Belgium’s Aion Bank has acquired London robo-advisor ETFmatic

Aion Bank has acquired low-cost ETF investment platform ETFmatic, a new digital bank in Belgium backed by private equity giant Warburg Pincus.

Aion launched last March as a subscription-based bank, with its €3.90/month Light account offering high-interest rates of up to 1 per cent and its €19/month Premium account offering automated ETF investing.

This is where the ETFmatic acquisition comes in, Aion says the deal will help it create new investment products in more countries, while ETFmatic will continue to operate as a stand-alone brand.

Wealth and investment offerings are fairly few and far between among digital banks right now. Currently, Revolut offers direct access to stocks, crypto and commodities trading, but not the kind of robo-advice offered by a Nutmeg or Wealthify.

Aion Bank, now with ETFmatic’s help, is clearly trying to find a market in the middle for neobank plus robo-advisor.

For ETFmatic the deal will also see an expansion of its white-label service across Europe, the service which Aion used to launch its ETF investment product.

“ETFmatic has been a great partner since our Belgian launch in March 2020,” said Aion CEO Wojciech Sobieraj.

“We are the bank designed to help our members save and earn more, and portfolio management is a key product as we prepare to expand across Europe.”

Next up on that expansion is Poland, where the bank is due to do live later this year.

Johan Hellman, CEO of ETFmatic, said: “ETFs have seen significant growth during the pandemic, and I anticipate investors will continue to look to ETFs as we see market recovery in the quarters to come.”

The deal has already been approved by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority and is effective immediately, no financial details of the deal were disclosed.