Lithuania-based Saldo Bank has brought term deposits and digital loan services to the Finnish consumer market. The Finnish deposit market gets more competition as fintech company Saldo Bank opens banking operations in Finland at the beginning of October 2023.

The first banking product launched by the company is a traditional term deposit account, with one the highest interest rates on the market. Saldo Bank offers up to 4.00% interest for a 24-month deposit, which is about 0.5% higher than the second best offer, as per the news release. The neobank’s officials said that until now, Finns have lost their wealth by keeping their money in normal checking accounts.

They want to intensify the interest rate competition between banks and make deposit interest rates fairer for the consumers than they are now. Funds deposited in Saldo Bank’s term deposit accounts are covered by the standard deposit protection. New product launches in the horizon in Finland In addition to geographical expansion, Saldo Bank is planning to expand its product offering in Finland.

It plans to become a versatile digital bank in the country serving several different target groups. The bank’s team wants, in the near future, to offer new digital deposit and lending products for consumers and business customers. Saldo Bank's operating model is based on a fully digital and automated credit granting system, which enables personal and real-time loan offers.

International banking group Saldo Bank made a strategic turn in 2019, when it set out to transform itself into an international digital bank. A crucial step of this transformation was reached in October 2021, as it received a specialised banking license from the European Central Bank. The notification of the banking license to Finland was successfully completed in September 2023, which made it possible for Saldo Bank to now offer banking services also in Finland.

The bank’s team said the development of their banking services is focused in Lithuania, where Saldo Bank launched term deposits and consumer loans already in the beginning of 2023. In addition to this, Saldo Bank also offers term deposits in the German market. Their next goal is to successfully open banking operations also in the Swedish market during the beginning of 2024 and from there to continue scaling their business internationally.

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