What Okali does

Okali is a Paris-based Bank-as-a-Service (BaaS) provider operating as an Electronic Money Institution authorized and supervised by the French ACPR (code banque 17448, REGAFI 17448). Founded in 1999 as SFPMEI, the company pivoted in 2013 to become France's first BaaS provider and was acquired in January 2022 by Groupe Crédit Agricole, Europe's largest bancassurer, rebranding as Okali in October 2022. The company enables corporates, fintechs, and other regulated entities to launch and scale payment services — payment accounts (with or without IBAN), VISA debit and prepaid card programs, KYC/AML compliance infrastructure, and regulatory reporting — without obtaining their own ACPR authorization.

Okali's platform is built on a modular architecture allowing clients to integrate their own Core Banking Systems, card processors, acquirers, and ID verification providers, or leverage Okali's curated partner ecosystem. Key technical assets include Visa Principal Membership for card issuance, SEPA sub-participant status for credit transfers and direct debits, segregated fund protection at first-tier credit institutions, and a 20-year operational track record in payment services. Notable clients have included Lydia, Spendesk, Unilend, Thunes (formerly Limonetik), Younited Crédit, and Blank.

Okali operates a quote-based, enterprise B2B revenue model charging agents recurring fees for access to its licensed infrastructure and modular building blocks. Its distribution is exclusively B2B through direct expert consultation and partner channels; it has no direct-to-consumer offering. The company employs 11-50 staff and serves five distinct customer segments: Corporates, Fintechs, Existing Regulated Players (EP/EME), Core Banking System providers, and Compliance Actors. Geographic footprint is currently concentrated in France, though the company has stated international ambitions through its rebrand.

Name

Okali

Legal name

Okali SAS

Website

https://okali.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Okali is a Paris-based Bank-as-a-Service provider, ACPR-authorized Electronic Money Institution and 100% subsidiary of Crédit Agricole. It offers modular payment infrastructure — accounts, IBAN, VISA cards, KYC/AML — to corporates, fintechs, and regulated entities in France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payment Infrastructure

akta.pro primary industry

BaaS Platforms & Sponsor Bank Enablement (FSAGALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Embedded Card Issuing & Card-as-a-Service (FSAGALAC), Risk, Compliance & Controls for Embedded Finance (KYB/KYC/AML, Fraud, Disputes) (FSAGALAK)

Keywords

• Bank-as-a-Service
• Payment infrastructure
• Electronic money issuance
• Regulatory compliance services
• Card program management

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. BaaS / Agent-as-a-Service Fees: Okali provides its ACPR-licensed BaaS infrastructure to agents (fintechs and corporates), enabling them to offer payment services without obtaining their own regulatory approval. Revenue is derived from fees charged to agents for access to payment accounts, card programs, KYC/compliance infrastructure, and regulatory reporting. The modular nature allows clients to pay for specific services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Okali is an ACPR-licensed Bank-as-a-Service (BaaS) provider that supplies regulated payment infrastructure to corporates, fintechs, and already-regulated payment institutions on a modular basis. Its offerings include French-IBAN and non-IBAN payment accounts, customizable VISA debit and prepaid card programs (physical and virtual), KYC/AML compliance frameworks, segregated fund custody, and regulatory relationship management with the ACPR.

Product overview

Okali is a Bank-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform offering a modular portfolio of payment solutions. Its core offerings span payment accounts (with or without IBAN for individuals and corporates), VISA card programs (physical and virtual, consumer and corporate), a configurable partner ecosystem (onboarding, card insurance, monetic acquisition, account aggregation, transaction monitoring), fund protection via segregated custodial accounts, compliance/KYC controls (PEP/sanctions screening, AML-CFT, transaction monitoring), and regulatory relationship management. Clients can adopt any or all of these modules, integrating around their own Core Banking System or using Okali's preferred partner stack. The platform is designed for corporates seeking embedded financial services, fintechs at all stages, regulated payment institutions needing modular expansion, and compliance actors. Okali is an electronic money institution authorized by the French ACPR (REGAFI: 17448) and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Crédit Agricole Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Comptes de paiement (Payment Accounts)
• Programmes de cartes (Card Programs)
• Conformité / KYC (Compliance & KYC Services)
• Sécurisation des fonds (Fund Protection)
• Relations avec le régulateur (Regulator Relations)
• Écosystème de partenaires (Partner Ecosystem Access)
• Approche modulaire (Modular BaaS Platform)

