Fellow Finance to merge with fellow fintech Evli Bank

Listed Finnish alternative lender Fellow Finance has merged with Evli Bank, creating two new entities in the process.

Fellow Finance will be absorbed by Evli, creating Fellow Bank, to continue its banking services for SMEs and individuals as well as create new savings accounts for its customers, while New Evli will become the group’s asset management arm. 

Fellow Finance is one of the best known alternative lenders in the Nordics. After launching in 2013, and lending both to consumers and SMEs, it went public in 2018.

“Combining the strengths of Evli’s banking services with Fellow Finance will open up excellent opportunities for the new Fellow Bank to grow profitably,” Fellow Finance’s Chairman of the Board Kai Myllyneva, said.

“The new bank will be backed by financially strong owners who are highly committed to developing the bank’s operations. The commitment of and funding by the main owners will give the new Fellow Bank a very high level of own funds,” he continued.

All staff will remain onboard as part of the merger, which is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022, and despite having operations in Germany, Poland, Denmark, Sweden and the Czech Republic, Fellow Bank will be focused on the Finnish market for now, with hopes to expand in the future.

“Evli's strategic goal is to strengthen its position as a leading Nordic wealth manager. The focus of the strategy is on developing and growing international sales and alternative asset classes, as well as strengthening domestic market leadership in both private and institutional wealth management and among corporate clients,” Evli’s CEO Maunu Lehtimäki added.

“The proposed solution in which Evli’s banking services would merge with one of Finland’s leading digital service providers in the field of consumer credit and corporate lending, Fellow Finance, will make this possible and create a solid foundation for a well-capitalised new bank for the digital age that will combine the core expertise of both companies.”

In January of this year, Evli’s board of directors announced that it planned to look into the future of its banking services and came to the conclusion that if it tapped into the credit market, it would need a larger customer base, hence the merger with Fellow Finance.

As part of the merger, Fellow Finance’s CTO Teemu Nyholm will become CEO of Fellow Bank and its 80 employees will move over to Fellow Bank’s business, credit risk, IT development and support departments.