Qonto (neobank)

Last updated
Qonto
Industry Financial services
Founded2016;7 years ago (2016)
FounderAlexandre Prot, Steve Anavi
Headquarters,
Members110
Number of employees
300 (2021)
Website qonto.eu/en

Qonto is a French online payment institution for freelancers and SMEs. The financial technology company was founded in 2016 and the initial product was launched in July 2017 in France.

Contents

The service has been expanded to Spain, Germany and Italy since 2019. [1]

History

The company was founded in April 2016.

In January 2017, Qonto raised €1,6 million in a seed round with Alven Capital, by billionaire Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures and a few business angels. [2]

In July 2017, Qonto raised another €10 million from existing investors Valar Ventures and Alven Capital and launches its service. [3] Six months after the launch, 5.000 companies were using the service and in April 2018, Qonto had more than 10,000 clients.

In July 2018, Qonto obtained the licence to be a payment institution from the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority. [4] Qonto does not have a banking licence.

In September 2018, Qonto raised another €20 million from its existing investors (Valar Ventures and Alven Capital). The European Investment Bank also became an investor. [5]

In January 2020, Qonto raised a $115 million funding round, led by DST Global and Tencent. [6]

After a new fundraising of €486 million in January 2022, Qonto became the most valued unicorn in France with an estimated valuation of €4.4 billion. [7]

In July 2022, Qonto made its first acquisition since its creation by buying its German competitor Penta. [8]

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References

  1. "Qonto, the B2B neobank, raises 104.000 millions of euro in Series C". Startups Real. 2020-01-29. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
  2. "European Digital Bank Qonto Expands to Germany, Also Serving France, Italy, and Spain". Crowdfund Insider. 2020-01-09. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
  3. "Qonto launches its digital bank accounts for small companies". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  4. "La néobanque Qonto obtient un agrément d'établissement de paiement - Actualités Fintech". L'AGEFI (in French). 2018-09-03. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  5. "Qonto raises $23 million to improve business banking". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  6. https://www.lesechos.fr/finance-marches/banque-assurances/la-neobanque-qonto-realise-une-levee-de-fonds-record-dans-la-fintech-francaise-1164595
  7. https://www.lesechos.fr/start-up/deals/qonto-la-neobanque-tricolore-valorisee-44-milliards-deuros-1378143
  8. https://www.lesechos.fr/start-up/deals/la-neobanque-qonto-rachete-sa-concurrente-allemande-penta-1778026