09.11.2023
As tax startup Hnry launches debit card in Australia, what is next for TaxTech?
Humble beginnings
In the mid-2010s, we saw the first companies offering banking solutions with a tax twist. In Germany, this was Kontist, which offered a bank account with a debit card for freelancers and other sole traders. The twist was that customers could set aside money for VAT and income tax payments. This eliminated the risk of running out of money when tax payments were due.
To complement the banking system, modern web accounting and invoicing software was developed. Most notably, lexoffice in Germany, which targeted the same solopreneurs as Kontist. In 2015, Tellow was founded in the Netherlands - also with the aim of providing solutions for freelancers.
The first next steps were to connect banks with accounting software, so that you could easily get all your digital transactions into your bookkeeping. Kontist even offered a subscription called Duo, which included the Kontist bank account and access to lexoffice - the best of both worlds.
The peak
Fast forward to the 2020s, when TaxTech was at its (financial) peak. Kontist launched its tax services, moving closer to the tax world - similar to what Hnry now offers in Australia and New Zealand. But as the global investment markets cooled, and Banking as a Service (= BaaS) companies like Solaris (2016) and Swan (2019) proved themselves more and more, it was now easy to access banking services for established accounting software like lexoffice. By first joining forces and complementing each other, there were now opportunities for both sides to make their own progress. One from the banking side, the other from the accounting and tax side.
lexoffice now offers business banking with a debit card. The aforementioned Tellow, together with their partner Swan, has also started banking this year. And now comes Hnry, who have already established their tax services and decide that banking is the new frontier for them too. They are launching their debit card offering in Australia first.
Now everyone is offering everything
Kontist started as a banking service and moved into tax and now offers a SaaS accounting product. lexoffice, on the other hand, started as an invoicing software and expanded into accounting software to become the market leader for sole traders in Germany. Now that banking seems to be becoming a commodity, it is being integrated into other tax software offerings - as is the case with Tellow and Hnry.
However, WorkMade, the new kid on the block, is not starting from either side, but is going all-in from the start, offering the full spectrum of accounting, banking and tax for small businesses. Luckily, they are backed by a hefty $7.5 million in funding.
Evolution and revolution
The evolution of accounting, banking, invoicing and tax is well underway. But what will the revolution look like?
Humble beginnings
In the mid-2010s, we saw the first companies offering banking solutions with a tax twist. In Germany, this was Kontist, which offered a bank account with a debit card for freelancers and other sole traders. The twist was that customers could set aside money for VAT and income tax payments. This eliminated the risk of running out of money when tax payments were due.
To complement the banking system, modern web accounting and invoicing software was developed. Most notably, lexoffice in Germany, which targeted the same solopreneurs as Kontist. In 2015, Tellow was founded in the Netherlands - also with the aim of providing solutions for freelancers.
The first next steps were to connect banks with accounting software, so that you could easily get all your digital transactions into your bookkeeping. Kontist even offered a subscription called Duo, which included the Kontist bank account and access to lexoffice - the best of both worlds.
The peak
Fast forward to the 2020s, when TaxTech was at its (financial) peak. Kontist launched its tax services, moving closer to the tax world - similar to what Hnry now offers in Australia and New Zealand. But as the global investment markets cooled, and Banking as a Service (= BaaS) companies like Solaris (2016) and Swan (2019) proved themselves more and more, it was now easy to access banking services for established accounting software like lexoffice. By first joining forces and complementing each other, there were now opportunities for both sides to make their own progress. One from the banking side, the other from the accounting and tax side.
lexoffice now offers business banking with a debit card. The aforementioned Tellow, together with their partner Swan, has also started banking this year. And now comes Hnry, who have already established their tax services and decide that banking is the new frontier for them too. They are launching their debit card offering in Australia first.
Now everyone is offering everything
Kontist started as a banking service and moved into tax and now offers a SaaS accounting product. lexoffice, on the other hand, started as an invoicing software and expanded into accounting software to become the market leader for sole traders in Germany. Now that banking seems to be becoming a commodity, it is being integrated into other tax software offerings - as is the case with Tellow and Hnry.
However, WorkMade, the new kid on the block, is not starting from either side, but is going all-in from the start, offering the full spectrum of accounting, banking and tax for small businesses. Luckily, they are backed by a hefty $7.5 million in funding.
Evolution and revolution
The evolution of accounting, banking, invoicing and tax is well underway. But what will the revolution look like?