Europe’s Second Neobank Opens The Door To Crypto For Everyone

Tuesday, April 29, some had to spit out their espresso. The neobank Bunq, known for its flashy colors and nomadic expats, has just announced a sensational entry into the world of crypto. The timing is perfect: according to an internal study, 65% of Europeans want a single app to manage banking, savings, and crypto. With the Kraken option in the engine, Bunq could well become this long-awaited super app.

Bunq Crypto, the tool missing from the arsenal

An account in five minutes, 300 cryptos available, banking security and a polished interface: Bunq made a strong move. At a time when users are fed up juggling between apps, wallets, and more or less dubious bitcoin exchanges, Bunq offers a one-stop shop to do it all.

Our users have long awaited a simple, secure, and transparent solution to invest in digital assets.

Ali Niknam, CEO of Bunq

Starting April 29, customers in six European countries (France, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands) could access this novelty , with expansion plans towards the entire European Economic Area, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

Where some competitors are still tinkering, Bunq relies on Kraken, one of the giants in the crypto sector, to guarantee the reliability of transactions. An alliance that secures just as much as it reassures, at a time when crypto regulation is becoming clearer.

“We now feel confident enough to offer this to the public,” Niknam says. So, no more excuses not to get into Bitcoin or Ether.

A well-oiled offensive backed by economic success

Bunq is not playing the crypto card on a whim. The neobank is riding two consecutive years of profits, with a net profit of 85.3 million euros in 2024 (+65%). Better yet, it now boasts 17 million users in Europe, a figure boosted by a strategy clearly designed for digital nomads and other banking globe-trotters.

Its partnership with Kraken is just the beginning. In parallel, Bunq has applied for a broker-dealer license in the United States, the first step in a two-phase strategy. The idea? Start by offering financial investments in stocks and Bitcoin ETFs to Americans, before securing a full banking license by the end of 2025.

And it doesn’t stop there. The Bunq mobile app now also integrates bunq Deals, Pocket Money, eSIM, cashback on professional and personal expenses… The range becomes formidable. As a good conductor, Ali Niknam sums it up:

Our users live an international life, they need a global bank.

Crypto, in all this? A central piece in a strategy where user experience is paramount.

The “all-in-one” bet already attracts competition

If Bunq is moving forward openly, it’s also because the ground is fertile. The integration of cryptos into banking offers is no longer a fantasy. Revolut had already launched by the end of 2024. But Bunq pushes the concept further: everything is designed to simplify access to this still perceived obscure universe as much as possible. One figure speaks for itself: more than 50% of Europeans interested in crypto find existing platforms too complicated.

Details on Revolut pricing – Source: Revolut (X)

By allowing the purchase of BTC or SOL without leaving the banking app, Bunq is betting on the trust effect. Regulation becomes an ally, not a hindrance. Above all, the offer comes at a time when Kraken, its partner, is also preparing its stock market debut scheduled for 2026. A winning double strategy?

On the user side, the idea of a single platform is appealing. The unification of services – banking, savings, investment, crypto – fits into a logic of optimizing time, energy… and profitability. Bunq wants to capitalize on this aspiration. All this in a colorful, smooth, intuitive interface. A bank without a counter, but not without vision.

With its “crypto at a swipe” solution, Bunq is not content to follow the trend: it integrates it into its DNA. But to impose this new standard, it will have to overcome a symbolic wall: that of lasting trust, as some do with bitcoin. The next test? The natural resistance of the public to banking innovations, and the 65% mentioned this weekend, which still needs to be transformed into real adoption.