Digital-only bank N26 has launched a new credit product for its customers as digital-only banks struggle for profits due to high operating costs; the new credit product will offer credit lines of up to 25,000 British pounds ($26,810) for 5 years with varying interest rates; the product launch occurs as many digital banks seek expanded offerings to offset some of the high costs associated with deposit accounts. Source
N26 has partnered with Auxmoney to offer consumer loans; the partnership will open the loan offering to the digital bank's over 300,000 customers, providing options for self-employed, freelancers and students; loans will range from EUR1,000 ($1,181) to EUR25,000 ($29,527) with terms ranging from 12 to 60 months and annual interest rates beginning at 3.95%. Source
European digital bank N26 has increased its customer base by 200,000 users in just 14 months as digital bank solutions become increasingly more popular in Europe; the company has also reported a new transactions milestone of 3 billion euros ($3.1 billion); the Berlin-based company is targeting tech savvy millennials and has introduced a number of competitive features to attract new customers including a lending product that allows for mobile loans up to 25,000 euros ($26,556); the business has raised over $55 million in capital and is planning to expand to Britain in 2017. Source
British digital bank Zopa has announced that it has forayed into the UK’s £6bn BNPL space joining others such as Apple, PayPal and Klarna.
Initially a German-only digital bank, N26 is now expanding to 17 countries across the continent including Spain, Italy, Greece, Ireland and Slovakia; according to Valentin Stalf, founder and CEO of N26, the company is looking at "disrupting retail banking further" with this expansion; the digital bank offers an eight minute signup process, real time money transfers and budgeting tools; in coming years they are looking to add new products like investments, savings, insurance products and artificial intelligence based features. Source
Leading UK consumer organization, Which?, has published new research showing in the last two years 1,045 branches have closed; HSBC has closed 27% of branches, Lloyds has closed 14% and Co-operative Bank has closed 53% of branches; the banks have said the rise of digital banking has moved their customers away from in person branches; while the move to digital banking is continuing, research by Bain also shows that 40% of global customers would consider a new bank if their branch was closed. Source
Business Insider provides data on the number of challenger banks by country; this week Carrefour Banque, a subsidiary of Carrefour, that also operates a multinational retailer, shared that they were launching a new current account under the name C-Zam; the retailer operates in 30 countries and has over 1,000 stores in France which puts them in a unique position to acquire customers; other players prevalent in the French market include BNP Paribas which launched Hello Bank in 2013 and ING Direct which launched in 2010; startups Qonto and N26 also operate in Europe. Source
Revolut has launched operations as a bank in 10 Western European nations, allowing it to provide its customers in these markets deposit protection.
A new report by ratings agency Fitch says digital banks could be more vulnerable than traditional banks in the event...
Writing a guest post on FT Alphaville Victor Basta, the managing director of Magister Advisors talks bout the struggle digital banks face in making a profit; digital banks have certainly made a name for themselves and offer a better product to the consumer; rising customer acquisition costs and the tough scaling of affiliate agreements are just two of the reasons these banking startups will find it a challenge to reach profitability; the future looks like potential acquisition of digital banks for technology or merging with other fintechs to form a stronger conglomerate. Source.