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A&O Shearman represents Zopa on its debut UK consumer ABS

A&O Shearman represents Zopa on its debut UK consumer ABS
Published Date
Oct 22, 2026
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Image of Sally Onions
Sally OnionsPartner, London
Image of Neil Grant
Neil GrantSenior Associate, London
Image of Yipsum Wu
Yipsum WuAssociate, London
A&O Shearman has advised Zopa Bank (Zopa), the UK digital bank, as seller and retention holder on Morton Funding 2026-1, a securitization of English consumer loans of approximately GBP450 million, which closed today. The transaction is Zopa's inaugural UK consumer asset-backed securities (ABS) transaction and marks its debut in the public securitization market. 

Founded in 2020 with a full banking license, Zopa seamlessly blends the agility of digital banking with 20 years of lending expertise – having lent more than GBP13bn to consumers in the UK to date. 

In 6 years Zopa has secured its banking license, grown to 2 million customers, achieved profitability, and launched a diverse range of products – unsecured personal loans, savings accounts, current accounts, investments, point of sale finance, car finance, credit cards and tools for improved financial management and health. Last year it grew customer deposits to GBP6.4bn and the gross loans on its balance sheet to GBP3.8bn.  

Zopa’s is the UK’s Best Banking App for 2026, consistently receiving among the highest customer satisfaction scores in the industry. 

The transaction was structured to achieve accounting derecognition for Zopa, which was a key objective for the client.

“Morton Funding 2026-1 marks an important step for Zopa as it enters the public securitisationsecuritization market for the first time. Debut issuers bring fresh depth to the UK market, and this transaction shows the strong investor appetite for high-quality UK consumer credit. Working alongside the Zopa team on a deal of this significance has been a privilege, and we look forward to supporting Zopa as its funding plans develop.”

The A&O Shearman team was led by partner Sally Onions alongside senior associate Neil Grant, associate Yipsum Wu and transaction executive Dipti Vekaria. 

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