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APIs · head to head

Solaris vs Trustly

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
Trustly logo

Trustly

APIs

Pay-by-bank payments network, majority-owned by private equity firm Nordic Capital

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Trustly it is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.
  • They diverge on capability: Solaris covers German banking licence, Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Solaris and Trustly actually diverge.

Attributes where Solaris and Trustly differ
AttributeSolarisTrustly

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 Solaris

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

Only in Trustly

  • Pay by bank checkout
  • Instant refunds
  • Verified payouts
  • Multi-market bank connectivity
  • Merchant dashboard and reconciliation
  • Fraud and risk tooling

What people use each for

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

Solaris

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

Trustly

  • An e-commerce merchant wanting a lower-cost alternative or complement to card payment acceptancenot Solaris
  • A gaming or gambling operator needing verified, instant payouts to players' bank accountsnot Solaris
  • A merchant wanting instant refunds processed directly to a customer's bank account rather than card reversal delaysnot Solaris
  • A business in a market with strong open banking adoption wanting pay-by-bank as a checkout optionnot Solaris

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Trustly

  • It is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.
  • Consumer familiarity with paying by bank transfer still lags card payments in most markets, so merchants typically see it used as a secondary option rather than a full card replacement.
  • The 1.15 to 3.15% merchant fee range is not a single published rate, so a merchant cannot know its actual cost without a sales negotiation.
  • As with all open banking-dependent payment methods, reliability depends on the consistency of the underlying banks' own APIs, which Trustly does not control.
  • Its verified payout functionality is heavily used in gaming and gambling, a sector with additional regulatory scrutiny, which is worth factoring in when evaluating vendor risk exposure by association.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Trustly

On request
  • Trustly$undefined/month
    • Typical merchant cost of 1.15% to 3.15% depending on volume and market
    • Exact rate negotiated per merchant, not published as a flat card

Which should you pick?

Choose Solaris if

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

Choose Trustly if

  • You need pay by bank checkout.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want instant refunds.
Trustly review

Questions people ask

Is Solaris or Trustly better?
Neither clearly leads. Solaris starts at On request and Trustly at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Solaris or Trustly?
Solaris starts at On request and Trustly at On request.
Does Solaris or Trustly run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, API, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Solaris best used for?
Solaris is most often used for a retailer or platform launching a german current account or card product without applying for its own licence, a fintech that needs deposit taking and lending, which an e-money licence cannot provide, a european business needing german ibans because customers reject foreign ibans for salary and direct debit, a company requiring german statutory deposit protection on customer balances as a product claim. Of those, a retailer or platform launching a german current account or card product without applying for its own licence and a fintech that needs deposit taking and lending, which an e-money licence cannot provide are not what Trustly is typically brought in for.
What can Solaris do that Trustly cannot?
Solaris covers German banking licence, IBAN accounts, Card issuing, Lending as a service. Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout, Instant refunds, Verified payouts, Multi-market bank connectivity.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Trustly: Who owns Trustly?

Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, holds a 51.1% majority stake; Alfven & Didrikson and BlackRock hold smaller stakes.

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.

Trustly: Is Trustly going public?

It has discussed an IPO but as of its most recent comments said one remained at least a year away.

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.

Trustly: What does it typically cost a merchant?

Roughly 1.15% to 3.15% of transaction value depending on volume and market, negotiated per merchant.

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