Payments unicorn Zilch is committing £77m (€91m) to a ten-year lease on a 33,160 sq ft headquarters in Victoria, roughly doubling its London office capacity. The commitment follows a €150m debt and equity raise in November 2025 and comes while its acquisition of Fjord Bank is still pending.
Zilch was founded in 2018 by Philip Belamant. Its payments platform combines debit, credit, instalments, earned wage access, credit building, deals and rewards. The company says it has 6 million customers, who have now spent more than £8bn through the platform across every UK region.
The deal
Zilch will take the fourth and fifth floors of 40 Grosvenor Place in Victoria. The space has room for more than 400 employees, about double the company's current London capacity.
The £77m covers the full ten-year lease. Zilch did not say how much of it is rent and how much is fit-out, or how many jobs it expects to create. It said only that it plans to add more UK roles.
A ten-year property commitment is a long-term signal for a growth-stage fintech. It suggests Zilch expects to keep London as its main base as it expands into Europe.
Balance sheet and backers
The commitment follows Zilch's last financing in November 2025, when it raised €150m in a combination of debt and equity. In earlier rounds the company was valued at about $2bn. It has not announced a new valuation since.
The split between debt and equity was not disclosed. Debt-heavy structures are common for consumer lenders, which need large credit lines to fund their loan books and can grow lending without diluting existing shareholders.
Other recent milestones
The new headquarters is one of several recent developments at the company. In January 2026 Zilch agreed to buy Fjord Bank, which it plans to use as the base for its European expansion. That deal is expected to complete in the first half of 2027.
Zilch has also signed a multi-year strategic partnership with Visa and became Arsenal FC's Official Way to Pay.
Belamant called it a transformational year for the business. He described the new headquarters as an investment in recruiting talent in the UK and abroad. City minister Lucy Rigby KC MP called the move a major milestone and said the government is committed to supporting the UK fintech sector.
Context
The announcement comes during a busy year for UK consumer credit and payments financing. Primer, Vuelo, Plend, Sokin and Manchester-based Ryft have all raised capital or credit facilities in 2026.
It also comes as the industry lobbies the chancellor ahead of the Autumn Budget, warning that higher taxes would hurt the sector.
What's next
Completion of the Fjord Bank acquisition is the next major milestone. A banking licence would let Zilch fund lending from deposits rather than wholesale debt, which would change both its economics and its route to any future listing.
Original source: EU-Startups — https://www.eu-startups.com/2026/10/british-payments-unicorn-zilch-invests-e91-million-in-larger-london-headquarters-amid-continued-growth/
