Banking platform Curve has announced the establishment of a subsidiary in Lithuania. The move will help Curve continue to serve customers across the EEA, following the end of the Brexit transition period, and to scale its operations. In addition to passporting rights, Lithuania was chosen as an EEA base for its strong AML competencies, fintech friendly regulator and diverse workforce.
Curve was founded in 2015 with a mission to simplify the way people spend, send, see and save
money. Its mobile platform allows users to manage their spending on all linked cards, and
access a growing number of features including contactless and mobile payments. These include
Go Back in Time, cashback, competitive FX rates and free ATM withdrawals. With Curve, users
can modernise their banking without changing their banks, keeping their hard-earned money
with the banks they know and trust.
As with many other UK-based fintechs, Curve was searching for a European base to continue
operating on the continent post-Brexit.
Shachar Bialick, Founder and CEO, Curve says: “We chose Lithuania as a gateway to Europe
because of the ease of business there, its welcoming culture and world-class AML standards. On
behalf of everyone at Curve, I’d like to thank those involved in making Curve’s application a
success, including the Bank of Lithuania and Invest Lithuania. I’m excited about the huge boost
to the Curve platform that our license in Lithuania will give to our growth and ability to serve
customers around Europe.”
Curve intends to invest in scaling up its AML, Compliance and Risk management operation from
their Lithuanian base. The company is also assessing what other business streams can be
established in its Vilnius office, as it grows across Europe.
“The fact that Curve chose Lithuania testifies to our strengths, which include innovation-friendly
regulation and one of the most vibrant Fintech communities in Europe. We are certain that
Curve’s seal of approval will encourage other disruptive companies in the field of Finance to
tackle the EEA market from Lithuania,” states Mantas Katinas, General Manager of Invest
Lithuania.
Since launching in 2015, Curve has attracted a significant level of external interest and support.
Curve OS has completed four successful funding rounds, accumulating close to £70.7m in total
funding to date. Investors include Santander InnoVentures, Investec, Oxford Capital, Breega
Capital, Speedinvest, Seedcamp and Connect Ventures. Curve OS also broke Crowdcube’s
crowdfunding records with the fastest raise ever, raising nearly £6 million in 4hrs and 42
minutes, and with the largest number of investors on the Crowdcube platform ever in that time.
The company has more than 270 employees working across offices in London, Bristol and the
US. Leadership positions include managers with experience at Amazon, PayPal, Amex, Samsung,
and Uber.
