Virgin Money is a full-service digital bank that provides banking and investing solutions to 6.6 million customers across the UK. The company’s mission is to “make you happier about money.”
As part of that mission, Virgin Money identified that many first time and dissatisfied end-investors across the UK find gaps in the current investing experience. The company believed that these end-investors could be putting their money to better use. To make those potential customers happier about money, they wanted to create an engaging, straightforward digital experience to help them achieve their personal investing objectives more easily.
To address this opportunity, Virgin Money needed the right technology partner, one that could create a simple and seamless experience. After a comprehensive selection process, the company selected FNZ because of its state-of-the-art technology, its proven excellence in delivering market leading direct-to-consumer (D2C) propositions, its track record of complex platform implementations and ability to deliver innovative end-to-end digital experiences across multiple channels.
New D2C platform
FNZ partnered with the Virgin Money teams to design and deliver an intuitive and engaging digital experience and supporting customer service for investors. The service is underpinned by a unique range of investment funds, created and managed in partnership with abrdn.
The result is a new digital investment platform and mobile app that offers Virgin Money customers an enhanced digital experience with a range of new features and capabilities to make investing easier, faster and more convenient than ever before. To simplify investing, Virgin Money has created a number of straightforward investment approaches, each made up of a range of funds selected to reflect the customers’ approach to risk. The funds are:
Cautious Growth approach - offers lower risk and slower, steadier growth potential.
Balanced Growth approach is for those who want to be a little more adventurous than cautious, but with a balance between risk and reward.
Adventurous Growth approach has higher growth potential but comes with higher risk and would suit an investor who is willing to accept more ups and downs along the way for a potentially higher return.
Customers can invest either through a stocks and shares ISA or a general investment account and can open an account with a minimum monthly investment of just £25.
Investment operations capabilities
In addition to the front-end user experience, FNZ also provides Virgin Money with full investment operations capabilities covering back-end operations, investor administration and contact center solutions.
Virgin Money will also benefit from the ongoing opportunity to further upgrade and expand its proposition in the future, including the upcoming addition of a pension product.
The direct-to-consumer (D2C) platform provides both first time and experienced investors with direct access to a focused range of investment funds to choose from, within an ISA or GIA. Ultimately, everything will be managed online and via a dedicated app, ensuring a seamless digital experience.
Through our partnership with FNZ, we’ve designed our new investment service to be accessible and straightforward for everyone – whether someone is an experienced investor or investing for the first time. It’s important that consumers feel confident enough to make the most of their money, particularly during challenging times.