P+P advised Berlin-based banking platform solarisBank AG on financing round
The investors in the series A financing round include Bertelsmann financial services subsidiary Arvato Financial Solutions and the Japanese finance conglomerate, SBI Group. The previous investors Finleap, Hegus and Yabeo will also continue to be investors. At the start of the venture in 2016, the company had already collected EUR 12.2 m from investors.
Since March 2016, solarisBank AG has a full banking license. With the aid of a modern banking platform, it will provide fast and digital access to innovative banking services to digital companies, fintech, as well as banks and corporations. solarisBank AG is completely API-based. The desired modules can be integrated as building blocks in the customers' processes, websites or apps. Within just one year, solarisBank connected over 20 companies with the banking platform, including partners such as AutoScout24, fashion Cherie and various FinTech companies like Bezahlt.de.
Since its launch, the team has expanded from 20 to over 85 employees. The company is already active in six European countries; there is a plan for expansion of the business in the European and Asian markets.
The management team of the young bank has also grown: Roland Folz has fortified the previous two-man management team with the designated FinTech and digital experts Marko Wenthin and Andreas Bittner. Folz was most recently CFO of Deutsche Bank and previously worked in management at DAB Bank, Mercedes-Benz Bank and Deutsche Telekom. Geritt Seidel is taking over the position of supervisory board chairman as the successor to HitFox Group and FinLeap founder Jan Beckers. Seidel is the former CEO of SOFORT Bank, SOFORT AG and chairman of the executive board of Klarna.
P+P Pöllath + Partners advised solarisBank AG on all legal matters related to the financing round with the following team:
- Christian Tönies (partner, M&A, venture capital, Munich)
- Dr. Eva Nase (partner, stock corporation law)
- Dr. Sebastian Käpplinger (counsel, regulatory law, Frankfurt)
- Minkus Fischer (senior associate, M&A, venture capital, Munich)
- Dr. Georg Seitz (associate, M&A, venture capital, Munich)
- Philipp Opitz (associate, stock corporation law, Munich)
