Salt Bank reaches half a million customers one year since launch

London, 10th April, 2025.

• 500,000 customers have now joined the digital bank
• Salt Bank’s total deposits exceed 1 billion Romanian Lei (RON)
• Salt Bank was publicly launched in April 2024 as Romania’s first digital bank, and was built by GFT in just 12 months on Engine by Starling’s core banking platform

Salt Bank, Romania’s first digital bank, has now reached 500,000 customers in just a year since becoming the first new business to launch on Engine by Starling’s core banking platform. The bank went live in April 2024 having been built in 12 months by teams from Salt, Engine and the key implementation partner, GFT.

Salt’s digital-first proposition and focus on innovative products and features has resonated with customers. Inspired by Starling Bank in the UK, the cloud-native bank was designed and built for Romanians, helping them navigate financial admin with a seamless mobile experience packed with self-serve features like card controls, spending insights and Saving Spaces. This is while also providing 24/7 customer service via in-app chat, phone and email so that there is always a human touch point for support.

Salt has been able to release a number of new products and features for customers since launch. They include functionality designed to make managing money easier, such as Subscription Manager, PayBill and AutoSaver, all of which empower customers to consolidate outgoings and automate saving. This focus on innovating for customers has led to multiple awards. Salt has picked up accolades for business excellence and banking leadership in Romania and wider industry recognitions at the Global Banking Tech and FS Tech awards.

As a business, Salt is going from strength to strength and is aiming to reach 700,000 customers in 2025.

Gabriela Nistor, CEO, Salt Bank, commented “We are already among the Top 10 banks in Romania, we are growing faster than expected, and the market confirms our success. Our estimates indicate that we will reach the break-even point by the end of next year or early 2027. It has been an incredible journey and the support of our partners, Engine and GFT, has been an essential part of our success. We are on an upward trend and have exceeded all our initial goals.”

Sam Everington, CEO, Engine by Starling, highlighted “As Salt’s core technology partner, we are very proud of their exceptional success. The customer demand for digital-first banking is there and their proposition is genuinely stand-out in the market so it’s been fantastic to see it resonate. The fact that Salt has been able to continue to roll out new products and features for customers also speaks to the strength of our partnership and the momentum we’ve built. Having robust and flexible technology foundations is critical as it allows for this level of innovation at pace and our partnership is all about propelling Salt forward as a business.”

Chris Ortiz, Group Chief Executive at GFT, added “We are proud to have provided the technological foundation for Salt Bank’s success and rapid growth in the Romanian market. Our deep expertise in design, integration and rapid bank launches enabled us to bring Salt Bank to life in just 12 months. Reaching 500,000 customers in a year is remarkable and proves the customer demand for this kind of banking innovation, with much more to come.”