Berlin-based Banking-as-a-Service platform Solarisbank raised $224m in an oversubscribed Series D funding round, valuing the company at over $1.5bn.
The round was led by Decisive Capital Management, with support from growth investors, including Pathway Capital Management, CNP (Groupe Frère) and Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital. Existing investors led by yabeo Capital, alongside BBVA, Vulcan Capital and HV Capital, also participated in the round with significant additional investments.
In conjunction with the funding, Solarisbank acquired Contis, a European payments FinTech, to become the undisputed pan-European Banking-as-a-Service leader, subject to regulatory approval. Upon completion of the transaction, the combined entity will be led by Solarisbank’s CEO Roland Folz. Contis founder Peter Cox will support the transition in his new role as Senior Advisor and shareholder. The Contis acquisition will give the German firm a place in the UK as well as payment processing capabilities.
Cox said, “Contis is one of the true FinTech trailblazers, with numerous awards to its name and a proven track record of delivering disruptive technology, securely with proven high reliability in the payments space. Having already become one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies over the last three years, this coming together brings our joint velocity to the next level. Solarisbank and Contis share the same vision and values and together we will spearhead the global trend of embedded finance.”
Solarisbank, which provides a collection of cloud services that can be used to build financial applications such as digital wallets, enables companies to issue customized payment cards to their users and provide the option to pay for purchases in multiple instalments.
Solarisbank also offers services for building financial applications that target businesses rather than consumers. Its software makes it easier for banking startups to issue loans to small and midsized businesses. E-commerce marketplace operators can use Solarisbank’s technology to provide loans to merchants operating on their platforms as a way of supporting their growth.
Folx added, “In the last 12 months, our passionate team has delivered against key milestones on our ambitious expansion journey. The funding is the result of their outstanding work and will further fuel our vision to create a world where financial services seamlessly sync with life.”
Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Solarisbank Ramin Niroumand stated, “The alliance of our companies follows a clear strategic rationale as the platforms complement each other perfectly. Together we will build an international powerhouse for Banking-as-a-Service. We are delighted to have won a group of new elite investors to accompany us on our future growth journey.”
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