Salt Bank has launched its services in Romania

Salt Bank has become Romania’s newest digital challenger with the launch of its app-based offering, powered by Starling Bank

Salt Bank has launched in Romania. Its app-based banking offer is powered by Starling Bank’s software-as-a-service (SaaS).

The Bucharest-based challenger, which operates as a subsidiary of Banca Transilvania Financial Group, has debuted its retail banking services. These include 3% current accounts with digital wallet compatibility, mixed term deposits, a savings account offering called Spaces, and much more.

The bank has also launched its founder programme, rewarding customers for early enrolment with founder points. The points can be redeemed against a monetary value or exchanged for shares in the start-up, but only if the bank is listed on a stock exchange in the future. Salt Bank have said that 60,000 people have signed up to the founder programme.

To power the launch, the bank has enlisted Engine, the Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) technology platform of UK-based Starling Bank. The partnership was initially announced last November.

Gabriela Nistor, chief executive officer of Salt Bank, said: “By launching Salt, not only are we bringing the first 100% Romanian neobank to the Romanian market, but we are also proposing a unique perspective that combines technology and finance.”

Sam Everington, chief executive officer of Engine by Starling, adds: “With Engine, our goal is to bring our modern banking platform to financial services firms around the world. Our first client, Salt Bank, shares our vision for better banking. Together we plan to create the best user experiences for customers in Romania–just like Starling has done in the UK.”

Image: Salt Bank

Robert Welbourn Robert Welbourn is an experienced financial writer. He has worked for a number of high street banks and trading platforms. He's also a published author and freelance writer and editor.