German tax refund fintech Zasta secures debt to reduce product prices

Despite market turbulence, Germany's personal finance fintechs are determined to start the year on a high note. Following news of N26's roll out of crypto trading this morning, we're hearing the Hessen-HQed financier United Volksbank, already renowned for pumping credit lines into leading fintech players like Billie, Ratepay and Mondu, has clinched another credit agreement, this time to fund the automated tax refunds app Zasta. (source FinanceFwd.)

Zasta, which lets taxpayers claim money back without filling in forms, will receive €60 million in debt to help make its tax refund product more competitive.

The deal is predicted to help Zasta reduce commission on successful tax refunds, enabling it to offer a 75% return.

Human tax consultants are hired by Zasta to scrutinise every refund claim, so much of the commission goes to human resource. Consumers, however, may not see it that way if charges escalate too high.

At three-quarters of the overall refund, Zasta's offer would apparently beat that of its Berlin-based competitor TaxFix, which pays back only 50%. According to the FinanceFWD report, both companies are trumped by the 80% rate offered by Germany's Steurgott.