Europe-based neobank bunq has announced that it has received approval from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) to operate as a broker-dealer in the US.
Coming as the first step in bunq’s objective to provide its products to the US, the approval will enable the neobank to bring its US stocks offering to American customers, facilitating access to self-directed investing, including mutual funds and ETFs. The launch is part of a wider solution rollout in the region. The decision to introduce these services to the market follows increased demand from users who live, work, and invest across both Europe and the US.
The news comes a few months after bunq announced that it filed for the broker-dealer licence, with the move being the initial step in its US banking licence filing.
Covering both sides of the Atlantic
bunq plans to deliver its approach, which is currently being used by 20 million users across Europe, to digital nomads, expats, international entrepreneurs, and remote professionals who hold ties to both sides of the Atlantic. Talking about its expansion strategy, bunq said that, as its users frequently reside, work, and travel across borders, for many of them the US is seen as an important part of their lives. With the launch of bunq Stateside, the neobank aims to simplify how Americans, and other individuals who call the US home, invest.
In addition to growing its presence in the US, bunq also intends to focus on the UK, with the company applying for an EMI licence as part of its ongoing international expansion strategy at the beginning of the year. This move was projected to offer the neobank the possibility of tapping into a market that included an approximate 2.8 million British digital nomads and individuals. At that time, bunq intended to continue to provide its solutions to serve its UK-based users acquired before Brexit under relevant regulations.
Latest news from bunq
In addition to applying for regulatory licences in different regions of the world and being among the fintechs setting sights on the US, bunq also recently teamed up with Ascenda to further support its goal of global expansion by leveraging a premium rewards proposition powered by the company. The partnership was set to improve bunq’s loyalty programme and unlock optimal rewards that assist its users’ international lifestyle.
A few short weeks before this, bunq joined forces with Kraken to introduce crypto staking across the EU, offering users the option to earn up to 10% annually on crypto. The neobank was set to expand bunq Crypto, rolling out secure and flexible crypto staking and bringing the possibility for users to earn rewards on their digital assets, with complete flexibility and no lock-up periods.
