French Startup Qonto Secures Funding To Disrupt Biz Banking

France-based Qonto, which aims to disrupt the corporate banking industry, has raised new funds for its goals.

Reports Monday (Jan. 16) said Qonto secured $1.7 million from Valar Ventures and Alven Capital, a sign of support for the startup’s corporate banking solution. According to TechCrunch, Qonto has identified critical issues in business banking, most notably the cost of a corporate banking account.

The company will launch a solution that enables business owners to open a bank account in only a few minutes. The platform will support payment and money receipt via IBAN, physical cards and digital cards, reports said. While the company has yet to release its product, it has a website to lure investors and potential clients.

Qonto will also look to customize its service to corporates, each with its own set of financial services needs. Reports said the startup will look to integrate with other FinServ players to add new features to its platform in the areas of FX, cross-border payments, cash management and elsewhere. So far, Qonto has inked a deal with Treezor to manage funds in the bank accounts on the back end and to generate accounts and debit cards for the Qonto platform.

Reports said the company aims to release its solution in April. TechCrunch also noted that the competition in this space is heating up, citing Ibanfirst as another company that has recently set its vision on the corporate banking industry.

The investment in Qonto marks Valar Venture’s first investment in France, though not its first in this space. The firm also provided funding for N26, a startup that wants to disrupt consumer banking, as well as TransferWise, reports said.