Quantifiable outcome

• Okali has accompanied fintechs that have become unicorns (Lydia, Spendesk), validating the platform's ability to scale with high-growth clients.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• VisacoreTechnology or IntegrationOkali is a Principal Member of Visa, enabling it and its agents to issue VISA-branded debit and prepaid cards (physical and virtual). This is a foundational element of Okali's card program offering.
• SEPA (European Payments Council)coreTechnology or IntegrationOkali is a SEPA Sub-Participant, enabling SEPA credit transfer and direct debit services for its agents and their customers.
• BlankminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBlank, a professional account for freelancers, acts as an agent of Okali. Okali helped Blank design and implement its full range of payment services.
• LydiaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLydia was an agent of Okali from its creation. Okali provided its regulatory infrastructure enabling Lydia to launch and scale, eventually becoming a unicorn and regulated actor.
• UnilendminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOkali has accompanied Unilend since its creation, supporting its crowdlending solution and enabling compliance with evolving regulatory requirements.
• Thunes (formerly Limonetik)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOkali accompanied Limonetik (acquired by Thunes) since 2014, enabling its e-commerce clients to accept alternative payment methods such as Alipay, WeChat Pay, and Paysafe.
• SpendeskminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOkali supported Spendesk (a unicorn in expense management) in setting up payment accounts with French IBAN for its corporate expense management service.
• Younited CréditminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOkali enabled Younited Crédit to offer real-time single-use virtual debit cards to its customers.
• Kard (KARDLY)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKARDLY distributed Okali's payment services for youth. KARDLY entered judicial liquidation on 11 September 2025; Okali is handling fund reimbursements for affected customers. The Kard service ceased on 11 January 2026.
• Groupe Crédit Agricole (logo)coreOthersOkali displays Groupe Crédit Agricole branding as its parent company. Listed as a subsidiary (Filiale du Groupe Crédit Agricole) with its logo in the trust credentials section.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Unit: US-based embedded banking platform offering accounts, cards, lending, and compliance APIs to fintechs and brands. Provides comparable BaaS infrastructure services to Okali in the US market.
• Treezor: French ACPR-regulated e-money institution providing BaaS services (payment accounts, card issuance, KYC) to fintechs and corporates, owned by Société Générale. The closest direct competitor to Okali in the French BaaS market.
• Swan: Paris-based BaaS platform offering payment accounts, card issuance, and embedded banking APIs across Europe, directly competing with Okali for fintech and corporate clients in the French and European markets.
• Solaris SE: Berlin-based Banking-as-a-Service platform licensed in the EEA, providing payment accounts, card issuing, lending, and KYC infrastructure. Comparable to Okali as a European BaaS provider with modular offerings.
• Mangopay: Luxembourg-based BaaS provider (regulated by the CSSF) specializing in payment infrastructure for marketplaces and platforms across Europe, offering e-wallets, KYC, and regulatory services—a direct functional peer to Okali for corporate-embedded payments.
• Synctera: US-based BaaS platform connecting fintechs to sponsor banks for accounts, cards, and compliance services. Operates in the same BaaS category as Okali, partnering with sponsor banks to offer modular embedded banking infrastructure.
• Treasury Prime: US-based BaaS company connecting banks with fintechs through APIs for accounts, payments, and compliance—comparable modular BaaS positioning to Okali, albeit focused on the US market.

Broad incumbents

• Marqeta: US-listed, large-scale card-issuing platform providing processing and program management for fintechs and corporates. A broader incumbent in the embedded card-issuing space, overlapping with Okali's Visa card programs but at significantly greater scale and geography.
• Galileo Financial Technologies (SoFi): Large-scale payments and BaaS platform owned by SoFi, providing accounts, card issuing, and transaction processing globally. Comparable to Okali in card-issuing and account infrastructure but operates as a much larger, multi-product incumbent.
• Stripe (BaaS / Embedded Banking): Global payments giant that has expanded into BaaS/embedded banking services including accounts, cards, and financial infrastructure for platforms. Represents a broader incumbent threat to Okali given Stripe's scale, developer ecosystem, and growing European footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Okali_eu
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/okali/about

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Okali