Raisin becomes the latest European Fintech to announce US expansion

After netting $114m for the purpose of 2019 expansion into “at least two additional markets” back in February, Raisin has revealed that one of those markets will be the US.

The German Fintech operates a marketplace of savings accounts across some 31 different banks to help savers move their cash into higher interest accounts.

In the US Raisin says the typical American earns 0.01 per cent on their savings, while accounts exist globally that would earn 270 times more than that.

By solving this hurdle for consumers the Fintech hopes to capture part of the $12.7 trillion US deposits market.

Raisin also appointed Paul Knodel, previously of Wealthfront, to spearhead its expansion as US CEO.

An American expedition

Heading to the US is increasingly in vogue for European fintechs.

Raisin joins N26,Monzo and Revolut in those which have announced their plans, but have yet to actually launch.

The excitement with which all announced their US plans, and the silence that followed speaks volumes about the regulatory, cultural and geographic challenges ahead.

For Raisin announcing a US expansion isn’t surprising, with its shareholders including US online payments giant PayPal and American private equity firms Index Ventures and Thrive Capital.

What is surprising is whether Raisin’s advantages in Europe—where savings are largely denominated in a single currency and Open Banking makes data interoperability between banks simpler—will translate to the US.

And without these advantages, whether Raisin can seize the vast US opportunity which so many European fintechs hunger over, yet seem unable to grasp.