KB SmartSolutions

What KB SmartSolutions does

KB SmartSolutions, s.r.o. is a privately-held fintech investment and development subsidiary of Komerční banka, which in turn is part of Société Générale, established in 2019 and headquartered in Prague. The company functions as the bank's dedicated innovation and venture arm, targeting early-to-mid-stage fintech startups that have completed initial product development and secured first customers. It offers a bundled package of equity investment (across all stages from seed to exit), technology infrastructure including proprietary API access and sandbox testing environments with real banking data, advisory and team-collaboration resources, and distribution leverage through Komerční banka's 2.4+ million Czech customers and Société Générale's four-continent footprint. A dedicated 'Company Developer' role embeds bank staff into portfolio companies to operationalize synergies.

Its portfolio spans five core platforms: Upvest (96% owned, real estate investment crowdfunding, ~5,000 investors, 1.3B CZK deployed in 2023), Lemonero (AI-driven e-shop financing, €12M seed raised, expanding to the Netherlands), Finbricks (PSD2 aggregation platform built from an internal KB project), Roger (invoice factoring and supply chain finance, 15B CZK in cumulative invoices financed), and Enviros (ESG and energy consulting acquired in 2022 with a UK stake). The revenue model is equity-driven: returns accrue from exits, valuation uplifts, and portfolio company growth rather than disclosed fees or SaaS pricing. Distribution is relationship-led via a Start-up Scout (Tomáš Michálek), with partnership channels through ecosystem players (Shoptet, Fakturoid, iÚčto, Fidoo, Sunwork, ČEZ ESCO, Paymium) and PR-driven category positioning in Czech and European fintech media.

KB SmartSolutions monetizes primarily through equity stakes (e.g., 96% in Upvest, majority/wholly-owned stakes in Lemonero, Finbricks, Roger, Enviros), with supporting revenue from partnership services and the ELENA subsidized energy advisory programme co-financed by the European Investment Bank/InvestEU Advisory Hub. The customer base is structurally bifurcated: fintech startups as portfolio/partner customers, and Komerční banka's 2.4+ million retail and SME customers accessible for product distribution. Pricing is individually negotiated and not publicly disclosed.

Name

KB SmartSolutions

Legal name

KB SmartSolutions, s.r.o.

Website

https://kbsmart.cz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Prague

HQ country

Czechia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Equity Investment Returns: KB SmartSolutions acquires equity stakes in fintech startups. Returns generated through exit events, increased valuations, and portfolio company growth. Examples include Upvest (96% stake), Enviros (acquisition), and investments in Lemonero, Finbricks, and Roger.
2. Funding/Growth Investment: Provides funding at all stages from initial investment and growth financing to working capital and exit support for portfolio companies.
3. Partnership Services: Technology infrastructure, testing environments, and advisory services provided to external startups in exchange for partnership arrangements.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

KB SmartSolutions is the dedicated fintech investment and innovation arm of Komerční banka (Société Générale group). It provides equity capital at all growth stages, banking API infrastructure with sandbox testing on real data, dedicated company-developer resources, and distribution access to 2.4+ million Czech banking customers to early- and mid-stage fintech startups. Internally, it also builds and scales its own fintech platforms (Upvest, Lemonero, Finbricks, Roger) and acquired ENVIROS for energy and ESG advisory.

Product overview

KB SmartSolutions operates as a fintech investment and development subsidiary of Komerční banka (Société Générale group) that funds, develops, and partners with startups to build financial services of the future. The company offers its own API infrastructure to startup partners and maintains a portfolio of platform investments including: Upvest (real estate investment crowdfunding), Lemonero (AI-powered e-commerce financing), Finbricks (PSD2 banking aggregation), Roger (invoice factoring), ENVIROS Advisory (energy/ESG consulting), and the ELENA Programme (subsidized energy advisory). These products range from majority-owned strategic investments to partnership arrangements, addressing segments including real estate financing, e-commerce funding, open banking, accounts receivable management, and sustainable energy consulting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ELENA Programme: Energy advisory programme offering subsidized technical assistance and financing proposals for energy-efficient building renovations and technology modernization, co-financed by European Investment Bank/InvestEU Advisory Hub.

