- Zilch has reportedly invited banks to pitch for a London IPO as soon as 2027.
- Its net loss fell 79% to £10.5M as revenue rose 93% to £110.3M in the year to March 2025.
- Sources told the Financial Times a listing is unlikely to beat Zilch’s 2021 valuation of $2B.
London-based fintech Zilch has reportedly invited investment banks to pitch for roles on a London Stock Exchange listing that could come as soon as 2027, according to the Financial Times.
Zilch told the FT it is focused on its growth strategy, with “all strategic options remaining open.” It told Payment Expert it does not comment on market speculation. City AM reported that London is the favoured venue, with a listing most likely in the second half of 2027 or early 2028. New York and Europe are also being weighed.
Zilch has talked about listing for a while. It was invited to open on the London Stock Exchange in August 2023. In June 2024, Tech Funding News reported that it was aiming to go public within 12 to 24 months after it raised $125 million in debt from Deutsche Bank. The longer end of that range passed in June 2026.
The numbers behind the pitch
For the year to March 2025, Zilch’s revenue rose 93% to £110.3 million from £57.1 million, according to FinTech Futures. Gross merchandise value, the total value of purchases made through the platform, grew 73% to £1.9 billion. Gross margin reached 49%, up from 39%. The net loss fell 79% to £10.5 million from about £50 million a year earlier. Those are the latest full-year figures cited in coverage of the FT report.
The accounts carry a warning sign. Provisions for credit losses, the money set aside for customers who may not repay, rose 116% to £27.4 million, from £12.7 million. That is faster than revenue growth. Credit losses as a share of gross merchandise value edged up to 1.5% from 1.2%.
Zilch reported its first month of operating profit in July 2024, but it still lost money through March 2025. People familiar with the plans told the FT it hopes to be profitable by the time it lists. The company was valued at $2 billion in 2021 and has held that figure since.
The FT’s sources said an IPO is unlikely to exceed that valuation. Its backers include eBay’s venture arm, Goldman Sachs, and DMG Ventures, the investment arm of Daily Mail and General Trust.
From buy now, pay later to a payments platform
Founded in 2018 by Philip Belamant, Serge Belamant, and Sean O’Connor, Zilch began as a buy now, pay later service. It now has more than 5.5 million registered customers. Shoppers can spread payments and earn cashback, while retailers’ advertising spend helps subsidise the rewards.
Its most recent funding came on November 13, 2025, when it raised more than $175 million in debt and equity. The round was led by Czech investment group KKCG, with BNF Capital and other strategic investors taking part. It also included an expansion of a securitisation facility led by Deutsche Bank, which stood at £150 million a year earlier.
Regulation has moved in step. Zilch secured a second UK payments licence from the Financial Conduct Authority in December 2025. In January 2026, it agreed to buy Lithuania’s AB Fjord Bank, which would give it a European banking licence and a headquarters in Vilnius. Belamant called the deal “a defining moment for Zilch.”
A London listing others have walked away from
Zilch’s timing is awkward for London. Wise moved its primary listing from London to Nasdaq in May 2026. Monzo, which shut its US operations in 2026 to refocus on the UK and Europe, is now in talks to sell to Nubank, which could end its London float. Revolut confirmed a $115 billion valuation in a secondary share sale on July 22, 2026, and its CEO has said an IPO is at least two years away. Klarna, the buy now, pay later group Zilch is most often compared with, listed in New York.
Belamant has previously said Zilch could list outside the UK without stronger incentives for retail investors to hold British shares. The test now is whether Zilch can show a profit before banks start building the book, and whether investors will pay $2 billion for a consumer credit business whose bad-debt provisions grew faster than its revenue.
