NatWest Group agrees to acquire majority shareholding in workplace savings and pensions fintech Cushon

Today, NatWest Group is announcing an agreement (subject to regulatory approval) to acquire an 85% shareholding of Cushon, a workplace savings and pensions fintech, with 15% retained by Cushon management. This agreement will provide NatWest Group with its first opportunity to offer Commercial customers and their employees a suite of financial wellbeing products.

The intended acquisition follows a number of financial wellbeing-focused services that NatWest Group has recently introduced, such as Rooster Money, to help meet customers’ changing needs at every stage of their lives and support greater financial resilience.

Cushon is an award-winning, London-based fintech whose mission is to improve people’s financial futures through healthier savings habits, making saving for the future easier and more rewarding. Cushon offers a holistic workplace pension and savings app with a carbon neutral default fund for UK employers.

The Master Trust workplace pension and other workplace savings (ISA, JISA, LISA, GIA) will work alongside the established proposition which NatWest Group currently offers to its Commercial customers, including a variety of tailored borrowing and financing options to help businesses grow – such as small business loans, business overdrafts, business credit cards, asset finance and invoice finance.

Cushon’s Master Trust workplace pension offers an investment strategy designed to drive down the financed CO2 emissions of customers. It is tech-first in its approach, providing an innovative app that makes savings and investments far more accessible to employees. Its focus on sustainability and social impact – with pensions investments directly in windfarms, solar, green hydrogen, social housing – is also designed to increase employee engagement by aligning with issues employees care about.

Since the introduction of auto enrolment in 2012, the number of eligible employees participating in a workplace pension has increased some 72ppts1 which, when coupled with the everchanging regulations pressing on UK pensions, drives a need to equip employers with the best tools in order to serve their workforce.

Cushon’s app has been proven to deliver high employee engagement – reaching 65% download among employee pension members. The fintech also offers workplace financial education at scale, including one-to-one financial check-ups available to every employee.

Peter Flavel, Chief Executive of NatWest Wealth Businesses, said: “Cushon’s disruptive proposition will help NatWest Group achieve its strategic, purpose-led vision of helping customers save for the future and manage their financial wellbeing. On average, UK employees are due to outlive their savings by 10 years and we are committed to helping reduce this savings gap.

“We believe Cushon’s engaging, app-first pension will help customers by moving their pension and workplace savings schemes from a compliance burden to an employee benefit.”

Ben Pollard, CEO and co-founder Cushon, commented: “This is the next exciting chapter for a great British fintech as we join forces with a great British bank. Becoming part of NatWest Group will accelerate our plans for further technology-led innovation to improve the UK’s financial wellbeing.

“Together, we look forward to driving more positive change in workplace savings and pensions. Cushon’s cutting edge technology and socially responsible investment funds will allow even more UK savers to benefit from a convenient, great value way to save; and understand the positive impact their life-long savings can have on issues that matter, such as climate change.”