INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
French startup Qonto has raised a $115 million Series C funding round led by Tencent and DST Global
TransferWise co-founder Taavet Hinrikus and Adyen CFO Ingo Uytdehaage are also joining the round
Qonto says it represents the largest funding round for a French fintech company.Qonto is a challenger bank, or a neobank, but for B2B use
Instead of attracting millions of customers like N26 or Monzo, Qonto is serving small and medium companies as well as freelancers in
Europe.According to the startup, business banking in Europe is broken
The company thinks it can provide a much better user experience with an online and mobile-first product.The company has managed to attract
65,000 companies over the past two years and a half
The product is currently live in France, Italy, Spain and Germany
markets, develop new features that make the platform work better in each country based on local needs and hire more people
The team should grow from 200 to 300 employees within a year.Qonto obtained a payment institution license in June 2018 and has developed its
own core banking infrastructure
Others are still relying on a third-party partner.Moving from one back end to another requires some input from customers, which explains why
there are still some customers using the legacy infrastructure
important, Qonto plans to obtain a credit institution license, which could open up a ton of possibilities when it comes to features and
The company says that it should have its new license by the end of the year.For instance, you could imagine being able to get a credit card,
apply for an overdraft and get a small loan with Qonto.Compared to traditional banks, Qonto lets you open a bank account more easily
After signing up, Qonto offers a modern interface with your activity
You can export your transactions in no time, manage your expenses and get real-time notifications
Qonto also integrates with popular accounting tools.When it comes to payment methods, Qonto gives you a French IBAN as well as debit cards
You can order physical or virtual cards whenever you want, customize limits and freeze a card
Qonto also supports direct debit and checks
Like many software-as-a-service products, you can also manage multiple user accounts and customize permission levels.
