Qonto

Qonto opened its service in France in July 2016. The company was co-founded by Steve Anavi^[5] and Alexandre Prot, son of Baudouin Prot and former chairman of BNP Paribas.^[6]

In January 2017, the company secured a seed round of 1.6 million euros from Alven Capital, Valar Ventures, and several business angels.^[7]

In July 2017, it announced a second fundraising round of 10 million euros from its two main investors (Valar Ventures and Alven Capital) and launched its service.^[8]

In July 2018, it obtained its payment institution license from the Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution (ACPR)^[9] and raised 20 million euros later that year.^[10][11] Entrusted funds are held at the bank Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, which serves as Qonto's credit institution.^[12]

The company expanded into Spain, Germany, and Italy in 2019.^[10]

In January 2020, it announced a fundraising round of 104 million euros^[13][14] following a round conducted with historical investors such as Alven and Valar, along with new investors like the Chinese firm Tencent.^[15] The company was then valued at over 4 billion dollars.^[16]

In 2022, Qonto raised €486 million to support its development in Europe.^[17]

In March 2024, Qonto acquired Regate.^[18]

In May 2025, the neobank launches its payment terminal.^[19]

The Modern Pentathlon Federation of France, which was defrauded of €672,139 by a scammer in 2023, took legal action against its bank, Qonto, accusing it of failing to meet its security obligations. In June 2025, Qonto was ordered to reimburse the full amount of the loss.^[20]

In July 2025, Qonto applied for a banking license, being at that stage only a fintech, and not a bank in the legal sense of the term.^[21]