BLME

BLME is a UK bank that provides Islamic banking. It operates on the principle that charging or paying interest is not Sharia compliant, so its products are built around profit sharing rather than interest. The bank trades as BLME for its private banking business and as Nomo Bank for its app-based banking, but both are the same firm, whose registered trading names are Nomo Bank, Nomo and BLME¹.

BLME is a genuine UK bank, incorporated in England and Wales in August 2006, and its company status is active³. Its registered office is at 20 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London¹. It is on the Bank of England's list of banks incorporated in the UK and authorised to accept deposits, with Financial Services Register number 464292².

What BLME offers: Islamic banking without interest

BLME's banking is built on Islamic finance principles. Under these principles, both charging and paying interest are not considered Sharia compliant, which shapes the whole product range⁵. Islamic banks do not offer overdrafts, for example, because an overdraft is a form of interest-bearing borrowing⁵.

In practice BLME's business sits around savings, current account services for private banking customers, and property and mortgage finance. Its private banking current account is described as coming with a BLME card, 24/7 cash withdrawals and contactless payments, and it is accepted anywhere the Mastercard Acceptance Mark is displayed⁶. The bank's permissions on the Financial Services Register cover accepting deposits and entering into regulated mortgage contracts as lender².

For a broader view of how these product types work, see our guides to savings accounts, current accounts and mortgages. BLME publishes its current product details, including today's rates and charges, on its own website at www.blme.com².

How the profit rate works instead of interest

Because BLME does not pay interest, its savings work differently from a conventional savings account. Instead of a fixed interest rate, Sharia compliant savings operate on a profit rate: the bank uses depositors' money in activities it considers permissible, and shares the resulting profit with savers⁵. The rate quoted is therefore an expected profit rate rather than a guaranteed return, and the underlying arrangement is one of sharing outcomes rather than lending money at a set price.

This is the core distinction a saver needs to understand. A conventional bank pays interest as of right on a balance; an Islamic bank agrees in advance how profit will be shared. The principle that paying interest is not Sharia compliant is what drives the structure⁵. For most everyday purposes the experience is similar: you place money on deposit, you receive a return, and the return is taxable in the same way as savings interest unless held within a tax wrapper such as an ISA. The difference is in how the return is generated and described.

BLME and Nomo: one bank, two brands

BLME and Nomo are not two separate banks. Nomo Bank, Nomo and BLME are all trading names of the same firm². Nomo is the digital, app-based face of the bank, aimed at everyday banking, while BLME is the name used for private banking and wealth management¹.

This matters for two practical reasons. First, customer service and products may be presented under either name, but behind them is one bank. Second, and more importantly for larger balances, deposits held with BLME and deposits held with Nomo are deposits with the same bank, so they count together for protection purposes rather than as two separate institutions. That is covered in the FSCS section below.

Charges, and how BLME tells you about changes

BLME does not publish a full tariff of charges on the pages cited here, and this site carries no product rates or fees. The bank's own website, www.blme.com, is where today's charges for each product are set out, and private banking customers can also ask their Relationship Manager².

As a general principle, banks must tell customers about their charges and about changes to them. If a change to charges affects you and you disagree with it, you can raise it with the bank as a complaint, and if the bank does not resolve it, take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service (see the complaints section below). Before opening any account, it is worth reading the terms and charges document the bank provides so you know what triggers a fee and how you would be told about changes.

Account rules: no overdrafts, statements and payment cut-offs

BLME's accounts do not offer overdrafts. This follows directly from Islamic banking principles: Islamic banks don't offer overdrafts, as both charging and paying interest are not considered to be Sharia compliant⁵. The same rule applies to fee-free basic bank accounts more widely, which must not have an overdraft facility⁷.

This has practical consequences for how you run the account:

• There is no arranged overdraft to fall back on, so payments can fail if the balance is insufficient.
• There is no overdraft interest or overdraft charging, which removes a common source of debt.
• You need to manage the timing of payments yourself, since the account will not bridge a short gap.

On statements, banks commonly provide regular statements and text alerts so customers can track their balance; for example, the basic accounts offered by large high street banks include regular statements and text alerts⁸. Check with BLME or in the Nomo app for exactly what statement and alert options your account has, and note any daily cut-off times for payments, which are set out in the bank's own terms.

