Fintech FINOM celebrates Dutch market entry, partners up with VISA

Fresh from buying up UK-based cross-border payments facilitator Kapaga a few weeks back, Dutch fintech FINOM just celebrated its official launch in its home market, despite having operations there since it was founded in 2019.

Until now, FINOM has kept its Dutch presence as headquarters and administration only, instead focusing on Germany, France and Italy with its business-to-business payments portal, which enables freelancers and SMEs to create e-invoices, tackle red tape and harmonise their finances.

On top of the official Netherlands debut, FINOM is also announcing a new strategic partnership with one of the big two payment card issuers.

Visa is partnering the startup to give FINOM customers access to its physical and virtual debit cards, allowing them to use the cards for B2B payments made using the FINOM payments portal.

Jos van de Kerkhof, Visa's Dutch market lead, argued joining hands FINOM would allow the corporate to give SMEs and the self-employed "full control over their finances."

"Together we are working on ways to give these business customers convenient, digital and secure means of payment that enable them to thrive under all circumstances," van de Kerkhof added.

FINOM's target market mainly consists of entrepreneurs, freelancers and SMEs. There's plenty of demand in Europe, where internal EU market protocols for bank transfers like SEPA co-exist with the global country-to-country transfers network, SWIFT.

That complexity in European money transfers convinced FINOM it was a better idea to launch in France and Germany first, allowing it to wait for an official electronic money licence in the Netherlands, granted by the national De Nederlandsche Bank last November.

Mike Lobanov, foudner and partner at FINOM's main investor Target Global, said: "We are extremely pleased to be one of the early backers of FINOM as the business goes from strength to strength.

"Within two years, FINOM has become a leader in the German market, demonstrated steady growth in France and is now launching into a new market in The Netherlands.