In its biggest fundraising to date, U.K.-based challenger bank Starling Bank has secured ($376 million) £270m in funding. The Series D round was led by Fidelity Management and Research. Also participating in investment were the Qatar Investment Authority, RPMI Railpen, and Millennium Management.

Starling hopes to use the capital to grow its lending book and to expand throughout Europe. M&A activity is also on the table for the digital challenger. The fundraising, which remains subject to regulatory approval, will give the neobank a pre-money valuation of £1.1 billion.

Founded by Anne Boden and headquartered in London, Starling now has more than two million accounts, including 300,000 SME business accounts. Starling Bank says that it has 5% of the small business market in the country, as well as deposits of more than £5.4 billion. The firm has made loans valued at more than £2 billion – much of that while participating in the government’s COVID financial relief programs.

“Digital banking has reached a tipping point,” Boden said in a statement announcing the investment. “Customers now expect a fairer, smarter and more human alternative to the banks of the past and that is what we are giving them at Starling as we continue to grow and add new products and services. Our new investors will bring a wealth of experience as we enter the next stage of growth, while the continued support of our existing backers represents a huge vote of confidence.”

Starling reached profitability late last year. Since then, the company has forged partnerships with iZettle, Dingy Insurance, PensionBee, and Finovate alum SumUp. Boden has hinted recently that an IPO could be “two to three years” away for the digital challenger. “I didn’t do all of this to sell out to a big bank,” she said.

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In a round led by EQT Ventures, London, U.K.-based TreeCard has secured an investment of $5.1 million. The funding takes the company’s total capital raised to $6.1 million.

TreeCard offers a wooden Mastercard debit card and an app that enables users to track their spending and split bills. With backing from Mastercard’s network, TreeCard provides a debit account, with support for chip and PIN, as well as contactless and mobile payments. The card also can receive top-up funding from the user’s other bank accounts. Treecard pledges to spend 80% of its profits to financially support reforestation programs.

Additionally, TreeCard noted that the wood of a single tree – sustainably sourced cherry wood, the company disclosed – can produce more than 300,000 cards. So no need to call out the Lorax. These efficiencies and more (TreeCard’s cards use a core consisting of recycled plastic bottles, as well) are designed to ensure that the company is living up to its status as an “impact first business.”

“We wanted to create a financial product with a difference, one that was far removed from greenwashing and allowed customers to improve the impact of their spending without drastically changing their habits,” TreeCard CEO and co-founder Jamie Cox explained. “As a multi-stage fund, EQT Ventures’ presence across both Europe and the US provides the perfect springboard for us to launch into international markets.”

Also participating in this week’s funding were Seedcamp and Episode 1, along with angel investors including Matt Robinson (founder of GoCardless) and Charlie Delingpole (formerly of ComplyAdvantage). TreeCard said that it has a waiting list of more than 140,000 individuals interested in the card. The company is expected to make its wooden debit card available to consumers “in the next few months.”

TreeCard was founded in 2020.

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