Banking with Nomo: the app, support hours and cards

Nomo is the app-based way to bank with this firm. The Nomo app handles everyday banking, and the card that comes with the accounts can be used for 24/7 cash withdrawals and contactless payments, anywhere the Mastercard Acceptance Mark is displayed¹.

Card management is done online: BLME's card pages say you can check transactions, block or unblock your card, and report your card as lost or stolen through online access⁶. The card also comes with 3D Secure for online payments with participating merchants, and you can change your PIN at ATMs⁶. To apply for a card on the private banking side, BLME says to contact your Relationship Manager or email cards@blme.com⁶.

Nomo's customer support hours are Monday to Friday 6am to 6pm, and Saturday and Sunday 6am to 2pm, UK time, with support available in English or Arabic¹. Outside those hours, the app remains available for tasks such as checking transactions and blocking a card.

Fraud, lost cards and unrecognised payments

If your card is lost or stolen, report it immediately to the bank that issued it⁹. With BLME and Nomo you can do this through online account access, which lets you report the card as lost or stolen and block it⁶. Card fraud is a real and common problem: across the UK in 2025 there were 449,189 confirmed cases of lost and stolen card fraud, with losses of £109.8m, and card-not-received fraud losses of £2.8m across 7,888 cases¹⁰.

Unrecognised transactions on your statement are a warning sign of identity theft¹², so check your statements regularly for transactions you don't recognise⁹. If you spot any, inform your bank, building society and credit card company of the unusual transactions straight away¹³. The same applies to items on your credit card statement that you don't recognise¹².

For emails that claim to be from BLME or Nomo:

• Check the sender's email address by hovering over or right-clicking the sender's name; scam emails usually come from unrecognisable addresses¹⁴.
• Scammers try to sound official, including using the word 'official', and may include account numbers and IDs designed to trick you: check these against your own records¹⁴.

If you think you have been scammed, our guide to scams and fraud sets out what to do and where to report it.

Closing an account, and what happens when you die

To close a BLME or Nomo account, contact the bank through your Relationship Manager, the app or the details on its website. Ask about any notice period and how any remaining balance will be returned, and keep a record of the closure request.

When an account holder dies, the bank may temporarily stop access to their account, but it might still release money for funeral costs¹⁵. This is general practice across banks. For savings held in tax wrappers there are specific rules: for example, NS&I states that when the account holder dies it cannot accept more deposits, the balance becomes part of the estate, and the account continues to earn interest¹⁶. Similarly, under the Individual Savings Account Regulations, a continuing account of a deceased investor ceases to be such an account at the end of a set period¹⁷. The executor or next of kin should contact the bank promptly with the death certificate; our guide to life events covers the wider money steps after a death.

Complaints: timescales and the Financial Ombudsman

If something goes wrong, complain to BLME first, through your Relationship Manager or the bank's contact details. If the bank does not send you a final response within eight weeks, or you are unhappy with its response, you can complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service using its complaint form¹⁸. The ombudsman's helpline is 0800 023 4567²⁰.

How long an investigation takes depends on what the complaint is about, how complex it is, and how quickly the information needed can be obtained¹⁸. There are time limits: you have three years from when you first realised, or could have realised, that you had a reason to complain²¹. The ombudsman publishes data on the complaints it handles about financial businesses every six months; for January to June 2025 the overall total of banking and credit complaints, including firms below the publication threshold, was 128,226²². Its service is free to consumers.

FSCS protection: BLME and Nomo deposits counted together

Nomo Bank is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which may provide compensation if the bank cannot meet its obligations¹. Because BLME, Nomo Bank and Nomo are trading names of the same bank², money held across those brands counts as deposits with one institution for FSCS purposes, not as separate banks.

This matters if you hold money with both BLME and Nomo. Splitting money between two brands of the same bank does not give you two lots of protection. If you have balances large enough that protection matters, the FSCS has an online tool for checking whether your money is protected and how it is split across banks²³. As an illustration of how the scheme works, FSCS's own guidance gives the example of £120,000 in one building society being fully protected²³. You can read more about your rights when a financial firm fails in our guide to consumer protection.