Banco Santander's Openbank opens for business in Germany

Banco Santander's digital banking subsidiary Openbank is launching in Germany. the first destination in an international expansion that will see the bank launch in the Netherlands and Portugal later this year, then a range of countries across Europe and the Americas in the medium term.

Operating from an office in Berlin, OpenBank will offer customers a fee-free current account that allows free transfers to any EU country via the Openbank website or mobile app, and an associated debit card.

All Openbank cards are linked to a ‘charity marketplace’, from which customers can choose to donate spare change from transactions rounded up to the nearest euro.

Customers can also turn on and off their cards from the website or app, as well as block their cards in a particular country or particular channels, such as ATMs, online or physical purchases.

The bank is additionally offering customers a digital wealth management service with an ethical investment promise. Managed portfolios will incorporate socially responsible investment (SRI) vehicles to the various strategies developed and monitored by the bank’s Investment Committee, in collaboration with BlackRock.

Other features include a free password manager databank and personal financial management tools for expense categorisation and budgeting.

Openbank CEO, Ezequiel Szafir, says: “We believe that our responsible banking strategy, which is committed to the future of our planet and the well-being of our society, is the only way to understand the bank of the future. Because we want to anticipate what’s coming, we are launching this new approach in Germany, with investment products and payment methods that will be gradually rolled out in the different regions where we operate in.”