Yorkshire Building Society and Leeds Building Society are preparing bids for Atom Bank, the digital lender backed by BBVA and Toscafund. The fintech's owners have appointed Jefferies to handle the sale process, targeting approximately £600mn for a business with around 250,000 customers. This represents a significant jump from Atom's £350mn valuation in its most recent fundraising.

Industry executives suggest final offers may fall below the asking price, reflecting Atom's struggles to match rivals like Revolut and Monzo. Founded in 2014, the digital bank has built substantial savings and mortgage operations but lags competitors with 70mn and 15mn customers respectively. The sale process replaces Atom's earlier IPO ambitions.

This potential acquisition fits a broader trend of UK building societies pursuing growth through deals. Recent transactions include Nationwide's £2.9bn takeover of Virgin Money and Coventry's £780mn purchase of Co-operative Bank. Both Yorkshire and Leeds have demonstrated financial strength, with Yorkshire reporting £377.9mn pre-tax profits and £10bn in loans.

However, building society acquisitions face member scrutiny, as evidenced by backlash over Nationwide's Virgin Money deal. Such transactions test the balance between strategic expansion and maintaining mutual governance structures that define these institutions.