Dutch Online Bank Bunq Seeks U.S. Banking Licence

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Bunq BV, a prominent European online banking start-up, formally filed for a banking licence with U.S. regulators on Tuesday, the company's CEO told Reuters in an interview.

Ali Niknam, the Canadian-Dutch entrepreneur who founded Bunq in 2012, said his bank is attracting depositors in Europe despite jitters following the collapse last month of Silicon Valley Bank in the U.S.

"When things are bad, that's the best time for us," he said. "That's when people reconsider their choices, which is precisely the moment we need to get a foot in the door."

An expansion to the U.S. would help Bunq, which turned a 2.3 million euro ($2.50 million) profit for the first time in the fourth quarter of 2022, grow more quickly after years of investing in its software and operations.

Niknam said the bank's U.S. target group will be the 5 million European expatriates and European businesses operating in the U.S.

"Speaking from personal experience, getting a bank account in the U.S. as a European citizen is a headache," he said.

Bunq, which competes with Britain's Revolut and Germany's N26, said that as of March 14, it had deposits of around 2.3 billion euros, up 27% from 1.8 billion euros at the end of 2023.

(Source: Reuters)