Bunq review: the neobank that wants you to travel, but at what cost?

The Dutch neobank Bunq is already one of the doyennes of the genre and has been able to develop its offer over the years without forgetting its core target: globetrotters. But with today’s flourishing banking offering, does Bunq still have a place in your wallet or smartphone?

Bunq Features

Bunq in a nutshell

Of Dutch origin, Bunq was founded in 2012 by a Canadian entrepreneur named Ali Niknam. The latter does not come from FinTech, but rather from the web since he is also the founder of a company specializing in the registration of domain names which he launched when he was 16 (TransIP) and another (The Data Center Group) which offers cloud solutions to businesses.

Bunq was part of this pioneering wave of neobanks long before the headliners N26 or Revolut. The initial idea was of course to break away from traditional banking establishments and to offer a simple mobile application to manage accounts. But Bunq was not content to draw inspiration from what had already been done by the competition. The bank also promotes an eco-friendly identity by offering to plant trees via an international program in partnership with local NGOs in the countries concerned. It has also reached the symbolic figure of 5 million trees planted worldwide at the end of 2021 thanks to the activity of its customers.

Regarding the application, it was launched at the end of 2015 and, as a small anecdote, when it was released, users discovered that the Android application stored unprotected identity photos, allowing other applications on the same device to access it, the issue has obviously since been resolved. Bunq holds a Dutch banking license.

Its launch in France dates back to 2018 and the latest customer census to date (2019) announces 1.1 million users throughout Europe.

Bunq Pricing

Bunq’s offer revolves around 3 types of accounts whose services are relatively similar while including some exclusivities:

This is only part of the gigantic fee schedule that the bank offers us on its site, even if it feels full. It is all the same interesting to note the difference in terms of the budgeting of the accounts which is intended to be much more complete from the Easy Money subscription. For example, you are entitled to the opening of 25 sub-accounts to better organize your savings, your budgets or even your investments where an Easy Bank account has only one. Other functionalities in the same theme are activated such as the automatic sorting of expenses or the pooling of loyalty cards, even if we will especially retain the possibility of paying with a single card for two different accounts, also called function Dual pin.

We really have the impression that the Easy Money and Easy Green offers have only too few significant differences to justify such a price difference. We therefore advise to fall back on Easy Bank with a view to a secondary account.

How to fund your account?

Once the Bunq account is created, no initial deposit is required before having full authority over it. However, as no offer is free, you have to pay attention to the first direct debit occurring two days after opening the account. To fund your account, several solutions are possible. The first is to recharge directly via bank card by registering it in the application, but fees apply and vary according to the banks (0.5% of the amount and a limit of 500 euros per day). The other solution is the classic bank transfer so as not to incur any fees, but the delay is longer (between 1 and 2 working days). Finally, it is possible to collect cash via the partnership with PaysafeCard. It is a much less practical solution than depositing cash in the bank in the traditional way, but it at least has the merit of existing.

Open an account with Bunq

Like most neobanks, opening a Bunq account is very quick. Everything is done via the mobile application in just a few minutes. It is through this bias that a customer must choose the offer that suits him. After providing the contact details and standard information, you are asked to send a photo of an identity document (identity card, permit, passport or residence permit). To verify your identity, you will then need to record a video of a few seconds in selfie mode, even if this step is possible after opening the account.

Finally to complete the registration, even if Bunq does not require any initial deposit, a minimum of 10 euros must be paid into the account which corresponds to the cost of manufacturing and sending the card (if necessary). This first payment is made by reloading by credit card. Good news, it is possible to use the card via Google Pay even before having received it by post.

A few days after opening the account, you will need to enter your tax identification number. Note that Bunq has recently offered the possibility of choosing the IBAN of its accounts and sub-accounts to make them compatible with 4 countries: Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands. In the same register, Bunq has just introduced a system ofself-currency allowing the automation of currencies depending on the country where you are and thus avoiding sometimes prohibitive exchange rates (on Easy Money/Green accounts only).

