The German neobank hoovered up a record sum, as its home regulator set a cap on its growth.
N26 co-founders Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal have reason to celebrate after a $900 million fundraising round closed on Monday to vault the Berlin-based fintech to a $9 billion valuation.
The flurry of cash comes with a bitter note, as German regulator Bafin set a maximum of 70,000 new clients monthly on N26, as the «Financial Times» (behind paywall) reported on Tuesday. Bafin fined the start-up 4.25 million euros ($5 million) fine on N26 last month for money laundering shortcomings (in German).
The cap on new clients illustrates that Bafin, where ex-Finma boss Mark Branson took over in August, isn't quite finished with N26 year. The fintech is being ordered to put new clients exceeding the limit on a waiting list.
