suited to people who own a registered business, or to sole traders and freelancers. Accounts are for UK residents only. You can also open a US dollar or euro account once you’ve successfully got your sterling account set up.

Starling’s account opening process may not be instant, but verification usually happens within 24 hours of application¹¹. Starling business account features include ways to easily manage your money, make payments and access an overdraft, as well as saving account products. There’s no fee for your regular Starling sterling account, but you might pay monthly charges if you decide to add on a foreign currency account.

Check out the full Starling business banking review here

Mettle

Mettle¹² by NatWest offers business accounts to UK sole traders and the owners of various different business types. You can’t open an account as a charity and, as with all account providers, there are a few different business areas which fall outside of the Mettle acceptable use policy.

If you’re eligible for Mettle it should take just 10 minutes to apply through the Mettle app¹³. Your account is then reviewed and if you’re accepted you can get set up in about 72 hours¹⁴.

Account features include some ways to save, invoicing, transaction categorisation, receipt upload and easy ways to manage your bookkeeping. There’s no fee to have a Mettle account, although you may find some transaction fees apply depending on how you use your account.

Learn more about the Mettle business account and how to use it, here

Revolut Business

Revolut¹⁵ has several different account options for UK businesses, from the Basic account which has no monthly fee, to the more feature packed Grow and Scale options. All accounts support 25+ currencies for holding and exchange and come with some no fee weekday currency exchange every month.

You can open a Revolut account if you have a UK registered business and you live in either the UK, the EEA or Switzerland¹⁶. Once you’ve applied, Revolut aims to have accounts verified within 24 hours, so you can start using your account pretty quickly. Revolut Business accounts can’t be opened by UK sole traders.

Get a full Revolut Business UK review here

How long does it take to open a business bank account?

The length of time it takes to open a business account will vary a bit based on your business entity type and the provider you pick. Of the same day business accounts we’ve looked at in this guide, you could hope to be verified and operating in just a few minutes with some - through to 3 days with others.

Ultimately, though, business account providers are legally obliged to complete some verification checks - which means there may be delays if the provider is particularly busy, or if you’ve uploaded incorrect or incomplete documents.

What do you need to open a business bank account in the UK?

While different business account providers may have slight variations on the processes used to open accounts, verify and onboard new customers, there are usually some similar requirements.

In all cases, account providers need to complete some verification checks which will usually mean uploading an image of the following:

Your passport or driving licence as proof of ID

Proof of address, such as a utility bill in your name

You’ll also be asked to provide the name, date of birth and address of any other important shareholders, directors or partners in your business. Beyond this the information and documents you need to provide may vary depending on your business entity type. Generally you’ll need to provide:

Your business address

Your business registration number or UTR if you’re a sole trader

Some evidence of what your business does - this may be contracts you have, a link to your website if you’re an ecommerce seller, or supplier invoices for example

As a busy entrepreneur, you want instant online bank account opening which you can organise from home. The good news is that many providers do offer quick business bank account application and verification processes, to get you up and running in no time at all. Use this guide to decide which is the most suitable and quickest business bank account to open for your specific needs, so you can get back to focussing on your customers and growing your business.

And if your business has international needs, Wise Business account can be the perfect option. You can open your account quickly and easily only and start sending and receiving international payments, as well as spending and holding in 40+ currencies.

Get started with Wise Business 🚀

Sources used in this article:

Sources last checked 17/06/2024

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