bunq to conquer the French market after expanding presence in Germany

The European challenger bank updates features based on user feedback and expands further into France with French IBANs and a new office in Paris

Amsterdam, June 1, 2021 - bunq is introducing Update 17, the latest version of its mobile banking app. From now on, users in France will receive a French IBAN so they can use their bunq accounts to the fullest. This April, bunq already launched German IBANs for users in Germany, with more local IBANs in select European countries coming soon.

All IBANs for Euro-denominated bank accounts within the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) should be treated equally and accepted universally, but in practice, discrimination against foreign IBANs in SEPA countries is common. bunq has a partnership with the acceptmyiban.org initiative, giving users the freedom to easily and securely report IBAN discrimination to the authorities.

Since launching in 2012, bunq has always asked users for feedback to create a better experience for them. The challenger bank continues this unique approach to directly involve its community of the Free in the ongoing development of the bunq app. bunq users are flexible, so bunq updates the app regularly, with 3 to 4 updates per year. This relationship is not a one-way street: being part of the bunq community means helping each other, creating financial freedom together, and learning from like-minded people.

In addition to the introduction of the French IBAN, these are the biggest new features in bunq Update 17:

Easy Bank // Easier and faster than any bank

Easy Bank offers everything you would expect from a bank account, enhanced with bunq's signature features such as Joint Accounts, Activities (an automatic overview of who paid what on a night out with friends), Places to explore popular hotspots in any city or country, as well as rich real-time notifications and full control over your cards and money within a few taps in the app.

Improved design // Make life even easier

For an optimized user experience, essential features are now even easier to access: paying and requesting money with just one tap, adding sub-accounts, and getting new cards is now super easy.

Batch actions // Run multiple tasks at the same time

Splitting multiple payments after a night out with friends? Simply select all events in the app and make it happen with just one tap.

Friends 2.0 // Discover all the hotspots you and your friends love

The Friends feature has been upgraded: on the map now you can see all the countries you and your friends have visited (in green) and the countries your friends liked the most (in blue). Same group, a new adventure? Easily start a new joint activity.

SOS support // Instant help when you need it the most

To make its flexible in-app support even better, bunq now offers SOS support! An SOS helpline is available to solve urgent issues or users can report their problem directly from the app via a voice- or video message. This way, users can get immediate support when they need it the most.

Ali Niknam, CEO and founder of bunq, says: “Our product team, designers, developers, and everyone at bunq is always listening and thinking how to make life easy for our users. There is no such thing as 'perfect' for us, as our mission is to continuously innovate and bring a product that our users really want. With the new Update 17, we now offer many new features to help users easily manage their finances and get a better grip on their money.”

bunq Update 17 is now available in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. For more information, go to https://www.bunq.com/.

About bunq

Founded in 2012 by serial entrepreneur Ali Niknam, bunq has brought lasting change to the European banking industry. By having its users at the heart of the business and building a product rooted in their wants and needs, bunq quickly scaled to become the second largest neobank in Europe. Serving digital nomads across Europe, bunq makes life easy for location-independent people and businesses starting from the way they manage money: how they spend, save, budget and invest.

Pioneering many things considered impossible, bunq was the first bank to get a European banking permit in over 35 years, raised the largest series A round ever secured by a European fintech (€193 million), and was the first EU neobank to achieve structural profitability at the end of 2022. On its mission to build the first global neobank for digital nomads, in April 2023, bunq announced its bid to enter the US market by applying for a banking license.

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