Business Bank Account

To apply for a Business Bank Account you need to:

1. be aged 18 or over
2. have a turnover and/or annual balance sheet total that does not exceed £2 million
3. be one of the following: sole trader, limited company, limited guarantee, or limited liability partnership. 

If you are a sole trader/sole signatory you need to be a UK resident to open this account. If there is more than one signatory, director or beneficial owner associated with the account, at least half of them must be UK residents.

Your business must be owned only by individuals and not a parent company. A parent company controls or owns other companies, by holding the majority of their voting stock.

We will need proof of identity and proof of UK address for everyone involved in opening the business account. The other documents we need will depend on your business type.

Documents you need to apply for a Business Bank Account

There’s no monthly account fee for our Business Bank Account, as long as the balance remains above £6,000 every day within the month.

Account fees

Using your debit card abroad

We don’t charge fees for non-sterling transactions or purchases in most European countries. Outside of these European countries the card purchase fee is 2.99% and the cash withdrawal fee is 2.99% + £1.50.

Download our full list of transaction and service charges, including international and CHAPS payments.

You can apply online for a Business Bank Account. Or you can apply in store. There are a few documents you need to bring with you to open a Business Bank Account.

As part of our account opening process, we ask applicants about who they are and what they do to help us understand our customers better. We undertake checks over the information you provide, and we will let you know the outcome of our checks.

You may not need a business bank account if you’re self employed or a sole trader, as your business isn’t a separate legal entity from you as an individual.

Read our blog about the benefits of a separate business bank account

Deposits are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to £85,000 for eligible businesses.

All directors and shareholders must be 18+.

Switching your current account to Metro Bank is simple and hassle-free. We guarantee to have your account switched in 7 days if your annual turnover is below £6.5 million. Simply visit your local store to make the switch.

Go to ‘Apply online now’ above, answer a few questions about your business and select ‘Get started’ to go to the start of the application. You’ll be asked if there are other directors in your company, and whether you want to give them account access.

Please note:

• When you apply online you can only give account access to directors. You can add others – e.g. your accountant – by popping into store.
• Each director you add will be emailed an invite with a link, so they can go and fill out their part of the application
• Any director that you give access to will be an authorised signatory and have full account access
• Directors with account access can use Online Banking to make payments up to the daily limit of £21,000
• Each director with account access will be given their own debit card for the account. All directors, shareholders and key account users must be 18 or over and UK residents.

You can apply for a business overdraft with your business account – just talk to your Local Business Manager.

Yes, our Business Credit Card has no fees, a simple low rate and no transaction fees in most European countries. To apply, visit your Local Business Manager in store – no appointment necessary.

Yes. We keep a record of your transactions for five years after you close an account. Visit us in store or call us on 0345 0808 500 to ask us to print this out and post it to you, normally within seven working days. You could also download your transaction history in Online Banking before you close your account.

You can’t request a transaction history for accounts which have been closed due to fraud, other unlawful activity, or impairment, or which have had no activity in the past five years.

Keep your account balance above £6,000 for any whole month and for that month you’ll pay no monthly fee – plus we’ll give you 30 free transactions.

If your balance falls below £6,000 at the close of business on any day you’ll pay the low monthly fee of £8, plus £0.30 per transaction for that month.

You can use your debit card within Europe with no fees for card purchases or cash withdrawals. If you’re using your card outside of Europe there will be a fee for purchases and withdrawals.

More information on using your debit card abroad

How do I pay money into my account?

There are a few different ways you can pay money into your Metro Bank account, the fastest being electronic payment from one bank to another.

You can also deposit cheques or pay cash into your account at your nearest store. Please note, we may ask you a few questions about the source of the funds to help keep your money safe.

There are daily limits on the amount of cash customers can pay into their account via a Metro Bank Store. The daily limit for business accounts is £10,000 and commercial accounts £20,000

Visit your local store

Not near a store? You can register for Metro Bank Post Office Services to pay in cash and cheques or use the change giving services at Post Office® branches across the country.

Simply contact your Relationship Manager or visit us in store and we’ll give you everything you need to get started (there is a daily cash deposit limit of £10,000 per day at the Post Office). Find out more about everyday banking at the Post Office.

If you are a commercial customer and require alternative arrangements for your cash, please contact your Relationship Manager.

Who can pay in cash?

To pay cash into a Metro Bank account you must either:

• be named on the account

• have authority to manage the account – e.g. power of attorney

• or be an employee paying into a business or commercial account for your employer, using a pre-printed paying-in slip issued to the account holder.

Exchanging cash

You can only exchange cash over the counter if you’re a Metro Bank customer.