5 Nordic Fintech Companies to Watch in 2022: Ranking and Analysis
The fintech industry is booming and is perhaps going through the most exciting period in the modern history of financial services. The evolution of technology is opening up new possibilities for businesses in the ever-changing financial industry. Facing a changing playing field, many traditional banks are being forced to reinvent themselves with innovative technology that can provide a better experience for customers. Newcomers to the financial market have the potential to change the landscape and potentially disrupt a once-traditional order.
This post is written for those who want to understand the transformation that is taking place in the Nordics, being home to some of the best fintech companies in the world. In this article, we will analyze and rank 5 of the most promising Nordic fintech companies for 2022. The ranking is based on a variety of factors, including potential, innovation, software offerings, client base, funding, and more. We hope that this article will help you stay up-to-date on the latest happenings in the Nordic fintech scene!
Best Nordic Fintech companies
The Nordic countries encompass Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. The region is rapidly becoming a fintech powerhouse, producing some of the most successful fintech companies in the world. This post, however, is not about incumbent companies that you may have already heard of, like Klarna, Zettle, Lendify, or Lunar; rather, it's about the new, disrupting companies you should be paying attention to in 2022.
Intergiro
Number one on our list is Intergiro. This emergent fintech company provides a comprehensive variety of financial solutions for businesses in Europe. Intergiro’s APIs allow you to automate your business finance or provide banking services to your customers, and it is one of the most innovative fintech companies in the Nordics. Let's explore and differentiate Intergiro’s product offerings below:
Business banking
Intergiro offers businesses a business account that is quick and easy to set up. The company also provides a wide range of features, including multi-currency accounts, enterprise payment features, and an API integration allowing clients to automate their financial value chain. Unlike other providers, you can have a merchant account together with your bank account. This makes it easy for businesses to accept credit card payments from customers.
Intergiro is undoubtedly an ideal choice for medium and larger enterprises that are looking for a simple and convenient way to manage their business finances.
Intergiro’s business banking features include:
- Multi-currency accounts
- Smart spending cards
- Bulk payment options Integrated PSP
- Great FX conversions
- Direct API integration
Banking as a Service
Intergiro also offers its own Banking as a Service (BaaS) platform. BaaS describes an ecosystem in which licensed financial institutions offer other companies access to their (financial) services. Looking at the website of Intergiro, their services are distinguished by accounts as a service, onboarding as a service, payment processing as a service, and cards as a service. Businesses that are looking to integrate financial services can choose the solution that best meets their needs.
With these products, you can start your very own fully-fledged neobank-style financial institution, issue a branded card program, embed a PSP into your website, or issue multi-currency IBAN wallets to your customers.
Intergiro’s BaaS features include:
- Automated onboarding
- Advanced card programmes
- Issue multi-currency business accounts into your own apps and products
- Apple Pay & Google Pay tokenization
- Embedded PSP opportunities
Juni
Founded in June 2020, Juni aims to be the ultimate financial companion for thousands of digital entrepreneurs and e-commerce businesses. Juni offers a simple and secure application process to obtain a VISA card. The card is specifically created to cover a small business’ online advertising needs and currently provides a 1% cashback on all your expenditures. In addition, the platform provides a centralized overview of all your bank accounts, direct payment services, and tracking of your funds – all in one dashboard. The USPs of Juni are the many integration opportunities with other platforms.
Juni has raised $75.9M in venture capital from some of the world's leading investors, including Index Ventures, DN Capital, and more. The company is headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Juni’s features include:
- VISA debit cards
- Cashback on advertising
- ROI tracking across your business
- Invoice and direct payment solutions
Pleo
Pleo is a Danish fintech company that offers a digital employee expenses solution. The company's card and bookkeeping solutions help businesses automate their expense reporting process, making it easier and faster for employees to submit expenses. Pleo’s services help companies have better control over employee expenses, and significantly reduce the hassle associated with reimbursements and reconciliation.
Since its launch, Pleo has become one of the leading fintechs in the Nordic region, and it now has offices in 5 different countries. The company has grown and raised significant investments over the past couple of years, including a series C round investment of $200 million in late 2021.
Pleo’s features include:
- An expense management solution
- Smart virtual company cards that can be immediately activated
- Help with automating the expense reporting process
- Saves time and money for businesses
Holvi
With Holvi, small businesses can find a home for their finances. Whether you're a freelancer, a microbusiness, or a growing startup, Holvi has great services for all your financial needs.
The company was founded in 2011 in Helsinki and strives to be a one-stop-shop with a range of financial services, including (retail) bank accounts, invoicing, and more. Holvi’s services help everyone from freelancers to small businesses reduce their bookkeeping stresses, with capabilities such as scanning receipts directly into the app and creating reports to simplify tax declarations. These features help you keep track of your consumer data.
Holvi’s features include:
- Business accounts and cards
- Credit cards
- Invoicing
- Bookkeeping
- App for mobile banking and mobile payments
Rocker
Rocker is a Swedish fintech company that has developed a mobile banking solution for small businesses and startups. The company's solution helps businesses manage their finances, taking control of their everyday financial life. Rocker comes with many features, including account credits, P2P checkout payment services, and debit card services.
Rocker is one of the leading fintech companies in Sweden, with offices in the Swedish capital of Stockholm as well as Malmö. The company was founded in 2018 by Dennis Ahlsén. Recently, the company received €48 million in equity funding from Schibsted and LMK Industry. The objective of 2022 is to expand to multiple European countries.
Rocker’s features include:
- Connect different bank accounts
- Manage all purchases in one place
- 0.80% interest on your savings
- Loans and lending up to $30.000
- Smart spending cards
Future of Fintech in the Nordic region
The future of the fintech community in the Nordic countries is bright, and there is no doubt that it will continue to change the financial services industry. Thanks to numerous Nordic fintech startups, we are living in the age of the digital consumer, and this development is only going to intensify in the future.
Nordic countries tend to be digitally savvy and are noteworthy for having the highest percentages of new technology adoption and mobile banking usage in the world. A recent study by Accenture shows that Nordic FinTech companies are among the top five European performers in terms of attracting venture capital investment.
What about funding?
Out of the 10 fintech companies with the most funding in Nordic countries, six were Swedish. The top three companies were Klarna ($3.7 billion), Lendify ($590 million), and Lunar ($371 million).
Nordic fintechs may become Europe's leaders
There is no one specific reason why the Nordics are a strong region for fintech, fintech solutions, and open banking growth. What makes the Nordic region a strong environment for fintech development is a combination of factors: a mix of sustainable economic growth, digitalization, and tech-savvy consumers.
Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland are all benefiting from the global trend of open banking, which is where banks make it easier for customers to use different providers for products such as current accounts, savings accounts, loans, and insurance. Within Europe, Nordic countries are well-positioned to take advantage of this trend due to their progressive regulations, consumer readiness, and the high number of open banking APIs.