Fintech start-up Rauva buys Banco Empresas Montepio for €30m
Portugal’s Banco Montepio has agreed to sell its business banking brand, Banco Empresas Montepio (BEM), to Rauva, a new financial services app for SMEs in the country.
Rauva buys Banco Empresas Montepio
The bank, which has its history dating back to mid-1800s, launched BEM in 2019 offering commercial and investment banking services to businesses.
Rauva says that its acquisition of BEM, which is valued as an estimated €30 million, will enable it to “accelerate innovation and enhance collaboration” as it intends to develop new financial products for SMEs, freelancers, and entrepreneurs, including new credit features.
In addition, the purchase also includes BEM’s customer financial data, which Rauva plans to integrate into its proprietary quantum machine learning technology.
Launched in 2022 by Jon Fath and Sam Mizrahi and reportedly taking less than a year to develop and bring to market, Lisbon-headquartered Rauva offers SME-focused services through its “super-app” to meet the everyday financial needs of this demographic.
These services include payments, digital accounts, invoice, business management and accounting services and the issuance of physical and digital cards, among others.
“Since day one, we’ve been working towards building a fully-fledged bank,” Rauva’s CEO, Fath, comments on the acquisition. “This exciting move also puts us even closer to becoming one of Portugal’s first unicorns.”
