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APIs · head to head

Brite Payments vs Solaris

Brite Payments logo

Brite Payments

APIs

Instant account to account payments and payouts across Europe

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Solaris logo

Solaris

APIs

German banking as a service with a full banking licence and a live regulatory problem

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Brite Payments because Brite fronts settlement it underwrites the merchant, so higher risk sectors face volume caps, reserves or delayed settlement that undo the instant advantage they bought it for.; Solaris baFin appointed a special representative in 2022 and extended the mandate in July 2024, so a partner is joining a bank under active supervisory monitoring, with slower approvals and heavier compliance demands as a direct consequence.
  • They diverge on capability: Brite Payments covers Instant pay ins, Solaris covers German banking licence.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Brite Payments and Solaris actually diverge.

Attributes where Brite Payments and Solaris differ
AttributeBrite PaymentsSolaris

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, API), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Brite Payments

  • Instant pay ins
  • Instant payouts
  • Proprietary settlement network
  • European bank coverage
  • Recurring and one click
  • Risk and verification
  • Merchant reporting
  • Hosted checkout

Only in Solaris

  • German banking licence
  • IBAN accounts
  • Card issuing
  • Lending as a service
  • Digital assets and custody
  • SEPA payments
  • KYC and onboarding
  • Deposit protection

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Brite Payments

  • A gambling operator that needs deposits confirmed instantly and withdrawals paid out in seconds to retain playersnot Solaris
  • A trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposurenot Solaris
  • A marketplace paying sellers on demand rather than in weekly batchesnot Solaris
  • A Nordic retailer replacing card acceptance on high value baskets to cut interchange costnot Solaris

Solaris

  • A retailer or platform launching a German current account or card product without applying for its own licencenot Brite Payments
  • A fintech that needs deposit taking and lending, which an e-money licence cannot providenot Brite Payments
  • A European business needing German IBANs because customers reject foreign IBANs for salary and direct debitnot Brite Payments
  • A company requiring German statutory deposit protection on customer balances as a product claimnot Brite Payments

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Brite Payments

  • Because Brite fronts settlement it underwrites the merchant, so higher risk sectors face volume caps, reserves or delayed settlement that undo the instant advantage they bought it for.
  • There is no chargeback scheme, so refunds, disputes and fraud recovery are processes the merchant has to build and staff itself.
  • Coverage and instant capability differ markedly by country, with the Nordics far stronger than southern and eastern Europe, so a pan European rollout gives inconsistent customer experience.
  • Conversion depends on each bank's authentication journey, and the merchant cannot fix a slow or unreliable bank redirect that is costing it sales.
  • A large share of Brite's volume comes from gambling and trading, which concentrates regulatory exposure: a change in gambling payment rules in a key market would affect the provider as well as the merchant.

Solaris

  • BaFin appointed a special representative in 2022 and extended the mandate in July 2024, so a partner is joining a bank under active supervisory monitoring, with slower approvals and heavier compliance demands as a direct consequence.
  • BaFin fined Solaris EUR 6.5 million in March 2024 for systematically late suspicious activity reports and EUR 500,000 for breaching large exposure limits between January 2022 and March 2024, which is a track record a partner inherits reputationally.
  • Solaris has previously needed BaFin approval before onboarding new corporate clients, which can turn a commercial decision to launch into a regulatory timetable outside your control.
  • The 2024 restructuring involved job cuts and the closure of parts of a business unit, so product lines a partner depends on may not have the engineering behind them that the sales process implies.
  • SBI Holdings acquired majority control in 2025, so strategic direction now sits with a Japanese financial group whose priorities for the European business may differ from the roadmap you were sold.

Pricing, plan by plan

Brite Payments

On request
  • Brite instant payments$undefined/year
    • Quoted per merchant, typically per transaction
    • Pay ins and payouts priced separately
    • Merchant underwriting may impose volume limits, reserves or delayed settlement

Solaris

On request
  • Solaris banking as a service$undefined/year
    • Quoted per partner, typically setup fee plus monthly platform fee
    • Per account, per card and per transaction charges on top
    • Interchange sharing arrangements negotiated per programme

Which should you pick?

Choose Brite Payments if

  • You need instant pay ins.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want instant payouts.
Brite Payments review

Choose Solaris if

  • You need german banking licence.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want iban accounts.
Solaris review

Questions people ask

Is Brite Payments or Solaris better?
Neither clearly leads. Brite Payments starts at On request and Solaris at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Brite Payments or Solaris?
Brite Payments starts at On request and Solaris at On request.
Does Brite Payments or Solaris run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, API, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Brite Payments best used for?
Brite Payments is most often used for a gambling operator that needs deposits confirmed instantly and withdrawals paid out in seconds to retain players, a trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposure, a marketplace paying sellers on demand rather than in weekly batches, a nordic retailer replacing card acceptance on high value baskets to cut interchange cost. Of those, a gambling operator that needs deposits confirmed instantly and withdrawals paid out in seconds to retain players and a trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposure are not what Solaris is typically brought in for.
What can Brite Payments do that Solaris cannot?
Brite Payments covers Instant pay ins, Instant payouts, Proprietary settlement network, European bank coverage. Solaris covers German banking licence, IBAN accounts, Card issuing, Lending as a service.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Brite Payments: How is Brite different from a standard open banking initiator?

It settles on its own network, so the merchant sees funds as final in seconds rather than waiting for the bank transfer to clear.

Solaris: Does Solaris have a real banking licence?

Yes. Solaris SE is a German credit institution, which is why it can offer deposits and lending, unlike e-money based competitors.

Brite Payments: Are payouts really instant?

In markets with mature instant payment schemes, yes. Elsewhere the speed depends on local rails, so check country by country.

Solaris: Is the BaFin action still live?

The special representative appointed in 2022 had the mandate extended in July 2024, and fines were issued in March 2024. Treat supervisory oversight as an active condition in your diligence.

Brite Payments: What about disputes?

There is no chargeback framework on account to account payments. Refunds and disputes are entirely your own process.

Solaris: Who owns Solaris now?

SBI Holdings of Japan agreed in December 2024 and January 2025 to take a majority stake of over seventy per cent for around EUR 100 million.

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