Barclays has snapped up the UK arm of money management app Gohenry in a bid to “turbocharge” its ambitions for youth banking and the mass affluent market.

The blue-chip lender revealed on Friday it had bought the fintech firm from its parent company, Acorns, for an undisclosed sum in a deal that is expected to close in the final quarter of the year.

City sources told City AM Barclays paid around £180m as part of the takeover. Barclays declined to comment on the deal’s pricing.

Gohenry UK boasts a 500,000-strong active user base and has supported over 2 million all-time active UK members since its launch in 2012.

The business is run by a team of roughly 200 employees and powered by a cloud-based tech platform. The firm made a loss of £21.9m in the 2024 financial year, which was narrowed from a hefty £48m loss the year prior.

The app uses gamified financial literacy lessons to teach children about inflation, interest, stock markets, and cryptocurrency.

The deal is expected to slightly reduce Barclays’ CET1 ratio – a key metric of a lender’s financial health – by around five basis points upon completion. A person familiar with the company said the deal aims to support higher long-term returns beyond 2028.

Vim Maru, chief executive of Barclays UK, said: “We’re excited to welcome Gohenry to Barclays, where it will turbocharge our offering for households and families.

“Gohenry supports our vision to offer a deep and seamless banking experience to customers through all of life’s big moments, whether opening a very first account, saving for retirement, and everything in between.”

Banks make play for younger and wealth market

Barclays framed the deal as bulking up its capacity in two highly sought-after sectors across the banking ecosystem: the younger generation and the mass affluent.

The FTSE 100 giant was understood to have been bested by rival Natwest in the bidding war for wealth manager Evelyn Partners earlier this year.

Natwest sealed a £2.7bn deal to purchase the firm from its private equity owners, Permira and Warburg Pincus, though it was reported that Barclays and Lloyds were also in the running at various stages.

Lloyds has separately bulked up its capacity in the wealth market after taking full control of its tie-up with Schroders and rebranding the unit – which supports £17bn in assets under administration and 60,000 clients – to Lloyds Wealth.

The area serves as an attractive field for lenders, with income streams more reliant on the stability of fee revenue than the volatility of interest rates.

Meanwhile, challenger banks have also turned their focus to banking Britain’s next generation, with both Monzo and Revolut amassing a strong presence among younger users.

Monzo revealed in March that it had topped 15 million customers, with figures showing that 1 million of those came from under-16s. This feat alone means Monzo banks around one in eight of Britain’s Gen Alpha – those born between 2010 and 2024.

Revolut has leveraged its lifestyle ecosystem to snap up the younger cohort by offering a curated selection of premium apps, including photo-editing software, Uber for Teens, and interactive lessons.

Barclays’ deal with Gohenry follows a similar move from Natwest in 2021, when it snapped up Roostermoney and integrated the division to offer prepaid debit cards to children as young as six.