The service allows students to open an e-current account before they leave their home country and receive their Debit Mastercards upon arrival in the UK.

The e-current account provider, which announced a £300,000 backing in May by fintech experts Neofin Ventures, is buoyed by the record number of international students opting to study in the UK.

Matt Oldham, co-founder of Neofin Ventures, said by “kick-starting the process of getting an account” ahead of arrival, students can “eliminate one of the many hurdles they face such as finding accommodation and overcoming potential language barriers”.

“We have targeted the UK as our first market as it is a significant market for inbound international students,” Oldham continued.

UK Higher Education Statistics Agency statistics showed 538,600 international students were in the UK in the 2019/20 academic year. The re-introduction of a ‘graduate route’ visa is also expected to increase student numbers.

“Once we have established ourselves in UK we will launch in other territories where we believe our proposition is needed,” Oldham added.

“Once we have established ourselves in UK we will launch in other territories”

Unizest welcomes applications from anywhere in the world and it has already onboarded customers through its five-step process from a number of countries including Canada, Taiwan, Ireland, Romania and Hong Kong, he detailed.

“The Unizest app supports students moving to the UK with useful information and advice from independent NGO Just Good Work.

“We also work with partners to offer discounts on products and services from train tickets to university accommodation. We want to give students the best start possible when it comes to their new life here.”

Unizest also partners with The GlobalPass – a company “dedicated to helping students discover opportunities and make a smooth transition to a new country”.

“Our long term vision is for Unizest to be as well known with students across the globe as… League of Legends!” Oldham concluded.