Germany-based challenger bank N26 announced earlier this week the launch of its new subscription-based current account, Black. This news comes days after N26 celebrated its fourth birthday and weeks after the company successfully secured $300 million through its Series D funding round, which was led by venture capital and private equity firm Insight Venture Partners, with participation from GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, and several existing investors.
As previously reported, N26 was founded in 2013 with a mission redesigned banking to make it simple, fast and contemporary. The bank notably operates on a much lower cost base with lean organizational structures, minus green screen IT system and no expensive branch network.
“N26 passes on these cost benefits to its customers. N26 partners with the most innovative fintech and traditional financial companies to offer its customers best-in-class products such as TransferWise (foreign exchange), Raisin (savings), Clark and Allianz (insurance), auxmoney (credit) and others.”
According to N26, N26 Black removes the uncertainty of exchange rates and transaction costs encountered through foreign travel. For a monthly subscription of £4.90, Black customers benefit from no markup fees on foreign transactions and Mastercard’s best exchange rate, enabling them to spend at home and abroad, without limitations. Based on estimated annual expenditure and days overseas, Black members stand to save £151 a year in average fees that are charged by high street banks. While sharing more details about the accounts, Alexander Weber, Head of International Markets, added:
“The majority of UK customers are being hit by high transaction fees every time they use their card overseas. At N26, we don’t believe that spending abroad should be any different from spending at home. N26 is simplifying the daily financial decisions that customers face and N26 Black is the perfect fit for UK travellers.”