Qwist

What Qwist does

Qwist GmbH, founded in 2012 and headquartered in Berlin, is a BaFin-regulated Payment Institution operating a B2B Open Finance platform across European markets. The company provides API-based infrastructure that connects financial institutions, fintechs, lenders, and other enterprises to more than 3,600 banks across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Serbia, Spain, and Portugal. Its product architecture spans three integrated pillars — Connect (Financial Data, Open Finance Compliance/PS-Star, PSD2 API, Consent Management Security, Qwist Link), Assess (Data Enrichment, Income Verification, Risk Insights), and Activate (Account Switch, Portfolio Switch, Account Verification, Pay by Bank) — plus an AI assistant called Qlarc built on MCP and LLM. The platform is built on the Berlin Group openFinance API standard, supports PSD2/PSD3/PSR/IPR compliance, and operates in ISO 27001, ISO 22301, and ISAE 3402 Type II certified data centres in Germany and Switzerland.

The business operates on a B2B SaaS model with multiple monetization streams: subscription-based platform fees, per-transaction pricing for Pay by Bank, fixed-price compliance licensing (PS-Star claims up to 70% cost savings versus in-house implementations), professional services for integration, and data enrichment/insights monetization. Go-to-market is API-first with developer self-service via sandbox and documentation, complemented by enterprise field sales for tier-1 bank relationships. The platform processes approximately 1 million transactions daily, has facilitated more than 2.1 million account switches, and serves customers including DKB, Deutsche Bank, N26, Volksbank Wien, Trade Republic, Solaris, Berenberg, Banco BNI Europa, and 7Assets, spanning banking, lending, payments, eCommerce, insurance, and PropTech verticals.

Revenue traction is evidenced by an operational scale of 1M daily transactions, 3,600+ institution connectivity, and a customer base spanning multiple verticals, though no revenue figure is publicly disclosed. The company has raised approximately $26.2 million in disclosed venture funding, most recently in a 2021 Series 2 led by SBI Investment, and completed the acquisition of MyValue Solutions in 2021. Recent strategic priorities include the June 2026 launch of Qlarc AI assistant and Qwist Link integration alternative, alongside positioning as the standard SIX bLink connector for Swiss multibanking. Customer concentration risk appears moderate given a mix of tier-1 banks and fintechs, while competitive moat rests on regulatory authorization (BaFin PSD2 license), certification stack, Berlin Group standards membership, and accumulated data and switching volume across the European Open Finance ecosystem.

Name

Qwist

Legal name

Qwist GmbH

Website

https://qwist.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Qwist is a Berlin-based BaFin-regulated Open Finance platform serving European banks, fintechs, lenders, and enterprises with API-based financial data, PSD2/PSD3 compliance, account switching, risk insights, and payment initiation across 3,600+ institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Open Banking and Open Finance Platform

NAICS

Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223), Other Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (522390)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Payment Initiation & Account-to-Account (A2A) Payments (PIS, RTP initiation) (FSAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Alternative Data & Credit Scoring (Cashflow, Telco, Utility, Open Banking) (FSAGAHAC), SME Credit Risk, Underwriting & Financial Data (B2B Fintech Data/Decisioning) (FSAGAJAM)

