According to AltFi Starling Bank is using their deposits to fund consumer loans originated by p2p lending platform Zopa; while the bank has not amassed customers at the same rate as other digital banks they have built the biggest deposit base with more than £1.25bn; a spokeswoman for Starling Bank explains to AltFi, “”While we’re building our own lending capability, we are deploying some of our deposits in forward flow arrangements with selected lenders, including Zopa. We carefully consider inorganic opportunities that match our strict risk-return criteria with a view to sustainably growing our balance sheet.”; this isn’t the first deal Zopa has struck with a challenger bank as the company did a deal with Metro Bank five years ago. Altfi