Initial deposit and overdraft management

Bunq is not intended to copy the model of online banks and even less of traditional banks. No amount is therefore required as a deposit when the account is opened. In addition, overdraft is not allowed, so it will be necessary to fund the account to guarantee a positive balance. No payment will be taken into account if the amount exceeds that present on the account.

Welcome bonuses

Like most neobanks, Bunq does not offer any welcome bonus and prefers to focus on sponsorships or offers from its partners to attract its customers.

Referral bonus

Bunq does offer a referral program, but it is a bit different from other neobanks. Instead of issuing an amount of money for each person opening an account, Bunq undertakes to plant a tree for each invitation and 20 others for a registration validated by sponsorship. It’s a way for Bunq to offset each customer’s carbon footprint. Moreover, Bunq’s environmental policy is highlighted via the regular update of its report which can be consulted here.

Bunq insurance and services

Unlike the Mastercard cards at N26 or Boursorama which guarantee the holder significant insurance coverage, Bunq strangely does without the protections and assistance that the organization can provide. This means that the bank does not cover any costs in the event of personal accident, loss or theft of equipment during trips and trips abroad, which is paradoxical for a bank which puts forward an offer designed to globetrotters. You must therefore have this aspect in mind if you ever choose Bunq as the exclusive bank for your holidays abroad. Bunq only protects deposits (up to 100,000 euros) and purchases via an extended warranty extension (with an Easy Green account only), which is very light for a 17.99 euros/month account.

cash back

Bunq does not have a Cashback program per se, but has partnerships with a few brands, websites, online booking platforms or even various insurance companies. For the moment, the program is a bit tight in content and does not compete with what Vivid Money, N26 or Revolut can offer on this point.

Note that this feature is only accessible from a Bunq Easy Money account.

Customer service

Bunq offers several communication channels to reach its customer support. The most effective option is of course live chat, available from the app. It is also possible to contact Bunq customer service by email, even if the response time is necessarily longer. The bank is also very active on its social networks.

And cryptocurrency?

Although Bunq accepts money transfers from cryptocurrency exchanges, the bank does not include any possibility of purchase, resale or consideration of Tokens or Coins. Logical when you know its environmental commitments.

Our opinion on the Bunq mobile application

The least we can say is that the first steps on the application are far from being as easy as on other platforms. Bunq being very rich in content, the indexing is a bit anarchic and we often go around in circles before finding the menu initially sought. In addition, the focus is on gamification. For example, the profile tab displays gauges showing the total money, time saved, or trees planted thanks to Bunq. You are also entitled to trophies to be unlocked according to your actions. A very artificial feature that adds very little to the application experience. Note also that the translation of the contents of the application is highly incomplete at the time of writing these lines: it is not uncommon to come across text in English in the middle of the menus in French.

However, even if it seems to be overwhelmed with features, Bunq has made the effort to make its interface relatively uncluttered. On the main page, we come across a simple overview of the different sub-accounts and cards available, in addition to options for sending, receiving and adding money.

Since we are talking about money, it should be noted that each sub-account has its own IBAN, a bit like pockets at Vivid Money. It is therefore possible to receive your salary on the first, to set up automatic debits on the second and so on. This makes it easier to organize your budget.

Bunq also emphasizes its community by offering great ideas designed for travelers. We think in particular of the travel assistant which gives information on the local currency and which confirms or not that the Bunq card will work well in the country of our destination. Note also the presence of a tab dedicated to scanning receipts and invoices and another to expense statistics. Also, it is possible to create groups in which the payments of your group of friends are categorized a bit like a Tricount.

On the security side, the Bunq app is as eclectic as it gets with device signing, unlocking by code or fingerprint, and automatic logout after a certain period of inactivity. Finally, the support for mobile payments such as Google Pay or Apple Pay is another advantage although we would have liked other systems to complete the whole.