Tide Becomes First Business Banking Provider to Launch Mobile Plans Globally, Powered by Gigs

WHY THIS MATTERS: The integration of a full mobile plan, complete with a UK phone number, directly into a business management platform like Tide marks a significant progression in embedded finance for the SME sector. Previously, the concept was limited to embedding core financial products—like lending or banking—into non-financial apps. This move, leveraging Gigs’ expertise in embedded connectivity, demonstrates a new frontier: incorporating essential business infrastructure outside of payments and credit directly into the financial workflow. For the 14% of the small business market Tide serves, this is about eliminating administrative drag, simplifying vendor management, and drawing a crucial boundary between personal and professional life via eSIM technology.

This innovation sets a high bar for competitor neobanks, proving that consolidation of vital, non-financial services is the next battleground for retaining and growing the small business market

Tide, the UK’s leading business management platform, and Gigs, the leader in embedded connectivity, today announced the launch of Tide Business Phone Number (BPN), a mobile service built for small businesses and fully embedded in the Tide app. This marks the first time a business banking provider has integrated a full mobile plan with UK phone number directly into its platform.

The launch is designed to help Tide’s nearly 800,000 UK members (14% of the small business market), better separate their personal and professional lives. For many founders, running a business still means juggling personal phones, contracts, and suppliers alongside their work. Tide BPN removes that friction by giving business owners a simple and affordable way to manage communications separately on a single device, without compromising their privacy or credibility.

Tide BPN is available for free to members on Smart, Pro, and Max plans, offering a business number with unlimited calls and texts. For those wanting data in addition to the BPN, the Unlimited Boost plan provides unlimited 5G data, plus 10GB of EU roaming data for a highly competitive £15 per month. Unlike comparable plans, Tide BPN does not impose annual price increases or credit checks and users can cancel at any time in the Tide app. 

Heather Cobb, UK Managing Director at Tide, said: “Small business owners tell us time and again that admin gets in the way of doing what they actually set out to do – running and growing their business. Tide BPN is a natural extension of our mission to save small businesses time and money. By bringing business phone numbers directly into the Tide app, we are removing yet another task from their to-do list and helping founders keep their business and personal lives clearly separate.”

Tide BPN allows members to set up a dedicated business number directly within the Tide app via eSIM (no additional device required), either by transferring an existing number or activating a new one. Members and their teams can easily switch between personal and business numbers when making or receiving calls. Incoming calls clearly show whether they are coming through a business or personal line, while outbound calls can be made from the business number, helping protect personal details and maintain professional boundaries.

Everything is managed in one place, with a single bill and no need to deal with multiple providers or contracts.

Rafa Plantier, VP Go-To-Market at Gigs, said: “Every new business requires the same essentials. Tide brings them together in one digital experience, combining company formation, a business account and now a mobile plan to help entrepreneurs get up and running faster and at lower cost than ever before. Gigs is proud to partner with Tide to power the UK’s first fully embedded mobile plan designed for small businesses.”

FF NEWS TAKE: This launch is more than a novelty; it signals that the ‘platformification’ of SME financial services is accelerating. By bundling a core utility like a business number directly into the banking app, Tide is locking in user engagement and increasing switching costs for competitors. We believe this move strongly shifts the needle, challenging other platforms to integrate similarly complex, non-financial utilities. The next critical development to watch is how quickly Tide expands this model, potentially adding other professional services, and whether telecom providers feel pressure to partner or launch their own simplified, business-centric offerings.

The post Tide Becomes First Business Banking Provider to Launch Mobile Plans Globally, Powered by Gigs appeared first on FF News | Fintech Finance.