Keywords

• Open banking platform
• Open finance infrastructure
• PSD2 compliance API
• Financial data aggregation
• Payment initiation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. API/SaaS Platform Subscriptions and Usage Fees: Qwist operates as a B2B SaaS platform offering API-based services. Financial institutions, banks, and fintechs pay for access to the Open Finance platform, including Financial Data, Open Finance Compliance (PS-Star), PSD2 API, Account Switch, Portfolio Switch, Income Verification, Risk Insights, and Pay by Bank. Pricing is largely subscription and usage-based, with a fixed-price model for Open Finance Compliance that claims 70% cost savings vs. in-house solutions.
2. Pay by Bank / Payment Initiation Fees: Payment initiation services enabling SEPA transfers via Open Banking. The company generates revenue per transaction with a fixed pricing model. Qwist states Pay by Bank is 80% cheaper than conventional payment methods, suggesting a cost-efficient alternative revenue stream.
3. PSD2/Open Finance Compliance Licensing: Open Finance Compliance solution (PS-Star) provides compliance APIs to financial institutions. Operated as SaaS with optional full banking-compliant hosting in Qwist's multi-certified data centres. Revenue from licensing, hosting fees, and support contracts.
4. Professional Services and Implementation: Implementation and integration services for financial institutions, including sandbox setup, API integration with backend systems, and first-level TPP support. Deployment timelines of approximately 4 weeks for full integration.
5. B2B Data and Insights Licensing: Data enrichment, categorization, income verification, and risk insights products monetize financial transaction data by providing structured, enriched data and analytical outputs to B2B customers in lending, payments, insurance, and other regulated sectors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Qwist is a BaFin-regulated Open Finance platform that provides API-based financial data access, risk analytics, and payment initiation services to banks, fintechs, lenders, and other financial institutions across Europe. Its three product suites—Connect (data access and compliance infrastructure), Assess (data enrichment, income verification, risk insights), and Activate (account/portfolio switching, account verification, pay-by-bank)—enable clients to access harmonized financial data from 3,600+ institutions, comply with PSD2/PSD3/PSR/IPR regulations, and embed financial actions into their products.

Product overview

Qwist is an Open Finance platform provider offering three integrated product suites: Connect (data access infrastructure), Assess (financial intelligence), and Activate (embedded financial actions). The Connect suite provides Financial Data, Open Finance Compliance (PS-Star), PSD2 API, and Consent Management Security for Swiss markets. The Assess suite delivers Data Enrichment (transaction categorization), Income Verification (disposable income calculation), and Risk Insights (real-time risk indicators). The Activate suite enables Account Switch, Portfolio Switch, Account Verification, and Pay by Bank payment initiation. Add-on modules include Switch Insights (customer intelligence from switching data), Qwist Link (48-hour integration alternative), and Qlarc (AI assistant for data querying). The platform connects to 3,600+ financial institutions across 18 active regions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financial Data Provides harmonized, real-time access to financial data from over 3,000 institutions across Germany, Austria, Spain, and Portugal. Offers account balances, transaction history (up to 365 days), automatic synchronization up to 4x per day, and a 360-degree view of retail and business accounts for banks, fintechs, and lenders.
• Open Finance Compliance (PS-Star) Ensures compliance with PSD3, PSR, and IPR regulations. Provides configurable APIs based on Berlin Group standards, integrated consent management, TPP certificate management, and regulatory reporting. Delivered as SaaS in multi-certified banking data centres with 99.95% availability SLA and 24/7 first-level TPP support.
• PSD2 API Enables banks and EMIs to achieve PSD2 Open Banking compliance through a dedicated interface for Third-Party Providers. Configurable with 100+ options based on Berlin Group standards, with consent management, TPP management, sandbox environment, and developer documentation.
• Consent Management Security (Switzerland) Provides a secure connectivity layer for SIX bLink to enable Swiss multibanking. Includes configurable consent management, TPP management, and supports SFTI common APIs (AIS and PSS). Operates on-premises or as SaaS in a Swiss data centre for Swiss banks.
• Data Enrichment Transforms raw transaction data into structured insights through automatic categorization into approximately 21 main categories with 100+ subcategories. Includes Payment Partner Recognition covering 100,000+ partners and Contract Recognition Service for identifying recurring payment patterns.
• Income Verification Calculates an end-user's disposable income (income after fixed costs) and discretionary income (income after variable costs) via one-time access to enriched financial transaction data. Used for creditworthiness and affordability assessment by lenders.
• Risk Insights Provides real-time risk assessments using up-to-date information on applicants' risk behavior, income, and spending. Delivers risk KPIs including gambling, loans, overdrafts, debt collection, and affordability checks for up to 180 days on a single consent.
• Account Switch Enables fully digital account switching in under 10 minutes. Automatically detects and redirects direct debits, sets up standing orders, notifies payment partners, closes old accounts, and transfers remaining funds. Operates under Qwist's own PSD2 license.
• Portfolio Switch Enables fully digital portfolio transfer (stocks, ETFs, funds, pending orders, fractional shares) from one financial institution to another in under 10 minutes. Supports partial or full transfers, automatic depot closure, and notification management.
• Account Verification Verifies account ownership in real time by cross-checking the end-user's name and IBAN against bank records. Provides four tiers of affinity matching (Very High, High, Medium, Low) to prevent fraud and unauthorized transactions.
• Pay by Bank Enables SEPA Credit Transfer initiation directly from the end-user's bank account via Open Banking. Available for both licensed and non-licensed businesses at a fixed pricing model stated as 80% cheaper than conventional payment methods.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,000,000 transactions retrieved per day
• +18 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability7 records

