Amsterdam-based bunq becomes first EU neobank to report quarterly profits: Know more

Amsterdam-based challenger bank bunq  announced on Tuesday, February 21, that it has reached a pre-tax profit of €2.3M in the last quarter of 2022.

In Q4 2022, bunq’s net fee income grew by 37 per cent compared to Q4 2021, and user deposits grew by 64 per cent compared to €1.8B at the end of 2022.

The neobank says its first quarterly profit will fuel the fintech’s further growth and expansion.

“I’m incredibly proud that, just a decade since our inception, bunq’s service-oriented business model has proven to be profitable. Truly aligning our user-centred philosophy with financial success, we were able to build a business that’s only successful as long as our users are happy,” says Ali Niknam, founder and CEO of bunq.

Serial entrepreneur Ali Niknam founded bunq in 2012 after he secured the first European banking permit in over 35 years. He was the company’s sole investor until 2021, financing the company with €98.7M of his own money.

In December 2021, bunq reported break-even for the first time, and since then, the neobank has been on a steady path to profitability, continuously investing its operating profit in innovation, product development, and international expansion. 

bunq: Previous development

Last year, the Dutch firm rolled out a new update, Update 21, the fourth large-scale update to the bunq app with features like Easy Budgeting, Group Expenses, Widgets, and more.

Around the same time, the neobank won a landmark case against the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) over the central bank’s anti-money laundering policies.  

The DNB called bunq’s method of screening private customers for anti-money laundering rules inadequate since all banking transactions go through its app.

On the other hand, bunq explained how their method, based on artificial intelligence, works and why it minimises money laundering risks. 

The Trade and Industry Appeals Tribunal (CBb) ruled in favour of bunq on the appeal. The CBb has ruled that DNB has not proved that the screening method used by bunq is contrary to the law.