OakNorth Bank

About OakNorth Bank

OakNorth Bank is a leading UK challenger bank with £12.5 billion of cumulative credit facilities and £7.6 billion of total assets as of December 2024 (£6 billion deposit savings), headquartered in London with a US representative office in New York. The firm was founded in 2015 by Rishi Khosla and Joel Perlman, backed by Softbank Vision Fund, Indiabulls and GIC, and operates as a UK PRA-authorised privately held challenger bank with a pending FDIC US national charter. OakNorth has been profitable from year-2 with proprietary AI-driven ON Credit Intelligence underwriting platform deployed by 30 plus external bank licensees globally.

Investment thesis

OakNorth deploys capital through a single balance-sheet lending model rather than fund vehicles, targeting data-driven SME and lower mid-market lending using its proprietary ON Credit Intelligence platform. The entrepreneurial lending strategy bridges gaps left by traditional banks across real estate and property development, hospitality and leisure, healthcare, education, industrials and manufacturing, professional services and consumer and retail sectors. Geographic deployment is anchored in the UK with US mid-market expansion via the Community Unity Bank acquisition in Michigan and New York.

Recent activity

As an SME lender rather than equity investor, exit transactions follow loan repayment patterns rather than equity realisations. Recent acquisitions include Community Unity Bank, Michigan (US community banking, 2025) supporting the US balance-sheet expansion. The platform continues active deployment across the UK and US SME lending franchise. Detailed buyer names and multiple data available on Pro at €29/month.