PRESS RELEASE
Starling launches agentic AI assistant for business
24th August 2026
‘Starling Assistant’ aims to boost small business productivity by reducing manual processes and admin
Helps protect business owners from scams, flagging warning signs and offering guidance on how they can defend themselves
Starling launched UK banking’s first agentic AI financial assistant for personal accounts in March 2026 and today launches a version tailored for businesses
24th August 2026: Starling Bank has today launched an agentic AI-powered ‘Starling Assistant’ to all business customers. The free in-app tool has been designed to boost productivity and cut admin by helping small businesses manage their day-to-day transactions, detect and avoid scams, and plan ahead using personalised financial insights.
Starling Assistant goes beyond a standard Q&A by executing complex banking commands — acting as a proactive partner. Its capabilities include:
Tax Ring-Fencing: Business owners can issue direct commands to streamline tax management, such as asking the assistant: “Put 20% of last month’s earnings aside for VAT.” The assistant will calculate the figure from the account history and transfer the funds safely into a dedicated Space.
Invoice Fraud and Scam Defence: SMEs can talk to the assistant about invoices from suppliers and it can flag potential scams, advising what action the business owner should take. For example, if payment details have changed the company should be contacted directly to confirm if they are accurate. In 2025, invoice fraud cost businesses over £41m, according to UK Finance.
Making Tax Digital (MTD) Navigator: This helps sole traders and landlords understand their MTD for Income Tax obligations. The assistant will ask questions on income levels and tell users when they are likely to be mandated for MTD. It can also share links to HMRC and gives taxpayers instructions on what to do on HMRC’s website, e.g. double check if they are mandated and where to sign up.
Receipt Tracker: Business owners can already add receipts to their transactions, and later this year Starling Assistant will be able to analyse and extract financial information seamlessly. Businesses will be able to track spending for specific jobs by asking queries e.g. “Summarise the amount I’ve spent on paint in the last week from receipts.” The AI will cross-reference the transaction history with the data extracted from the receipt to provide an accurate, instant breakdown.
“We know that managing finances can be a major drain on time for small businesses,” said Harriet Rees, Group Chief Information Officer at Starling. “Starling Assistant changes this by automating routine tasks and taking the guesswork out of money management. We’re committed to boosting SME productivity, as Starling’s own research shows that if more small businesses adopted digital financial tools their growth could add £25.3bn to the UK economy.”
Looking ahead, Starling plans to expand the tool’s capabilities significantly. Later this year, Starling Assistant will be fully integrated with Starling’s Accounting software. This will help businesses effortlessly manage cash flow by instructing the assistant to create and send invoices directly to customers on their behalf. The bank will add a new tool to the Assistant every week for the rest of the year, and customers can request new tools for Starling’s AI team to build.*