Dutch insurance heavyweight National-Nederlanden is planning to launch a digital bank next year, according to local news reports.
The company said the new bank, which will be completely digital, will have features including a mobile app, current account, cards and “cashbook-like” functions.
Nationale-Nederlanden told local news outlets that it believes there is room for competition in the current Dutch banking landscape, which is dominated by incumbent banks such as ING, Rabobank and ABN Amro, as well as prominent challenger banks such as Bunq, stressing that there is a “need” for alternatives to big banks.
According to Dutch newspaper Het Financeele Dagblaad, the insurer aims to win “serious market share” in the country, but it did not reveal what its target is.
Nationale-Nederlanden is a financial services provider that offers products and services related to insurance, pensions and banking activities to over 6 million private and business customers in the Netherlands. It is part of NN Group, an international financial services provider active in 11 countries, including those in Europe, as well as in Japan.
