Bunq

Bunq is a Dutch bank licensed by De Nederlandsche Bank (the Dutch central bank) to operate across the European Economic Area. This is the critical difference between bunq and most other fintech payment platforms: it holds a full banking licence, not an electronic money institution registration. What this means in practice is that deposits held in a bunq account are covered by the Dutch deposit guarantee scheme up to €100,000, the same protection that applies to savings in any traditional Dutch bank. For freelancers and small business owners who are not familiar with fintech regulation, this distinction may seem esoteric, but it matters for security assurance. If bunq fails as a company, your deposit is protected as a matter of law. With payment institutions and EMIs, your money is safeguarded through partner arrangements, which is also reliable but mechanically different.

Bunq has been building this for over a decade. It received its EU banking licence in 2014, becoming the first bank to be granted one in 35 years at that time. The company went public in 2015 and reached profitability in 2022, becoming the first profitable EU neobank, a milestone that signals sustainable operations and real customer demand rather than venture funding burning away quietly. The company now operates across the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy, Ireland, and Portugal, serving both personal users and businesses through separate account types.

To open a bunq Business account, you need a verified personal bunq account first. New applicants can open both simultaneously, but the personal account is the prerequisite. You must be at least 18 years old (all company directors must meet this), reside in the EEA, register your business in one of bunq's nine supported countries, and operate under an accepted legal form. The company also reviews your business type; it does not accept accounts for cryptocurrency, weapons, pharmaceuticals, real estate investing, gambling, insurance, or financial services businesses. Your directors and beneficial owners must also reside in the EEA, and your corporate structure cannot exceed four layers of linear ownership. These restrictions are prudent regulatory compliance rather than arbitrary, and they reflect bunq's careful approach to onboarding rather than a aggressive growth-at-all-costs model.

Once approved, a bunq Business account lets you open up to 25 separate bank accounts, each with its own IBAN. This flexibility is useful for freelancers managing multiple income streams, projects, or clients. You can set up one account for client invoicing, another for expense management, and a third for savings, all within the same bunq workspace. Cards come in three forms: corporate debit cards for everyday spending, credit cards if you want to build business credit separately from personal credit, and company cards you can issue to team members with individual spending limits. The cards work globally and support contactless payment via phone or smartwatch through Apple Pay, Google Pay, and other wallets.

Bunq's international capabilities are extensive compared to traditional banks. The platform holds and exchanges over 20 currencies at competitive rates, so you're not locked into your home country's currency. If you invoice clients in pounds, euros, and dollars, you can hold each currency separately in different accounts and exchange only when rates suit you, rather than converting everything to your home currency at a forced rate and losing money on spreads. This is particularly valuable for freelancers working with international clients. The platform also lets you send and receive payments worldwide, with SEPA transfers within Europe processed instantly in most cases, and international wire transfers to other continents supported (with longer settlement times and higher fees for wires, as is standard).

The automation layer connects bunq to 50+ bookkeeping and accounting integrations. This means your business transactions can flow automatically into your accounting software, Stripe, PayPal, Wise, Wave, FreshBooks, and many others, without manual categorization or data re-entry. If you use an accountant or bookkeeper, they can export transaction reports and reconciliation directly from bunq to your accounting system, saving hours of work at month-end and tax time. For team expense management, you can set spending limits per card, see real-time notifications when money is spent, and categorize expenses on the fly as they happen rather than hunting through receipts weeks later.

Bunq's pricing reflects the breadth of features. The Free Business plan costs nothing and is limited to sole proprietors: you get one account and basic banking features. The Core Business plan at €7.99 per month adds team access, multiple accounts, and the ability to manage shared spending. The Pro Business plan at €13.99 per month includes more accounts and cards, useful for growing businesses. The Elite Business plan at €23.99 per month layers on white-label account options, priority support, and the most advanced international capabilities. For most sole traders and small teams, the Free Business or Core plan covers needs; the higher tiers are for businesses expanding into multiple team members or complex organizational structures.

The user experience is phone-first. Bunq's app design assumes you're reviewing and approving transactions on your phone, sending payments quickly, and checking balances in real time. The interface is minimalist by design, reducing clutter and onboarding friction compared to legacy banking apps that bloat with every feature ever built. This can be refreshing if you've experienced the sprawl of a traditional bank app, though it also means power users might find some advanced features less discoverable than in fuller-featured platforms.

Bunq works best for freelancers who want the assurance of a genuine bank with a licence and full deposit protection, particularly if they're moving larger amounts through their accounts. The multi-currency support makes it an exceptionally strong choice for freelancers working internationally. The team access and card management features mean it scales well as your business grows and you bring in contractors or employees. The multiple-account structure is useful if you like organizing money by project or purpose. The requirement for a personal account first is a minor friction point for new users; it adds a step but ensures the account is connected to a verified identity, which supports compliance and fraud prevention. If you're a freelancer who has been waiting to work with a genuine bank rather than a payment platform, or if you invoice across multiple countries and want to hold those payments in their native currencies, bunq is the most sophisticated and lowest-cost option.