on the other hand, an internet company playing fast and loose with EU cookie opt-outs seems so par for the course that I would take it as more suspicious if they were not?

> an internet company playing fast and loose with EU cookie opt-outs seems so par for the course

And I, like many, avoid business with any such companies who display a contempt for personal data.

If my ISP did such a thing, they would be very quickly reported to the Information Commissioner. Also, I think you will find the UK is beholden to the GDPR. It isn't simply an "EU cookie" law as you seam to imply.

> A financial company playing fast and loose with the law

That escalated quickly.

> That escalated quickly

Pfft

The company clearly had poor legal advice and/or didn't think things through, yet they want my money and personal data? At the very least, you should consider this error analogous to the Van Halen 'no Brown M&Ms rider', in that it flags sloppy practice elsewhere [1].

[1] https://www.insider.com/van-halen-brown-m-ms-contract-2016-9

They were approved by the UK Financial Conduct Authority. That surely takes some serious legal effort and attention to detail.

Also, their About Us page suggests that they are staffed by people from relevant financial services companies. Plus they are backed by some VCs who would not take risks by handing money to a company if they thought the legal side wasn't up to par.

We don't know why there wasn't an annoying cookie popup. So assuming that the company in general plays "fast and loose" doesn't seem warranted.

> UK Financial Conduct Authority

Frequently satirised in Private Eye [1] as the 'Fundamentally Complicit Authority' :-)

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_Eye