N26's turn to start telecoms

While the British neobank Revolut has just officially launched its mobile package offer in Europe, it is also one of its main competitors, N26, which chose to present its own offer of mobile telephony. This strategic decision illustrates the emergence of another competitive ground for neo-banks, and more broadly for financial services players.

FACTS

• The German neo-bank N26 has just announced its entry into the German telecommunications market. It presents its own mobile phone package offer, based on an eSIM.

• The positioning of the neo-bank is simple, it is presented as a means for it to offer an affordable offer, as an alternative to the historical players in this market. It will nevertheless rely on Vodafone's 5G network, its partner, to launch this new offer.

• N26 will thus offer its German customers access to its new eSIM offer from its application, in just a few clicks. The Baptised Offer N26 SIM is thus presented as simplified and 100 % digital.

• Several packages including unlimited national calls and SMS and free roaming in Europe are available:
  • S package: including 10 GB of data for €13.99 per month;
  • Package M: includes 30 GB of data for €19.99 per month;
  • L package: includes 100 GB of data for €34.99 per month.

• N26 also promises flexibility and will allow customers of its N26 SIM offer to terminate their package after a month's notice.

• N26 also plans to explore the possibility of extending its N26 SIM offer to other European markets thereafter.

ISSUES

• Responding to competition : The positioning of N26 comes only a few days after the formalisation of the realization of the positioning of Revolut on the German and European mobile telephony market. This N26 announcement is therefore a direct response to competition.

• Take over the reins of its market : N26, as a German neo-bank, could not, moreover, give its British competitor the free access to this activity on its own domestic market. Because Revolit chose Germany to launch its telephone package offer, with the United Kingdom.

PERSPECTIVE

• The current mobilisation of some neo-banks in the European mobile telephony market is being strengthened but does not represent a revolution for the financial sector as a whole. The efforts made to ensure the diversification of non-financial services have been carried out for a long time on the theme of creating super-apps.

• The Brazilian neo-bank Nubank prepared the creation of its own mobile telephone operator in April 2024.

• But beyond the alternative players, historical banks had also made similar offers in the past. In France, this was particularly the case for Mutual Credit, Agricultural credit, and more broadly also, of the group The Post Office.

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