Shawbrook Selects Thought Machine's Vault Core to Scale Commercial SME Lending

UK specialist bank Shawbrook has selected Thought Machine's Vault Core as its core banking platform to scale its commercial SME lending operations.

The cloud-native technology will replace Shawbrook's existing infrastructure, providing the flexibility and processing capacity needed to rapidly develop and deploy new lending products for small and medium businesses. Thought Machine's Vault Core uses a smart contract-based architecture that allows banks to configure financial products through code rather than traditional system customisation.

Shawbrook, which specialises in commercial lending and savings products in the UK market, said the Thought Machine platform will enable it to respond more quickly to market opportunities and deliver innovative financing solutions that would be difficult to build on legacy systems.

The deal represents a significant reference customer for Thought Machine in the UK specialist banking segment. The London-based fintech has been building its client base among both challenger banks and established institutions, positioning Vault Core as a modern alternative to the legacy core banking platforms that dominate the industry.

Thought Machine's platform runs entirely on cloud infrastructure and is designed to handle the complex product configurations and high transaction volumes required by commercial lending operations. The system's programmable approach to product design is particularly suited to specialist lenders like Shawbrook that offer a diverse range of structured lending products.

The partnership is expected to reduce Shawbrook's technology maintenance burden while providing a scalable foundation for growth in its core commercial lending markets.