ING invests in open banking
19 September 2018
ING Ventures has invested €7.5 million in international fintech Cobase, a multibank platform that helps international customers to manage multiple bank accounts. It offers payments, cash management and treasury services in one place.
Cobase offers a single point of access to all bank accounts and other financial products and services.
“Our goal is to make it easier and more efficient to work with multiple banks,” said Jorge Schafraad, CEO and founder of Cobase.
Cobase does not compete with banks, rather it supports them in areas where it is difficult for them to operate themselves.
“Companies in our target group often hold many accounts with many different banks. With Cobase, the customer can manage all those accounts via a single platform,” said Jorge.
Users can view all their balances and transactions in one place, initiate payments, and perform actions related to cash management or corporate treasury.
The platform was developed in a pilot with corporate clients from various industries. In 2016, it completed ING Wholesale Banking’s accelerator programme, in which the concept was tested through prototyping, customer interviews and market research.
A big differentiator is that Cobase minimises the IT effort on the client’s side, as it’s a cloud solution. It requires no investments or long-term contracts for licences or hardware.
Ready to spread its wings
ING’s investment will help Cobase expand its client network beyond Europe and develop more functionalities for its platform. For example, it is working on a ‘robo assistant’ to monitor transactions.
“A significant portion of ING’s investment strategy consists of starting partnerships with fintechs and investing in them,” said Benoît Legrand, chief innovation officer at ING.
“When making investments like these, we look at companies that offer a distinctive customer experience, Cobase is a perfect choice.”
