Judo Bank

Judo is an Australian challenger bank that specialises in lending for small and medium-sized enterprises. It launched in March 2018, after raising the largest capital funding round of that year in Australia. It focuses mainly on the SME market, which produces over half of the nation’s value added and accounts for seven out of every 10 jobs in the private sector, after conducting research that revealed a AUS$90bn funding gap for SMEs.

Judo Bank offers business loans, line of credit, equipment loan, finance lease. As of April 2019, Judo Bank was granted its license to operate as an authorised deposit-taking institution without restriction. As part of the license grant, the fintech changed its original name, Judo Capital, to its present one. 

In June 2019 Judo raised a AUS$345m Series B, with additional investment added in the following months. Investors in the bank include Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs.

September 2019 saw Judo enter retail deposits. Three months later, in January 2020, Judo hit $1bn in lending to Australian businesses, and another $1bn in digital retail term deposits.

Judo Bank has a strong team behind it, with board members including the former Australian Treasury Secretary, former National Australia Bank Executives, and the former Federal Small Business Minister.