Dutch challenger Bunq applies for US banking licence
Dutch digital challenger Bunq has applied for a US banking licence with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in New York as the firm looks to expand its services to all 50 states.
Bunq applies for US banking licence
The firm says it is targeting a “community of almost 5 million digital nomads – expats, international entrepreneurs, and professionals working remotely – who are EU or US citizens with deep ties on both sides of the Atlantic”.
Bunq says that by the end of 2021, the number of European expats in America reached 4.9 million, including international entrepreneurs and professionals working remotely, and claims many Europeans are met with “complexity and lack of transparency” when accessing financial services in America.
CEO and founder Ali Niknam says the challenger was created to make life easier for digital nomads in Europe. Now, it wants to do the same stateside, “giving a community of location-independent people” a way to bank remotely.
In February, Bunq became the first neobank in the European Union to report a quarterly profit after a decade of operations.
The company, which is the second largest neobank in the EU, reported a pre-tax profit of €2.3 million over Q4 2022.
Founded in 2012, Bunq was the first bank to obtain a European banking licence in 35 years. It has since expanded to more than 30 European countries.
In 2021, the firm raised $228 million at a $1.9 billion valuation, the largest Series A round ever raised by a European fintech.
