Spanish neobank Rebellion has reportedly become the first challenger in the nation to acquire a banking license and provide International Bank Account Number (IBANs), according to a report from La Vanguardia.
The Fintech company is planning to become a neobank that “best speaks the language of Generation Z.”
Launched in 2018, Rebellion’s management believes offering IBANs are an important part of providing services to its 16-25 user base because this feature will allow customers to “direct their payrolls, send and receive transfers more easily … and [users] will soon be able to direct payments to [their] account,” CEO Sergio Cerro explains.
Cerro further notes:
“A few months ago [our clients] asked us for a Virtual Card. We [have delivered.] Touch lovers wanted a Material Card. We made the most neon card of all the cards. [Customers] wanted to use [their] mobile to buy and we got that with our app [so users can ] pay with Apple Pay and Google Pay in all stores. This summer, [users said they] preferred to withdraw cash from any ATM without commissions, both in Spain and abroad. Wish granted. As [our customers] like to travel, it was important for [them] to pay in other currencies without extra commissions per exchange rate. BAEM, granted too.”
He added:
“And now … [users] wanted the IBAN of [their] Rebellion account to be Spanish (ES) to make transfers faster, enter [their] payroll, [their] scholarship money or the bill of the week … and we have done it again.”
Rebellion’s focus on helping clients get their salaries directly from their accounts has come amidst a growing industry trend in which challengers are trying to encourage clients to direct their earnings into their new accounts.
The majority of Rebellion’s clients are students, who will now be able to use the IBAN associated with their Rebellion account to apply for scholarships. The challenger’s account holders can also receive monthly payments from their parents or relatives, as one IBAN can be used to make payments to another IBAN.
Rebellion has also added Google Pay and Apple Pay to its platform. The neobank is reportedly planning to expand its services into other countries.