UniCredit acquires Belgian digital bank Aion for 370 million euros

After the French acquisition of Bank Nagelmackers was announced earlier this week, another Belgian bank deal is announced.

In a strategic move to enhance its digital banking capabilities, the Italian banking giant UniCredit has announced the acquisition of Belgium’s Aion Bank and its Polish technology partner Vodeno for a total of 370 million euros.

This acquisition marks UniCredit’s entry into the Belgian market, expanding its footprint in Europe.

UniCredit acquires Aion Bank and Vodeno from the American private-equity group Warburg Pincus, which has owned both since 2018. Other shareholders include the British bank NatWest and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The acquisition primarily targets the advanced cloud-based banking platform and the talent pool of approximately 200 engineers and developers from Aion and Vodeno.

Aion Bank: Known as the ‘Netflix-bank’ for its subscription-based banking model introduced in 2020, Aion Bank offers financial services through a digital platform. The bank has previously attracted customers with competitive interest rates but has since shifted focus to becoming a financial subcontractor via a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform.

Vodeno is Polish fintech company providing technology solutions that enable retailers, e-commerce platforms, fintechs, and banks to offer financial services seamlessly.

UniCredit, under the leadership of CEO Andrea Orcel, emphasizes the acquisition’s role in advancing its technological capabilities. Orcel highlights the opportunity to develop Vodeno’s technology further and use it as a testing ground within the broader UniCredit group. The aim is to penetrate targeted customer segments and new markets across Europe more efficiently and cost-effectively.