Qonto has revealed its roadmap for the integration of Penta.
Qonto, which claims to be the European market leader in digital financial management for SMEs and freelancers joined forces with Penta, the digital business banking provider for SMEs and freelancers in Germany last summer.
The integration roadmap “leads to one team, one platform and one brand.” The successful integration of Penta in Germany – “expected to be fully completed by the end of 2023 – is an important milestone on Qonto’s path to profitability.”
This announcement “marks the anniversary of Qonto’s record-breaking fundraising.”
Alexandre Prot, CEO and Co-Founder of Qonto:
“Germany was Qonto’s fastest growing market in both 2021 and 2022 and we’ll keep building on this momentum in 2023. The union of Qonto and Penta is a starting signal for a new era of consolidation in the European fintech industry. By integrating Penta, we’re combining the strengths of two companies to enhance Qonto’s position as the digital business finance leader European SMEs and freelancers expect and need.”
Following the deal, and to support its strong growth ambitions across Europe, Qonto has now completed “the integration of the Penta employees into the Qonto team.”
Their know-how in the German market and its customers “will further enhance Qonto’s existing strategy in Germany.”
Since October 2022, Qonto’s Germany business “has been led by Lukas Zörner, one of Penta’s Co-Founders and Qonto’s new VP Germany.”
Gradually, all existing Penta customers will be “invited to move their accounts to Qonto and benefit from Qonto’s comprehensive business finance solution.”
All Penta customers are “expected to be integrated on Qonto’s own platform by the end of 2023. Qonto has had its own core banking system since 2019.”
As a regulated payment institution, Qonto is “authorized and supervised by the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution or ACPR). In Germany, Qonto operates under the joint supervision of BaFin (Federal Financial Supervisory Authority) and ACPR.”
Lukas Zörner said:
“We’re providing a dedicated 7/7 customer support and a seamless flow for moving accounts, so changes for Penta customers will be kept to a minimum. Customers who move to Qonto will continue to have access to the features they know and like. In addition, they will gain access to Qonto’s outstanding product and services, including customer invoicing, supplier invoicing and SEPA Instant. With this enhanced offering we’ll be able to even better address customer pain points and serve all of their business banking needs on one platform.”
Starting now, Penta will be known as “Penta by Qonto”.
In the medium term, Qonto will “operate exclusively under the Qonto brand in Germany, as it does in all its European markets.”
All customers will “benefit from the combined strengths of both companies, going well beyond simple business banking.” Qonto already “offers an end-to-end financial management product and services that meet the financial needs of small and medium-sized European businesses.”
With Qonto, SMEs and freelancers can easily “manage their daily business finances – from everyday banking and financing to bookkeeping and spend management.”
Together with Penta, Qonto is “building the European champion for business finance management, serving more than 350,000 SMEs and freelancers across Europe.”
