Swan was created to make financial services accessible, or, in other words, to meet our customers where they are at. We want to make embedding banking features fast and easy, for anyone across Europe.
A core component of being close to you, the customer, is localization. What this means to us is that we see ourselves as a European company, full of European people with European ambitions. But for our customers, we are also a French company, a German business, and a Spanish firm – laser-focused on ensuring our products and services are suited to each local market.
We aren’t, by any stretch, newcomers to Germany ourselves. We have a strong sales team with local expertise, who work together out of our Kreuzberg office in Berlin. More so, we are very well-networked in the local fintech scene and more than happy to connect you with anyone we know, as long as it can be helpful and insightful. But we also know that it is not enough to just have Swanees on the ground.
For this reason, we felt it was important that we commit the resources to work with the local regulator so that if you decide to open a bank account and make payments, it looks and feels like a payment from a German company. In practice, this means offering IBANs starting with ‘DE’ which is something not all providers think of when localizing, since it’s not strictly necessary to move money throughout the EU.
We’ve made sure to make this a priority to help our German partners meet their customers where they are at. Furthermore, for companies with ambitions to launch in Europe’s largest market, bringing local IBANs to the table is a surefire way to win trust in Germany.
The current regulatory & market environment is proving challenging for some BaaS players, restricting their ability to be truly customer centric. For Swan, on the other hand, we are intent on getting closer to you and bringing solutions that will delight your users.
We believe strongly that the difference between good and great comes from anticipating the end user. Doing the work to launch local IBANs starting with ’DE’ is a prime example of this.
Let’s explore how offering German IBANs can bring value to you and your customers!
Local IBANs bring familiarity and trust
On the practical side of things, all European IBANs are equally valid and useful for safely sending and receiving money.
Where a BaaS provider is licensed influences the type of IBANs it can issue. If one is licensed in the Netherlands, for example, then accounts it opens on behalf of clients will start with ‘NL’. This allows the account holder to move money but customers may wonder: why is my German provider sending money from the Netherlands? This is not the ideal customer experience.
Nonetheless, as individuals we grasp the importance of trust and familiarity when it comes to finances. We know that your customers want to feel safe and secure using your product. An IBAN starting with ‘DE’ brings peace of mind and familiarity to folks who might be already testing their boundaries by using your innovative new finance feature.
This is of even more importance if you are a foreign company. You will need to be doubly as diligent to win the hearts and minds of new customers in Germany. A handful of our Germany-based partners are already providing German IBANs to their customers. Want to be next?
Local IBANs allow you to meet your customers where they are
Winning the market as a new entrant is not just about bringing the best technology to the table. You need to evangelize, educate, and win customer trust. Doing everything you can to meet your customers where they are is essential.
No matter if your company is as German as Currywurst or from a country far away, here at Swan we are here to support your effort to get close to your customers. Issuing IBANs starting with DE is a fantastically simple way to build trust and engage with your customers.
We are here to help you become the best possible provider to your German users. Los geht’s!
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