BaFin - who it supervises in fintech
186 licensed entities in the official registers and 17 source-verified catalogue providers answer to Federal Financial Supervisory Authority.
BaFin (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht) is Germany's federal financial supervisor, overseeing banks (jointly with the ECB and Bundesbank), insurers, securities markets - and the payment institutions, e-money institutions and, under MiCA, crypto-asset service providers behind German fintech. Its enforcement record is a working example of why this catalogue tracks supervisory actions: BaFin-imposed restrictions and fines appear in provider Status flags and timelines. Official site: BaFin.
In the official registers
Register-sourced rows for this authority (EBA PSD2 + ESMA MiCA; as-of dates on each row). Registers have no legal significance - confirm current status with the supervisor.
| Licence class | Entities | Official register rows |
|---|---|---|
| Payment institutions | 82 | browse the rows → |
| E-money institutions | 13 | browse the rows → |
| MiCA crypto-asset service providers | 91 | browse the rows → |
Verified providers under BaFin supervision (17)
Catalogue providers whose official register row names this authority - each verified at source and cross-linked to its row:
AllUnity (DE) - JV of DWS, Flow Traders and Galaxy Digital (Deutsche Bank group). Issues EURAU, Germanys first regulated euro stablecoin. EMI authorised by BaFin (2025).
Billie (Berlin, Germany) - B2B BNPL: embedded payment terms for B2B marketplaces (Metro, Mercateo). NB: 2025 BaFin guidance requires B2B BNPL to hold a KWG credit-institution licence or partner with a licensed bank.
Bitpanda (Vienna) - MiCA CASP via FMA Austria (+ dual rail CSSF Luxembourg). B2B arm Bitpanda Technology Solutions = white-label investing/crypto infrastructure for banks.
Boerse Stuttgart Digital Custody GmbH - BaFin MiCA CASP (custody + transfers). White-label crypto infrastructure for banks (e.g. DZ Bank).
Cleverbridge (Cologne, Germany) - global merchant of record and subscription commerce for B2C and B2B software: payments, global tax/VAT compliance, renewals and revenue optimisation.
finAPI (Germany) - open banking AIS/PIS and PSD2 licence-as-a-service. BaFin-licensed; majority owned by SCHUFA.
Hauck Aufhäuser Digital Custody GmbH (DE) - crypto custody arm of private bank Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe (ABN AMRO group). BaFin MiCA CASP (custody + transfers). Site now under Bethmann HAL (bethmann-hal.de).
Klarna Bank AB (publ) (org. 556737-0431) - full banking licence Swedish FSA since 2017 (category 2 institution), passported EEA. BNPL pioneer; rolling out Klarna Card (debit) across 10 EU markets 2025; FCA authorisation UK (Jul 2025). NB: SFSA SEK 500m AML remark/fine 2025.
Moss (Germany) - corporate cards and spend management; cards issued via Transact Payments Malta and a German partner bank, with Deutsche Bank and Airwallex partnerships. Uses partner rails.
Local IBANs: DE
PayCenter (Freising, Germany; since 2012) - current accounts with German IBANs and prepaid Mastercard cards for individuals and 8,000+ business customers; the first German EMI with its own BaFin BIC/sort code.
PAYONE (Germany) - a Worldline + DSV (Sparkassen) joint venture; leading DE/AT acquirer and licensed PSP with 5.4bn+ transactions/yr and 277k+ customers; Wero acquirer (EPI member). NB: 2025 supervisory actions over internal controls.
Qwist (ex-NDGIT, Munich, Germany; founded 2016; acquired by Crastorehill Nov 2023) - open-banking / open-finance API platform used by 30+ banks and corporates; built Switzerland's first open-banking system (2017).
Riverty (ex-Arvato Financial Solutions, rebranded 2022; Baden-Baden, Germany) - the fintech arm of Bertelsmann: AfterPay-brand BNPL, e-invoicing and direct debit; 28m+ consumers, 80m+ transactions a month.
Tangany GmbH (Munich) - crypto custody & wallet infrastructure-as-a-service. BaFin MiCA CASP (custody + transfers).
Verimi (Berlin, Germany) - reusable digital-ID wallet + Wallet-as-a-Service, ident, qualified e-signature. eIDAS substantial/high certified; approved by BMI / BaFin / gematik. Bank-backed German identity scheme.
Token.io (UK) - A2A payments and data across 21 markets (UK, DE, PL, SE and others). Authorised AISP + PISP.
BitGo Europe GmbH - BaFin MiCA CASP (custody, exchange, execution, transfers). US parent BitGo = CLOUD Act exposure; EEA rail via DE entity.
Credit institutions in Germany (2)
Banks sit outside the payment registers above - supervised nationally together with the ECB. Verified bank-licensed providers headquartered in Germany:
Local IBANs: DE
Solaris (Germany) - BaaS, card issuing and BIN sponsorship on a German banking licence. Credit institution, BaFin. Acquired Contis (2021). NB: heightened BaFin supervision (onboarding restrictions, fines 2024-2025).
Varengold Bank (Hamburg, Germany; full banking licence, BaFin 109520, since 2013) - fronting/BaaS and international payment services for fintechs (German IBANs). NB: BaFin AML enforcement - EUR 3.3m fine (Aug 2025) and a 2023 Iran-related transaction prohibition - a status/risk flag. Rebranded to Ascory Bank (2026; Hamburg + Sofia), positioning as financing partner for start-ups/scale-ups; 2025 EBT ~EUR 2.0m. 2025-2026: renamed Ascory Bank and repositioned as a specialist bank for structured financing (start-up/scale-up lending in fintech, energy transition, leveraged finance) - the fintech banking-services/IBAN offering is no longer marketed.
Where licences cluster - and why regulator geography is strategy - is mapped from our own register dataset in who holds Europe's fintech licences. See all verified providers headquartered there: fintech infrastructure in Germany.
FAQ
Who does BaFin regulate in fintech?
Payment institutions, e-money institutions and account-information providers under PSD2, crypto-asset service providers under MiCA, and - together with the ECB - Germany's credit institutions, including the banks behind BaaS programmes. The register rows on this page are the official EBA and ESMA records for Germany.
How do I check a licence with BaFin?
Cross-check the entity in the official registers (the rows on this page deep-link into our register index, sourced from the EBA and ESMA), and for final certainty use BaFin's own company database - registers have no legal significance, the supervisor's record does. Every verified German profile in the catalogue links its register row.