In addition to SEPA and SEPA Instant payments, LHV will offer Lightyear EUR safeguarding accounts, which separate client funds from the company’s. LHV will also provide EU operational accounts, designed to hold businesses’ operating funds, international SWIFT, and payments in EEA currencies alongside virtual IBANs. This partnership supported Lightyear's recent pan-European launch.
In July 2022, Lightyear announced a USD 25 million Series A round, led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sir Richard Branson, to support its expansion into 19 new European countries, thereby becoming the first neobroker to unlock most of Europe in one move. With no trading, account, and custody fees, charging a small 0.35% for FX, Lightyear entered most European countries as one of the most competitively priced investment platforms on the market.
Commenting on the partnership, LHV’s officials mentioned that Lightyear is democratising access investing to retail traders. By utilising Lightyear’s commission-free investment platform, investors can bypass the traditional banks and web platforms, which charge high fees for stock trading.
Lightyear has been conceived to give everyone in Europe seamless, low-cost access to global investment markets. Traditionally, if European investors want access to international markets, they get hit with transaction and custody fees, but most notably, hidden foreign exchange fees, as per the press release. Lightyear aims to bridge these gaps and lower the fees for international markets for customers.
LHV is the founding member and leader in instant EUR payments, processing 8% of the total Single Euro Payments Area (‘SEPA’) Instant transactions in Europe. The scheme processes the payments in seconds, regardless of the time or day throughout the year. Through offering a wide selection of banking services, LHV aims to become a one-stop shop for all banking needs of its fintech customers.
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