# Finom: the European Business Account Built by Ex-Modulbank Founders > An Amsterdam-based EMI fintech with Russian-speaking roots: accounts and AI accounting for EU SMBs, a €115m Series C — and the honest limits of a non-bank. Author: Dana Berzeg — Attorney-at-law, Family Office (https://wiki.private.law/en/authors/berzegova) Last modified: 2026-08-14T13:12:00.000Z Canonical: https://wiki.private.law/en/finom Topics: banking Jurisdictions: netherlands, eu Product tags: banking, company Semantic tags: banking, company --- This is a provider case study, not a product recommendation. Read it inside the [neobank map](https://wiki.private.law/en/neobanks) and the [business-account guide](https://wiki.private.law/en/business-accounts). **Primary evidence:** [DNB register entry for FINOM Payments B.V.](https://www.dnb.nl/en/public-register/information-detail/?registerCode=WFTEG&relationNumber=R180074). Finom is an Amsterdam-based electronic money institution serving small businesses and freelancers across the EEA. It is not a deposit bank: the licence, safeguarding model, fees and onboarding scope below were checked on 14 August 2026 and must be rechecked before opening an account. ## Legal and operating perimeter The [DNB register](https://www.dnb.nl/en/public-register/information-detail/?registerCode=WFTEG&relationNumber=R180074) records FINOM Payments B.V. as an electronic money institution from 11 November 2021, with payment and e-money services passported across the EEA. Founder, funding and litigation history from secondary media is omitted because it does not determine the current account contract or safeguarding protection. ## Product and pricing A [refreshed plan line-up](https://finom.co/en-de/blog/repricing/) took effect on 3 September 2025; German prices as of August 2026 \([finom.co/pricing](https://finom.co/en-de/pricing/pricing-compare/), per month, annual billing takes 20% off\): - **Solo — €0:** one user, a local IBAN, a virtual card and €2,500 of free monthly SEPA volume — a genuinely free tier, rare in this segment; - **Basic — €7–8, Smart — €17–19:** physical VISA cards, 1–3% cashback, €25,000–50,000 of free SEPA transfers, two or more users; - **Core — €34–38, Pro — €119–149, Grow — €249–339:** up to 10–15 wallets with separate IBANs, unlimited SEPA at the top, a dedicated manager and priority support. A notable difference from Qonto: free allowances are counted in payment volume, not in the number of transfers. International payments cover 17+ currencies and 150+ countries, with fees from 1% on Solo down to 0% on Grow; a German IBAN is promised within 24 hours; e-invoicing supports XRechnung and ZUGFeRD — now that receiving e-invoices is mandatory in German B2B, that is compliance rather than decoration. The Interest Account pays a 5% promo rate for the first five months, then 0.25–2% per year depending on the plan. Two newer floors are AI and credit. The assistant is available on all plans; in Germany Finom runs AI accounting — transaction categorisation, tax estimates and filings for freelancers, the very function the company started with in Italy. A credit line of up to €50,000 is live only in the Netherlands so far: a first careful step from a fee-based model onto the balance sheet. ## Licence: an EMI, not a bank The legal core is FINOM Payments B.V., an electronic money institution [authorised by De Nederlandsche Bank on 11 November 2021](https://www.dnb.nl/en/public-register/information-detail/?registerCode=WFTEG&relationNumber=R180074) and passported across the EEA. Client money does not sit "at Finom": it is [segregated at BNP Paribas under a dedicated Safeguarding Foundation](https://finom.co/en-de/faq/) supervised by DNB. That is standard EMI safeguarding: if the platform fails, funds are separated from its balance sheet, but there is no €100,000 state deposit guarantee as in a bank — an e-money account is formally not a deposit and pays no interest by itself. Germany was the special case. Historically German accounts ran through Solaris SE, a fully licensed bank with German deposit insurance; from July 2025 Finom moved that base onto its own licence, and [by 2026 the migration is complete](https://help.finom.co/en/articles/13348716-end-of-solaris-agreement-and-migration-to-finom-x-what-you-need-to-know) — all Solaris accounts are closed, and clients received new IBANs and cards on the Finom X infrastructure. The motive is plain: your own licence removes the partner's margin and the dependence on someone else's compliance — Solaris itself was winding down BaaS contracts across Europe at the time, context we cover in [BaaS and EMI in Europe](https://wiki.private.law/en/baas-emi-europe). The price is visible too: German clients traded deposit insurance for safeguarding, and re-papering a whole country's account details always costs part of the base. For anyone building a similar service it is a ready-made case study of the "BaaS partner versus own licence" fork — together with the choice of regulator, where the heavyweight DNB competes with the faster and cheaper [Lithuanian route](https://wiki.private.law/en/emi-license-lithuania). ## Competitive context The nearest benchmark is [Qonto](https://wiki.private.law/en/qonto): over 600,000 customers, profitable since 2023, and a French banking-licence application filed with the ACPR in July 2025. Finom is several times smaller and runs the opposite way: no public bid for a banking licence, a bet on the light EMI model, free entry \(Qonto's cheapest paid plan is €9\) and tax-and-accounting depth in each market. From above presses Revolut Business — a group with a Lithuanian banking licence, a record $2.3 billion profit for 2025 and B2B declared a priority: against its scale and multi-currency stack, local players win on service and localisation. The wider segment is mapped in our [neobanks overview](https://wiki.private.law/en/neobanks); the regulatory backdrop for all three is being redrawn by [PSD3 and the PSR](https://wiki.private.law/en/psd3-psr), which will tighten requirements for payment institutions and EMIs towards 2027–2028. Finom's weak spots are equally visible from here: one million customers by end-2026 against 200,000 in August reads more like a slogan, lending is confined to the Dutch pilot, and without a banking track deposit protection