Swiss digital-first challenger Alpian has just received its banking licence from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA)
This comes as the company closed $20.3 million (CHF 19 million) Series B+ funding round.
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The license and the funding will enable the ambitious startup bank to launch to the public in Q3 2022.
The latest funding has come from Reyl Intesa Sanpaolo majority owner, Fideuram – Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking.
Alpian CEO Schuyler Weiss says: “With the funds raised during the Series B+ and with its new standing as a licensed Swiss bank, Alpian is well equipped to launch its offering and to start the process of earning the trust of each and every one of its future clients.”
Weiss announced that the group was primarily targeting clients with liquid assets of 100,000 to 1 million Swiss francs ($108,000 to $1.08 million).
Weiss would not disclose fees, but called them “significantly less” than those of traditional private banks.
Pasha Bakhtiar, partner, REYL Intesa Sanpaolo and chairman, Alpian, added: “These are two milestones on our way to delivering a truly unique and bespoke digital private banking offering.”
Alpian plans to attract mass affluent clients by using a combination of machine intelligence and human advisors to create unique portfolios that are aligned to personal “preferences, beliefs, philosophies and goals”.
The challenger bank managed to secure 48 million francs in several rounds of financing so far. With offices in Rome and London, Alpian aims to employ around 100 people by year’s end, from just under 70 now.