Feature15 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SIX Group (bLink)coreTechnology or IntegrationQwist's Consent Management Security product integrates with SIX bLink, the Swiss Open Finance platform operated by SIX Group. The integration enables Swiss multibanking for banks through a standard connector. SIX bLink is a key infrastructure component for Switzerland's Open Finance ecosystem.
• Swiss Bankers AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Swiss Bankers Association committed to enabling multibanking for natural persons in Switzerland. Qwist's Consent Management Security product is designed to support banks in meeting this commitment. Hypothekarbank Lenzburg is one of 40 Swiss banks that signed the associated Memorandum of Understanding.
• Berlin GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerQwist is a member of the Berlin Group Advisory Board and actively contributes to shaping the future open finance landscape in Europe. Qwist's APIs are developed according to the Berlin Group's openFinance API standard. This membership provides Qwist with early visibility into regulatory developments and standards evolution.

Scale indicators18 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Plaid: Plaid is a leading global open banking/data aggregation platform serving banks, lenders, and fintechs with account connectivity, identity verification, and risk insights. Directly comparable to Qwist's Connect and Assess suites, with a much larger US-centric footprint.
• Finicity (Mastercard): Finicity, a Mastercard company, offers open banking connectivity, financial data aggregation, and cash flow underwriting for lenders and fintechs. Comparable to Qwist's Assess suite (income verification, risk insights).

Direct peers

• TrueLayer: TrueLayer is a European open banking platform providing account information and payment initiation APIs to banks, fintechs, and merchants. Most direct comparable to Qwist on Pay by Bank, financial data, and PSD2/PSD3 compliance across Europe.
• Tink (Visa): Tink, owned by Visa, is a European open banking platform offering account aggregation, payment initiation, and risk insights. Highly comparable product overlap with Qwist across Connect, Assess, and Activate suites.
• Yapily: Yapily is a European open banking API provider enabling account information and payment initiation services. Direct competitor to Qwist's Connect suite with similar PSD2 aggregation and Pay by Bank offerings.
• Salt Edge: Salt Edge provides open banking API solutions including account aggregation, payment initiation, and PSD2 compliance tools. Comparable to Qwist in PSD2/PSD3 compliance, financial data aggregation, and bank connectivity.
• Token.io: Token.io provides open banking-based account-to-account payment infrastructure and data connectivity across Europe. Closely comparable to Qwist's Pay by Bank and Connect offerings.
• ndgit: ndgit is a Munich-based Open Banking platform offering PSD2/PSD3 compliance APIs and bank connectivity to financial institutions. Direct European competitor to Qwist's PS-Star compliance product.

Emerging players

• Bud Financial: Bud Financial is a UK-based open banking data enrichment and analytics platform for banks and lenders. Comparable to Qwist's Assess suite (data enrichment, income verification, transaction categorization).

Regional players

• Belvo: Belvo is a Latin American open banking API platform offering financial data aggregation and payment initiation. Comparable platform architecture to Qwist but focused on Latin America rather than Europe.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/qwist
• Xx.com/finleapconnect

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Qwist