Products and services

• Upvest Investment crowdfunding platform connecting real estate developers with investors. Projects undergo commercial, legal, and technical due diligence with only 1 in 10 approved for listing; financed over 1.3 billion CZK in real estate projects in 2023 with nearly 5,000 investors.
• Lemonero Digital financing platform for e-commerce businesses that uses data and AI to provide fast, flexible operational financing to small and medium-sized online retailers; raised €12 million seed round and expanded from CEE to the Netherlands.
• Finbricks PSD2 aggregation platform providing simplified access to banking data and services, aggregating accounts and payments from multiple banks through a single interface.
• Roger Fintech platform focused on invoice factoring and supply chain financing, connecting investors with companies experiencing long invoice maturities and reducing payment terms to 3 days; has financed over 15 billion CZK in invoices.
• ENVIROS Advisory Energy and environmental consulting services helping clients optimise energy management, renewable energy sources, energy savings, waste minimisation, and circular economy solutions.
• ELENA Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1.3 billion CZK invested in real estate projects through Upvest in 2023
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ENVIROScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 August 2022KB SmartSolutions acquired Enviros, a Czech energy and environmental consulting company, including a stake in UK's Enviros Global Limited. The transaction aimed to expand KB SmartSolutions' activities in ESG, energy, and renewable projects, strengthening its advisory role in these sectors. Enviros helps clients with energy optimization, renewable sources, waste minimization, and circular economy.
• ČEZ ESCOminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCzech company from ČEZ group providing electricity and gas solutions to companies, municipalities, and organizations. Partnership focused on energy solutions for fintech ecosystem.
• FidoominorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSimplifies corporate finance by eliminating time-consuming administration and paperwork with travel expenses, receipts, payment cards and cash through digitization.
• SunworkminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTechnology solutions in renewable resources with focus on photovoltaic power plants. Solutions tailored to customer, friendly to nature and environment.
• iÚčtominorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOnline accounting software helping companies manage accounting, taxes, invoicing, payments and reporting through web browser.
• FakturoidminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCzech startup enabling companies and entrepreneurs to easily create invoices, record costs, and communicate with accountants.
• ShoptetminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorE-commerce platform providing everything needed to establish and successfully operate an online store.
• PaymiumminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPayment and ordering system enabling product sales without e-shop or marketplace, originated as Webmium project.
• JSK/JŠK AttorneysminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal advisors providing counsel to KB SmartSolutions on the acquisition of Enviros, including stake in UK's Enviros Global Limited.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mouro Capital: Santander's fintech-focused venture capital arm investing globally in early- and growth-stage fintechs; closely comparable as a major-bank CVC active in fintech investing with similar minority/controlling stake approaches.
• Anthemis: Independent fintech-focused venture capital firm investing across early-stage financial services companies — comparable as a specialist fintech investor, though without the parent-bank distribution advantage.
• BBVA Spark: BBVA's fintech/pro-entrepreneurship platform that invests in and partners with early-stage fintechs and provides them banking infrastructure access — directly comparable to KB SmartSolutions' bank-affiliated fintech investment model.
• Barclays Rise: Barclays' global fintech and innovation platform providing accelerator programmes, APIs and banking partnerships to fintechs — comparable in providing bank infrastructure (APIs, sandbox, distribution) to startup partners.
• CommerzVentures: The corporate venture capital fund of Commerzbank, investing globally in early- and growth-stage fintech startups — closely matches KB SmartSolutions' role as a bank-sponsored fintech investor.
• ING Ventures: ING's CVC arm that invests in fintech and sustainable finance startups, providing capital plus ING distribution access — a direct functional peer to KB SmartSolutions' bank-backed fintech investment thesis.

Broad incumbents

• Citi Ventures: Citi's strategic venture arm investing across fintech, enterprise tech and adjacent categories — broader in scope than KB SmartSolutions but operating the same bank-CVC model.
• BNP Paribas The Village: BNP Paribas' open-innovation ecosystem partnering with fintechs and startups; broader in scope than KB SmartSolutions but a direct functional analogue as a major-bank fintech partnership platform.

Regional players

• Erste Group Innovation Hub: Erste Group's central and eastern European innovation function, partnering with fintechs across the same CEE markets as KB SmartSolutions — a regional bank-led fintech partner comparable in geography and category focus.
• Raiffeisen Bank International Innovation: RBI's innovation and fintech engagement activities across CEE — comparable as another regional-bank-led platform targeting fintech partnerships in markets that overlap with KB SmartSolutions' territory.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kbsmart

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A2 records

Investments6 records

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

Frequently asked questions about KB SmartSolutions