Key Data

• Trading Name: Solaris
• Legal Entity: Tymit Ltd
• Activities: German Banking-as-a-Service platform
• Location: Germany 
• Regulations:BaFin-regulated
• Key People: Roland Folz (PR42 profile)

Solaris (Solarisbank )is a BaFin-regulated German Banking-as-a-Service platform with a full banking license that enables other fintechs to offer their own financial products. Roland Folz (PC42 profile) is the company’s CEO.

Offering

Through APIs, partners gain access to Solarisbank’s modular services, including payments and e-money, lending, digital banking, and services provided by integrated third-party providers.

Since its founding in 2016, Solarisbank has so far received 350 million euros from investors. Finleap is still considered the largest shareholder. In the last financing round in the summer of 2021, the Berlin-based fintech with a full banking license was valued at EUR 1.4 billion.

News

In summer 2021, Solarisbank took over the UK-based Contis Group of fintech guru Peter Cox. Solarisbank and Contis aim to achieve sustainable revenue growth in the range of 40 to 60 percent. Solarisbank is preparing to be IPO-ready from the third quarter of 2022 onwards, a Contis blog post says.

At the end of July 2022, the company changed its name from Solarisbank to Solaris and intends to change its legal form from AG to an international SE (Societas Europaea).

Compliance Issues

In January 2023, it became known that the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) had imposed a teasing surcharge on the bank.

BaFin fined Solaris €6.5 million in March 2024 for consistently delaying suspicious money laundering reports, highlighting ongoing weaknesses in Germany’s financial sector despite Frankfurt hosting the EU’s anti-money laundering authority. Solaris attributes the delays to legal proceedings but claims improved compliance since 2022. The fine presents financial challenges for Solaris and underscores the need for robust regulatory oversight to combat money laundering.

Finacial Struggles

Solaris is now facing a critical crisis due to financial struggles, client losses, and regulatory pressures. With an urgent need for €100-150 million in funding and mounting scrutiny from Germany’s BaFin, the company’s future hangs in the balance. Recent layoffs and the loss of key clients like Binance have added to the turmoil. As Solaris navigates this challenging period, its story serves as a cautionary tale for the fintech sector, highlighting the importance of sustainable growth, compliance, and diversification.

Conclusion

Due to their involvement in binary options and forex trading scams as well as their BaFin requirements and the money laundering fine, we have downgraded them to RED.