Berlin-based Penta, a challenger bank for SMEs, has been acquired by finleap, a fintech company builder which is also based in Berlin. Over the course of 2019, Penta will also collaborate with Beesy, a finleap portfolio company that focuses on digital banking for freelancers.
Founded in 2016, Penta has already raised over €9 million, and counts more than 5,500 digital businesses as clients including AirHelp, bepro11 and Global Digital Women as customers, adds a new asset to the finleap portfolio. Penta’s customers can open a business bank account in just a few minutes, completely online. They have a fast and easy real-time overview of their finances, they can get credit cards with individual limits for their employees, and even do their accounting within Penta. Over the course of this year, Penta plans to release many more features like direct debits, loans, and international transfers.
“We are very pleased to welcome Penta to the finleap family,” said Ramin Niroumand, founder and CEO of finleap. “The team has a great product, which matches perfectly with our existing fintech ecosystem. We believe firmly in vertical banking, and so does Penta with its focus on providing banking solutions for the digital industry. Through our strong network, we are able to accelerate Penta’s business significantly.”
As a first step, Penta will collaborate with Beesy, which was launched by finleap in September 2018. Beesy offers services like digital banking and invoice management for freelancers, similar to Penta’s services for SMEs. Both companies aim to digitize financial management for digital companies and micro-businesses so that entrepreneurs can focus more on their businesses.
“Beesy and Penta complement one another in their respective strengths, while at the same time sharing the same vision,” said Luka Ivicevic, co-founder of Penta. “By collaborating, we benefit from each other by expanding our product range and focussing on a larger customer base. It is a really exciting new step ahead.”
