İşbank Unit Partners with Algbra for UK Digital Bank
Turkey’s İşbank is stepping into the UK’s competitive digital banking space through its fintech arm, Moka United, which has teamed up with Algbra Labs to launch a new brand, Ruut. The initiative leverages Algbra’s Fintech-as-a-Service platform, a full-stack solution designed to power scalable banking and payments infrastructure. Algbra Labs itself operates as a subsidiary of UK-based Algbra, a fintech focused on ethical finance and sharia-compliant services.
The multi-phase rollout begins with Algbra providing a partner banking platform to allow Ruut to manage client accounts and issue customer-named accounts. Initially, Ruut will act as an authorised electronic money distributor, but the long-term goal is to evolve into a fully licensed Electronic Money Institution (EMI). Throughout this process, Algbra Labs will continue to provide the underlying core banking and payments infrastructure that supports the brand’s operations.
Moka United is working toward making the platform fully operational within six months, with an ambitious target audience of the UK’s Turkish diaspora, which numbers over 600,000. The bank also sees itself playing a pivotal role in strengthening the financial corridor between the UK and Turkey, a channel that already accounts for more than £28 billion in annual trade and remittance flows.
Halim Memiş, CEO of Moka United and Ruut, emphasised that the venture is about creating an inclusive and trusted digital experience, highlighting Algbra’s alignment with their ethical and customer-centric approach. By blending advanced fintech infrastructure with ethical finance principles, Ruut aims to stand out in a crowded UK neobank market while tapping into underserved communities and cross-border opportunities.
