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German FinTech N26 Notches $100M Amid COVID-19 Uncertainty

A funding deal for an extra $100 million has been closed by a German challenger bank N26 as it prepares itself for economic uncertainty. Investors Tencent and Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures funded the series D extension.

According to a CNBC report on 5 May, Series D was announced at the start of 2019. The new funds bring the Series D to $570 million. N26 has raised a total sum of $770 million to date. N26 also included $170 million to its Series D last year.

FinTech’s valuation didn’t improve after the new funding and is still amounted to $3.5 billion. Valentin Stalf, N26’s co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) termed the new funding a “successful round” especially when taking in the volatility in financial markets.

“It makes us still one of the most highly-valued companies around Europe,” Stalf told CNBC. “It’s not only about where we are today at $3.5 billion but where are we going to be in five to 10 years.”

An increasing number of people bank from home which made the FinTech additional funding. N26′s ATM withdrawals have reduced by almost 50 percent and eCommerce payments have escalated among consumers aged 65 and above. The bank has been in talks for greater funding before the Coronavirus hit. The bank currently has more than 5 million users.

“We’ve always been a well-financed company. For us it’s an opportunity to raise more capital,” he told CNBC. According to him, every company at this time is focusing on the future and they can get through the crisis. The bank also wants to be well-prepared, and that’s they decided to raise more capital.

“With the economic crisis that is resulting out of Covid-19, I think we as a company at least are planning for an impact that will still be ongoing later this year,” he added.

N26 is Berlin’s one of the most valuable FinTech startups and it expanded its customer base from 3.5 million users in 2019 to its current level of 5 million users, a rise of about 40 percent.