How French Fintechs Are Blending Banking With Lifestyle
Fintech has outgrown slick apps and low fees — the next battle for growth and loyalty will be won in lifestyle.
Read time: 5 Minutes
Fintech in Europe has matured fast. Slick apps, low fees, and instant onboarding are now just the standard. What was once a differentiator is today the bare minimum.
The real shift is about fintechs becoming everyday companions — apps that organize life through your smartphone, not just manage money. From travel to connectivity, fintechs are extending their reach into choices that define how people live - it’s all about customer retention. This is where the next wave of competition will be won or lost.
And the numbers prove it. Digital-only banks now retain 87.9% of their customers, the highest in the sector, while traditional retail banks average 80.2%. In Europe, neo-banks have grown retention by 3.2%, now averaging 82.1%, helped in part by lifestyle features and other digital experience improvements (Coinlaw).
Loyalty programs that integrate lifestyle perks can push retention rates 25% higher, and banks that invest in CX report 2.4x stronger retention compared to peers (Exploding Topics and Shopify).
The New Fintech Battleground: From Embedded Finance to Lifestyle
Embedded finance is the technology that integrates financial services like payments, lending, or insurance directly into non-financial platforms. On the other side, lifestyle platforms are the consumer-facing apps that combine these financial features with everyday experiences from mobile subscription to travel insurance, health benefits and employee perks, just to name a few.
One of the best examples of combining both - embedded finance and lifestyle products - is fintech giant Revolut. What started with premium cards and lounge access has now stretched into mobile subscriptions and eSIM plans.
Revolut’s eSIM feature lets you roam in over 100 countries, and global data plans are now part of what makes their premium accounts more than just financial tools.
And Revolut is not alone. We’re seeing this trend with Klarna — now letting users resell past purchases via partner platforms, earn cashback from partner retailers, and shop with flexible payments in a rewards-driven ecosystem.
Monzo pushes beyond regular banking: its Max plan includes premium travel insurance for you and your family, cover for winter sports, and partner perks like phone or breakdown insurance.
And bunq is building features for “the traveler in everyone” — worldwide travel insurance, eSIMs, holiday mode, exchange perks, and travel-assist tools all embedded in the app.
Together, these examples show how fintechs are embedding themselves into daily routines, positioning the smartphone as the hub for both money and life.
Embedded Finance in France: Driving B2B Fintech Innovation
France’s fintech scene is growing and innovating, extending embedded finance and lifestyle offerings both in B2B and B2C markets.
Qonto, one of France’s biggest fintechs and a Top 10 French unicorn as of 2025, is expanding beyond core business banking to offer lending, savings, and investments. While not yet heavy on lifestyle features, Qonto’s evolution signals strong potential for integrated lifestyle perks in the future (Sifted Podcast).
Building on embedded finance, Defacto is another standout French player. Its API-first platform enables SMBs to unlock working capital directly inside tools they already use—including Qonto, Libeo, and Pennylane.
When Citi Ventures backed Defacto in 2023, it showed that embedding credit within everyday business workflows has become a mainstream strategy. In just over two years, Defacto has processed hundreds of millions in short-term loans, partnering with over 12,000 SMBs and expanding across Europe.
Their approach embodies “capital by API, not paperwork,” automating the difficult parts of SME lending.
Beyond lending, Swan exemplifies French embedded banking innovation providing API-driven account opening, card issuance (including virtual and physical Mastercard cards), and payment services that other businesses can embed seamlessly into their own platforms.
Swan powers over 150 companies across 30 European countries and has recently secured €42 million in funding to scale its embedded finance infrastructure.
Another notable French Fintech, Morning offers modular, white-label banking-as-a-service solutions that empower businesses to quickly embed tailored financial products such as payments and card issuance without the need to build their own banking infrastructure.
Meanwhile, PayPlug specializes in omnichannel payment solutions designed for merchants and e-commerce platforms, integrating embedded buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) options through partners like Oney.
Consumer-Focused French Fintechs Investing on Lifestyle
As embedded finance solidifies its role in streamlining business operations and customer journeys, French fintechs are simultaneously forging ahead in consumer-facing lifestyle products.
Swile integrates employee benefits and payment cards into a unified platform, delivering work-life perks that help businesses boost retention and employee satisfaction.
Alan blends digital health insurance with lifestyle services, offering freelancers and companies easy access to healthcare payments and wellness products through an intuitive app.
Fortuneo caters to digitally savvy consumers with low-cost cards, mortgages, and insurance products wrapped in a lifestyle banking experience.
Cashbee focuses on embedding personal finance management and savings into daily digital interactions, making saving effortless without requiring users to switch banks.
Mon Petit Placement curates lifestyle investment opportunities targeting digitally native investors who seek personalized portfolios beyond traditional wealth management.
What’s Next – Outlook for Lifestyle Fintech
France counts more than 1,000 fintechs and 14 unicorns. But adoption is still lagging: just 34% of French consumers use fintech apps, compared with 78% in the Netherlands.
Security worries and the comfort of branch banking continue to slow uptake, the so-called - the French Fintech paradox.
The way forward is to meet users where they already are. Lifestyle super-apps have room to grow in this space, bundling payments with perks and daily services.
AI-driven personalization and new EU rules like MiCA and DORA are also shifting the balance. They can make fintech products safer, clearer, and easier to use — the kind of changes that move consumers from skepticism to loyalty.
The outlook? Success will depend on fintechs pairing innovation with trust — and positioning themselves as everyday companions. The winners will make finance feel invisible, woven seamlessly into the same smartphone flows people already use to shop, travel, and stay connected.