Insurance firm Allianz and internet group Tencent co-led a $160m series C round for Germany-based mobile financial services provider N26 yesterday, the former through its Allianz X unit.
Founded in 2013 as Number26, N26 runs a mobile banking platform that provides a bank account, sort code and credit card to each customer. It has grown its user base from 500,000 in August 2017 to 850,000 today, across 17 European countries.
The proceeds from the series C round, the largest to be closed by a Germany-based fintech company according to N26, will fund product development and an international growth drive intended to take it into the US and UK this year as it aims to reach 5 million users by 2020.
Solmaz Altin, Allianz’s chief digital officer, said: “N26 is a clear frontrunner in mobile banking. N26’s banking platform is modernising traditional business models of financial services, ultimately providing a better customer experience.”
Lin Haifeng, managing partner of Tencent subsidiary Tencent Investment, added: “As a pioneer of the mobile banking industry in Europe, N26 is committed to offering their customers a more convenient and cost-efficient banking experience.
“We see the increasing demand of digital banking products and services in the European markets and we are delighted to be a strategic investor of N26 to build a long-term partnership and participate in their growth.”
The round increased N26’s overall funding to $215m. Venture capital firm Horizons Ventures co-led its $40m series B round in June 2016, investing alongside Battery Ventures, Valar Ventures, Earlybird Ventures, Redalpine Ventures and assorted angel investors.
Valar Ventures had already led the company’s $10.8m series A round, which featured existing backers Earlybird and Redalpine, and Daniel S. Aegerter, chairman of family office Armada Investment, the previous year.
The round’s close comes the week after another European mobile banking platform, UK-based Atom Bank, raised $207m in a round led by a $119m investment by financial services firm BBVA.
– Photo courtesy of N26 GmbH.