Zilch Confirmed as UK’s Fastest-Growing Unicorn by the Financial Times

• Zilch named the fastest-growing UK private fintech valued at over $1bn
• Achievement celebrated by Baroness Gustafsson CBE, Minister for Investment, and Brent Hoberman, Co-Founder and Chairman of Founders Forum Group, firstminute capital and Founders Factory

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zilch, the fintech payments innovator of the world’s first ad-subsidised payments network (ASPN), has seen its undisputed position as the UK’s fastest-growing unicorn company confirmed in a Financial Times ranking of high-growth firms.

The FT1000 league table ranked Zilch the highest of the UK’s unicorns - private firms worth more than $1 billion.

With a compound annual revenue growth rate of more than 300% over the past three years, Zilch was recognised as both the second-fastest growing UK company and second fastest-growing company in fintech or financial services across Europe. It was the fastest-growing unicorn business in both categories.

The news follows the publication of the inaugural Sunday Times 100 Tech 2025 in January, which also ranked Zilch as the UK’s highest-growth unicorn, measured by average annual revenue growth over three years.

Last year, Zilch continued its rapid growth trajectory, doubling revenues year on year, breaking into profitability and achieving six months of operating profit. In January this year, the company generated run-rate revenue of £145 million.

Baroness Gustafsson CBE, Minister for Investment, said: "The UK has a thriving tech sector worth over $1 trillion, and more fintech unicorn companies than any other market in Europe, so I'm delighted that British companies including Zilch have been recognised as some of Europe's fastest growing companies.

"With financial services and technology identified as key growth sectors in our upcoming Industrial Strategy, we are helping to deliver the long-term, stable growth that supports skilled jobs and raises living standards across the UK."

Philip Belamant, CEO and Co-Founder of Zilch, said: “At Zilch, speed and innovation is core to our DNA. We’ve scaled revenue at an exceptional pace, reaching monthly operating profitability in under four years - a milestone that puts us in rare company. We’re relentlessly ambitious, and today with a £145m revenue run rate we remain incredibly steadfast in our pursuit of creating extraordinary value for our customers each time they pay - and we’re never done pushing for better.”

Brent Hoberman, Co-Founder and Chairman of Founders Forum Group, firstminute capital and Founders Factory - ranked by the Financial Times as the UK's no1. start-up hub - said: “I’ve known Zilch and Philip for a long time, and I’ve seen firsthand how bold leadership and rapid execution can redefine an industry. Built from first principles and harnessing AI to address unmet needs in the trillion-dollar worlds of consumer credit and advertising, Zilch is helping shape the future and global reputation of UK fintech. What makes Zilch stand out isn’t just its innovation; it’s also its deep commitment to strengthening the UK’s world-leading tech ecosystem and empowering the next generation of founders. That’s a mission my team and I deeply align with.”

This quarter also marks a year since the launch of the Unicorn Council for UK FinTech (UCFT), a coalition of UK-based fintech unicorn founders and CEOs seeking to accelerate and unlock growth in the UK fintech sector. Co-founded with Innovate Finance, with Philip as a founding Co-Chair, the UCFT continues to engage proactively with the UK Government around the policies that can truly help unlock a wave of liquidity, deals and investment in the UK.

About Zilch

Zilch’s vision is to eliminate the high cost of consumer credit. For good.

Zilch is a multi-award-winning pioneer of the world’s first direct-to-consumer, ad-subsidised payments network (ASPN). Leveraging its unique, vertically integrated, first-party-data business model, Zilch sets itself apart from the incumbent fintech industry with a profitable global revenue source, bringing unrivalled value to customers and marketers alike. Today Zilch is revolutionising the $50 trillion advertising and payments industries by merging the very best of debit, credit, and savings.

Co-founded by Philip Belamant, Sean O’Connor, and Serge Belamant, Zilch provides millions of customers the freedom to go anywhere in the world (online or offline) and, when they pay, earn up to 5% cashback & rewards on debit payments (‘Pay Now’) or spread interest-free credit repayments over six weeks or three months. In the process, Zilch helps customers build their credit profiles with the major credit agencies. Within 44 months of launch in 2020, Zilch amassed more than 4 million registered customers.

• As of January 2025, Zilch had surpassed 4.5 million customers, £145m revenue run rate and exceeded £3.6 billion in total sales to date for retailers.
• In October 2024, Zilch announced it had increased its securitised debt deal to £150m - with a total facility of £400m - led by Deutsche Bank and two of the world’s biggest funds, positioning Zilch to drive £10 billion in annual commerce for retailers.
• In September 2024, four years after its public launch, Zilch announced that in July 2024 it had achieved first-month profitability in record time while surpassing £100 million of revenue run rate, keeping pace with European fintech giants like Revolut, Starling Bank, and Monzo.
• In 2023, Zilch launched its proprietary ASPN service, which allows merchants worldwide instant connection with Zilch’s first-party-data, closed-loop network of millions of high-intent customers, while offering customers personalised savings, deals, and discounts codified to their habitual daily spend.
• In January 2023, Zilch struck a ground-breaking reporting agreement with the UK’s prime credit reference agencies, transforming the UK lending ecosystem by enabling all adults to build their credit records using interest-free credit rather than high-cost revolving credit products.
• Since April 2020, Zilch has been regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), obtaining a consumer credit licence through the Regulatory Sandbox Programme.

Driven by innovation and a commitment to excellence, Zilch is setting new benchmarks in the industry to create a more inclusive and efficient ecosystem, empowering millions of users to budget and manage their financial lives more effectively and transparently.

For more information, visit: www.zilch.com.