will not arrive in the medium term either. ## Onboarding Accounts open for businesses from the countries of presence: companies and freelancers in Germany, France, Italy and Spain get local IBANs, while the Netherlands, Belgium and [several other EEA countries](https://help.finom.co/en/articles/4747349-finom-who-we-are) get a Dutch IBAN. A non-resident holding company without an EU entity has no direct route in: the practical path is an account for the group's operating subsidiary in a country Finom serves. Verification runs online via Sumsub: [passports, ID cards and driving licences are accepted](https://help.finom.co/en/articles/9874945-opening-an-account-identity-verification); a residence permit works as an identity document only if issued by one of ten countries — the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Austria, Ireland, Malta, Cyprus and Latvia. For holders of Russian or Belarusian passports with EU residence, the published conditions contain no nationality-based restrictions: formally you need a business in a supported country and standard KYC, after which the decision sits with compliance case by case — sanctions screening applies here as everywhere in Europe. Promising "they will open it, no questions asked" would be wrong; the accurate wording is that the rules do not forbid it and the practice is individual. The language question is settled unexpectedly for a project with these roots: the interface and support run in [seven languages — English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Polish](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/finom-business-account/id1483892148); Russian is not among them. Finom does not open personal accounts — for private needs see our guide to [personal accounts abroad](https://wiki.private.law/en/personal-accounts). In a business owner's structure Finom naturally takes the slot of the operating account for a young company — the free Solo tier covers a GmbH's or SASU's ramp-up period before turnover justifies a subscription — or of a second account alongside a classic bank. Large balances belong where deposit insurance exists, while an EMI should hold working liquidity: not distrust of this particular service, just hygiene for working with any non-bank. > 🍓 Finom is the rare case of a team with Russian SMB-banking experience scaling the model in the EU: a €115 million Series C led by AVP, over €300 million raised in total, 200,000+ users and revenue that doubled in 2024. The product's strengths are free entry, volume-based SEPA allowances, invoicing and AI accounting in Germany; the limits are just as clear — an EMI without deposit insurance, credit only in a Dutch pilot, no Russian-language version. Since the exit from Solaris the whole construction rests on Finom's own DNB licence: cleaner economics, stricter discipline for client balances. For a European company in a client structure it is a solid operating account — provided the core liquidity lives in a fully fledged bank. ## FAQ ### **Is Finom a bank?** No. FINOM Payments B.V. is an electronic money institution \(EMI\) supervised by the Dutch DNB. Client funds are segregated at BNP Paribas via a dedicated Safeguarding Foundation, but the €100,000 state deposit guarantee does not apply. German accounts ran through Solaris bank until the 2025–2026 migration; after the move to Finom's own licence, deposit insurance gave way to safeguarding mechanics. ### **How much does Finom cost?** In Germany as of August 2026: Solo is free, Basic €7–8, Smart €17–19, Core €34–38, Pro €119–149, Grow €249–339 per month; the range reflects annual versus monthly billing. Free SEPA volume runs from €2,500 on Solo to unlimited on the top plans, and card cashback reaches 3%. ### **Will Finom open an account for a Russian or Belarusian passport holder with EU residence?** The published conditions contain no nationality restrictions: you need a business in a supported country and standard verification. A passport of any country is accepted as an identity document, while a residence permit is accepted only from ten EU countries on Finom's list. The final decision rests with compliance on a case-by-case basis. ### **Does Finom offer support in Russian?** No. Despite the team's roots, the product officially runs in seven languages — English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Polish. There is no Russian-language interface or support line. --- ## FAQ ### Is Finom a bank? No. FINOM Payments B.V. is an electronic money institution (EMI) supervised by the Dutch DNB. Client funds are segregated at BNP Paribas via a dedicated Safeguarding Foundation, but the €100,000 state deposit guarantee does not apply. German accounts ran through Solaris bank until the 2025–2026 migration; after the move to Finom's own licence, deposit insurance gave way to safeguarding mechanics. ### How much does Finom cost? In Germany as of August 2026: Solo is free, Basic €7–8, Smart €17–19, Core €34–38, Pro €119–149, Grow €249–339 per month; the range reflects annual versus monthly billing. Free SEPA volume runs from €2,500 on Solo to unlimited on the top plans, and card cashback reaches 3%. ### Will Finom open an account for a Russian or Belarusian passport holder with EU residence? The published conditions contain no nationality restrictions: you need a business in a supported country and standard verification. A passport of any country is accepted as an identity document, while a residence permit is accepted only from ten EU countries on Finom's list. The final decision rests with compliance on a case-by-case basis. ### Does Finom offer support in Russian? No. Despite the team's roots, the product officially runs in seven languages — English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Polish. There is no Russian-language interface or support line. --- ## Factual claims - A refreshed plan line-up took effect on 3 September 2025; German prices as of August 2026 (finom.co/pricing, per month, annual billing takes 20% off): - The legal core is FINOM Payments B.V., an electronic money institution authorised by De Nederlandsche Bank on 11 November 2021 and passported across the EEA. - The nearest benchmark is Qonto: over 600,000 customers, profitable since 2023, and a French banking-licence application filed with the ACPR in July 2025.