JPMorgan Chase & Co. agreed to buy digital wealth manager Nutmeg Saving and Investment Ltd., part of a push to establish a retail banking presence in the U.K.
Nutmeg, founded in 2012, has more than 140,000 customers and £3.5 billion under management, the equivalent of around $5 billion. A price for the acquisition wasn’t disclosed but people familiar with the transaction said it was about $1 billion.
JPMorgan said in January it would launch a new digital bank in the U.K., offering consumer banking services there for the first time. Called Chase, it is currently being tested internally with JPMorgan employees ahead of a public launch later this year.
Nutmeg’s savings and investment products won’t initially be offered through the retail banking project, the bank said.
JPMorgan is entering a crowded digital banking marketplace in the U.K. Regulators encouraged new startups, including Starling Bank Ltd. and Monzo Bank Ltd., to boost competition in the wake of the last global financial crisis. These so-called challenger banks have forced traditional lenders to improve their digital offerings but have struggled to earn profits.