N26

FinTechFounded 2013- HQ today: Berlin, Germany

Founders

Who Founded N26?

Valentin Stalf, Maximilian Tayenthal · Founded 2013 · HQ today: Berlin, Germany

Who founded N26?

N26 was founded by Valentin Stalf, Maximilian Tayenthal in 2013 in Berlin, Germany. It is now led by Mike Dargan.

Founders: Valentin Stalf, Maximilian Tayenthal
Founded: 2013
Headquarters: Berlin, Germany
Number of founders: 2
Current CEO: Mike Dargan (since 2026)

Where was N26 founded?: N26 was founded in Berlin, Germany in 2013. wikidata.org
When was N26 founded?: N26 was founded in 2013.
Who started N26?: N26 was founded by Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal.
How old is N26?: N26 is 13 years old as of 2026.

Founding Story

Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal started the company in 2013 under the name Papayer, initially aimed at a prepaid card for young people. They relaunched as Number26 in 2015 with an account issued through partner Wirecard Bank, secured their own German banking license in 2016, and rebranded as N26.

What each N26 founder did

Founder	Role at founding	Contribution	Source
Valentin Stalf	Co-Founder; Co-CEO 2013-2025	—	en.wikipedia.org
Maximilian Tayenthal	Co-Founder; Co-CEO until end of 2025	—	—

Valentin Stalf

Background

Austrian; studied at WU Vienna and the University of St. Gallen and worked at Rocket Internet before founding N26.

Role at N26

Valentin Stalf co-founded N26 in 2013 with Maximilian Tayenthal and ran it as CEO and later co-CEO for about twelve years, leading product, brand and fundraising, including the $900 million Series E in 2021. He stepped down as co-CEO in 2025 amid regulatory pressure and remains a shareholder.

Stalf was born on October 4, 1985 in Vienna. Valentin Stalf was born in 1985.

Maximilian Tayenthal

Background

Austrian; studied law and business in Vienna and worked in consulting before co-founding N26.

Role at N26

Maximilian Tayenthal co-founded N26 and oversaw finance, regulatory, legal and operations, including securing the 2016 banking license and the remediation under BaFin's 2021-2024 growth cap. He left his co-CEO role at the end of 2025 ahead of Mike Dargan's arrival and remains a shareholder. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).

N26: CEO & Leadership History

Full timeline →

Mike Dargan

Chief Executive Officer

2026 – Present

As a senior executive, he aims to professionalize the startup's chaotic internal systems, bringing them up to the standards required by the European Central Bank.

Aytac Aydin

Chief Operating Officer

2026 – Present

They lead the core software engineering teams that maintain the high reliability and sleek user interface that forms N26's primary competitive advantage against legacy banks.

Marcin Pakulnicki

Chief Technology Officer

2026 – Present

They lead the core software engineering teams that maintain the high reliability and sleek user interface that forms N26's primary competitive advantage against legacy banks.

Arnd Schwierholz

Chief Financial Officer (interim co-CEO late 2025-April 2026)

2023 – Present

As CFO, he manages the bank's liquidity and is aggressively working to resolve the severe anti-money laundering (AML) compliance issues that led to growth caps by BaFin.

Valentin Stalf

Co-founder & Co-CEO

2013 – 2025

Led N26 from founding until stepping down as co-CEO in 2025.

Maximilian Tayenthal

Co-founder & Co-CEO

2013 – 2025

As Co-Founder and Co-CEO, he manages the massive venture capital funding rounds and internal regulatory compliance structure of the neobank.

Keep researching N26

Who Founded N26? FAQ

Who founded N26 and when did their entrepreneurial journey begin?

N26 was founded in 2013 by Austrian entrepreneurs Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal, who had been childhood friends in Vienna before reuniting to build a mobile-first banking alternative for Europe.

What was the founders' original concept before creating a full mobile bank?

The founders initially conceptualized 'Papayer', a digital prepaid card and allowance tracking app for teenagers and parents, before realizing that adults of all ages desperately needed a modern, branchless mobile banking experience.

How did the founders launch Number26 in 2015 with partner bank Wirecard?

Before obtaining their own banking license, the founders launched Number26 in early 2015 via a white-label partner-bank arrangement with Wirecard Bank, quickly attracting hundreds of thousands of early adopters.

Why did the founders decide to secure their own independent banking license in 2016?

To achieve full product control, lower transaction costs, and guarantee long-term operational autonomy, the founders applied for and secured a full ECB/BaFin banking license in July 2016, successfully migrating all users to N26 Bank.

What initial seed funding did the founders secure to build the N26 prototype?

The founders received initial seed backing from Earlybird Venture Capital and business angel Axel Springer Plug and Play in 2013 to 2014, followed by a landmark Series A round led by Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures in 2015.

How did the founders cultivate N26's distinctive minimalist design philosophy?

The founders insisted on an ultra-minimalist, transparent aesthetic inspired by Apple and Swiss design, featuring clear sans-serif typography, instant push notifications, and the well-known transparent Mastercard debit card.

What challenges did the founders face during N26's rapid European hyper-growth?

The founders navigated intense operational scaling hurdles, including handling surging customer support queues, closing accounts for misuse, and scaling internal anti-money laundering controls to satisfy stringent German regulators.

Do the N26 founders still run the company?

No. Valentin Stalf stepped down as co-CEO in 2025 after BaFin raised governance concerns, and Maximilian Tayenthal handed over at the end of 2025. Interim co-CEOs Arnd Schwierholz and Marcus W. Mosen led N26 until Mike Dargan became CEO in April 2026. Both founders remain shareholders.

How did Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal meet before launching N26?

Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal were childhood friends in Vienna who reunited during their professional careers. Stalf had gained startup incubation experience at Rocket Internet, while Tayenthal held degrees in law and economics and worked in professional management consulting. Together, they combined tech agility with banking regulatory discipline.

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Who founded N26?

Founding Story

What each N26 founder did

Valentin Stalf

Background

Role at N26

Maximilian Tayenthal

Background

Role at N26

N26: CEO & Leadership History

Keep researching N26

Who Founded N26? FAQ

Who founded N26 and when did their entrepreneurial journey begin?

What was the founders' original concept before creating a full mobile bank?

How did the founders launch Number26 in 2015 with partner bank Wirecard?

Why did the founders decide to secure their own independent banking license in 2016?

What initial seed funding did the founders secure to build the N26 prototype?

How did the founders cultivate N26's distinctive minimalist design philosophy?

What challenges did the founders face during N26's rapid European hyper-growth?

Do the N26 founders still run the company?

How did Valentin Stalf and Maximilian Tayenthal meet before launching N26?

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