flatpaywhich facilitates card payments for SMBs, has joined the ranks of European fintech unicorns – or startups valued at more than $1 billion – a milestone that has prompted some of the region’s biggest exits. These include competitors like Dutch payment processing giant Adyen which are far ahead in scale. However, Flatpay’s fresh funding could help close this gap.
Flatpay’s bet is that it can challenge the big players by charging small merchants a flat transaction rate to use its card terminals and point-of-sales systems. It focuses on the segment that is accounted for 99% The European businesses have rapidly gained traction: The startup now claims nearly 60,000 customers, up from 7,000 in April 2024.
Flatpay’s own valuation has grown at an equally rapid pace. Now valued at €1.5 billion ($1.75 billion), the Danish startup reached unicorn status in just three years. But while CEO and co-founder Sander Janka-Jensen is proud of the accomplishment, he has his eye on another metric: annual recurring revenue (ARR).
“We surpassed €100 million ARR in October,” Janka-Jensen told TechCrunch. He said this amount (about $116 million) was increasing by about €1 million ($1.16 million) per day. “The plan for 2026 is to grow another 300%, so expect to leave the year with an ARR between €400 and €500 million.”
To fund this ambitious growth – as the startup is still unprofitable – Flatpay raised €145 million (about $169 million) in its latest round. The round was backed by AVP Growth and Smash Capital, as well as Dawn Capital, which led the startup’s €47 million Series B. German football player Mario Gotze also attended In that last period.
The newly raised capital will support continued growth in Flatpay’s existing markets – Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy and the UK – as well as expansion into one or two new markets over the next year. Janka-Jensen declined to say which ones, but the job posting suggests the Netherlands may be next.
Flatpay currently has 1,500 employees – or “Flatpayers” – and plans to double that number by the end of next year. Increasing the number of employees is a goal the company has at the same level as revenue, saying in a press release that it aims to grow by 10 times by 2029. It may seem unusual, but they go hand-in-hand for a company that personally engages its customers.
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This stems from its hypothesis that SMB owners actively seek new solutions, even if their existing systems are excessively expensive or inadequate. “That’s where we get in the door,” Janka-Jensen said. They mean it literally – Flatpay shows up with pen and paper to explain its pricing and card terminals for an impromptu demo. “Every sales person has that suitcase.”
This pragmatic approach could help FlatPay increase its share in the market, which is dominated by legacy providers, big fintech players like PayPal, Stripe and SumUp, as well as new entrants focusing on niche sectors like hospitality. But the real differentiator may be the insight behind it: SMBs want simplicity, and FlatPay leaves them “ready to go.”
While this makes customer acquisition costs higher than average, especially when combined with 24/7 customer support, Janka-Jensen said generating demand allows startups to grow much faster than they otherwise would. In turn, this triple-digit growth makes FlatPay’s emphasis on human interaction even more attractive to investors, even during today’s AI-obsessed investment cycle.
The company isn’t ignoring AI entirely — it uses the technology for real-time features and is experimenting with voice AI agents. Flatpay also plans to expand further into fintech with a banking suite that will include cards and accounts. For Janka-Jensen, the key is to adopt slowly—so that instead of being overwhelmed, SMB owners can “eat the elephant one piece at a time.”
