A Banking License: Growth Engine or Growth Killer for Fintechs?

Alejandro Martínez · 2026-10-19

Getting a banking license sounds like the ultimate badge of legitimacy for a fintech. It opens doors, unlocks new products, and signals to partners that you're playing in the big leagues. But here's the thing nobody puts on the pitch deck: that badge comes with serious weight. Costs, timelines, capital requirements — they can all slow a young company down right when speed matters most. So why do so many payments players, small-business lenders, and financing firms keep lining up for one? That's exactly the question a panel of fintech leaders tackled at a France FinTech event held in partnership with Linklaters during the French FinTech Weeks, moderated by attorneys Marc Perrone and Guillaume Malaty. ### Three Companies, Three Very Different Paths The panel brought together Pierre-Marin Campenon, COO of Younited, Marc Lanvin, deputy CEO of Floa, and Charlotte Gounot, deputy CEO of Defacto. Each arrived at the licensing question from a different angle — and that's the first lesson. Defacto started thinking about its regulatory status in late 2021, after the ACPR (France's banking regulator) asked for clarity on how the company operated. It faced a fork in the road: get its own license or lean on a partner bank. Either way, capital demands would follow — directly or through equity covenants imposed by lenders. Defacto went with its own financing-company license, which took thirteen months to clear. Younited's story goes back further, to 2009. The team wanted a more responsible, digital take on consumer credit, so they applied for a full credit-institution license. It landed in 2011, after 24 months of review. Floa's challenge was different: keep the license it already had while capital requirements climbed. Walking away would have dented partner trust — especially as buy-now-pay-later took off and the European passport became a strategic asset. > "Choosing your status has to match your business model and your stage of growth — there's no universal answer." ### Match Your Structure to Your Ambition Here's a key distinction the panel made clear: being a credit producer is not the same as being a distributor. Nor is holding loans on your balance sheet the same as selling them off. The regulatory bar shifts depending on which side you're on. As Younited pointed out, sometimes a technology solution or a partnership is a smarter alternative to chasing your own license. It depends on where you are and where you're headed. ### The Capital Math Nobody Escapes In lending, every new dollar you lend ties up equity. Growth means raising more capital to keep prudential ratios intact. There are a few levers to pull: - Generate equity through profitability - Raise capital on a regular cadence - Transfer risk off the books, often through securitization The originate-to-distribute model lets you grow while tying up less capital. But it's not free — expect costs, operational complexity, dependence on funding markets, and the stubborn roadblocks around cross-border securitization. Whether it's worth it depends on your stage and your funding strategy. The strength of your shareholder base matters more than founders often admit. Capital requirements apply around the clock, and investors need the ability to inject more when growth demands it. Floa learned this the hard way: for years it was owned by two shareholders, one of which hit trouble, forcing repeated conversations about capital increases. ### The Bottom Line A banking license isn't a finish line — it's a commitment. It can fuel growth, but only if your capital, your shareholders, and your business model are ready to carry the weight. For fintechs weighing the leap, the real question isn't whether you can get the license. It's whether you can sustain it.