According to its own statements, the neobank is separating from every fifth employee.
(Photo: Nuri)
new York First Klarna, now Nuri: The Berlin neobank separates from every fifth employee. “The turnaround in interest rates in the USA, the rapidly rising inflation and the Ukraine war are leading to uncertainty on the financial market and resulting in a change of strategy at Nuri,” Nuri boss Kristina Walcker-Mayer told the Handelsblatt.
Now more than ever, companies must show that they are on the path to profitability: away from pure user growth towards higher sales and correspondingly lower costs, she said. According to the company, around 45 of the 200 employees to date have to leave the company. They were informed of the job cuts on Wednesday.
“The market developments are not a short-term trend. That’s why we can’t wait long and have to act quickly,” said Walcker-Mayer. According to Nuri, sales quadrupled last year, and according to Walcker-Mayer, the neobank also recorded an all-time high of active users in the first quarter of this year.
Nevertheless: 2022 will be a big challenge for start-ups, many investors have become cautious, investments in fintech have also slowed down, said the Nuri boss.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
The Berlin neobank intends to meet these challenges with a smaller team in the future. According to Nuri, it was already profitable in the first quarter of last year, but the Berlin neobank then focused strongly on growth. According to Walcker-Mayer, the change in strategy means that Nuri will now be “profitable much earlier”. Walcker-Mayer did not want to say exactly when that will be.
Nuri manages total assets of half a billion euros
The payment specialist Klarna had already announced on Monday that it would cut every tenth digit – also with reference to rising inflation and the Ukraine war. Volatile stock markets and the prospect of a “probable recession” also contributed to the decision, the company said.
Nuri, which used to be called Bitwala and was founded in 2015, is one of the largest neobanks based in Germany, alongside market leader N26 and Vivid Money.
Since April last year, the number of Nuri customers has doubled to almost 500,000 customers. According to its own information, the neobank manages total assets of around 500 million euros.
Nuri’s target group are beginners and advanced users interested in the virtual currencies Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Neobank offers you a classic checking account, as well as a crypto trading option.
Walcker-Mayer emphasized that the changes in the team would have no impact on the users. “We will continue to invest in our product quality and our range in the future.”
More: Nuri doubles the number of customers – and relies on financial products other than crypto