Bunq has become one of the first European digital banks to enter the mortgage market with an announcement that they plan to start lending €100m in their native Holland; this will not be a direct to consumer strategy, instead Bunq will work with brokers, although they did say they may offer mortgages directly at some point; the digital bank has €433m in assets primarily held in European Central Bank bonds and will be diverting around 25% of these deposits into a real estate fund; the expected annual return on Bunq’s mortgage fund is 0.7% as they opt for low-risk, low-interest mortgages; what’s more, the Dutch government has protections in place that will protect two-thirds of Bunq’s home loan portfolio in case of default. Sifted.
