Atom Bank abandons Durham base as many employees work from home

Atom Bank will become the latest lender to abandon its offices as many employees work from home.

Chief executive Mark Mullen said attendance at the app-based bank’s headquarters in Durham is just a third of previous levels and it will look for a new location in the north-east of England.

The move plan follows decisions by larger rivals HSBC, Lloyds and TSB to move offices or reduce space due to flexible working.

But unlike his rival bosses, Mullen is not worried about this trend and accuses some of those who oppose working from home of being “emotional.”

He said that while he likes being in the office, it is “unreasonable” to expect younger employees to have to do so and that his focus was on building an efficient business wherever they are. Atom also, as of 2021, allows employees to work only four days a week.

Mullen told the Mail: ‘We occupy about a third of the space we used to occupy in the office, so we have reduced the leases we have with our landlords. We have adapted to that because the use is much less.

We are considering moving to a new headquarters next year; it will definitely be in the north east, but we will make a decision on which city in due course.’

Atom Bank employs around 500 people, with an office in London and its base in Durham.

Working from home means some staff are based as far away as Inverness, in the north of Scotland or in the south of England, Mullen said, although most are in the northeast, around Durham or Newcastle.

He admitted that not being in the office made it harder to see how productive employees are, and employers’ systems need to be updated to know this.

But he said conversations between senior executives and industry leaders suggested they are “not comfortable” with staff working from home and that “creativity is being hampered.”

Mullen, however, said: “But it’s more about emotions and feelings than facts.” I like coming to the office.

‘I have been working for 35 years; my work heritage goes back long before the internet. It’s not reasonable for my paradigm to work for someone who is a digital native.’

Last week, Atom reported an operating profit of £27m for the year to the end of March, up from £4m.