German banking-as-a-service platform solarisBank has confirmed a EUR26.3 million funding round from a cohort of international investors, including Arvato Financial Solutions - the financial services subsidiary of local media outfit Bertlesmann - and Japan's SBI Group.
Founded in 2015 by Marko Wenthin, formerly of Deutsche Bank and Andreas Bittner, an ex-MD at core banking supplier Avaloq, solarisBank provides a set of plug-and-play APIs to power banking services for fintech startups.
Last year the firm received a pan-European banking license and plans to us the new money to expand its geographic reach, targeting fintech companies across Europe. Already active in six European markets, solarisBank has so far onboarded over 20 companies onto its banking platform.
Commenting, Andreas Bittner, CCO and Co-Founder of solarisBank. says that since its launch, solarisBank has grown its team of banking and tech experts from 20 to over 85. “One out of two employees works in our product and technology team," he says. "It is our technological leadership that enables us to very efficiently integrate numerous partners from various sectors, currently across six European countries.”
In line with the new funding, the company has the also appointed former DAB Bank board member Roland Folz as CEO and former Klarna and Sofort Bank executive Gerrit Seidel as chairman.
Seidel points to the calibre of the two lead investors as a sign of confidence in the bank's plans for the future. "With the decision by Arvato and SBI Group to become partners in this venture, solarisBank has gained two financially strong investors," he says. "They will support the banking platform’s independent positioning as minority shareholders and will make an important contribution to the development of the bank into a global player."