The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has expressed concerns about "blanket refusals" to give certain financial technology companies bank accounts, leaving some startups struggling to get their businesses up and running.

The comments from the regulator come as the FCA’s regulatory sandbox — a testing environment for startups to experiment with new technologies — celebrates its one year anniversary. The initiative was set up to promote competition in finance in the interests of consumers, but the City watchdog said that: "denying certain customers bank accounts on a wholesale basis causes significant barriers to entry and could lead to poor competition in certain markets".