Papara acquires Rebellion, emerges as Europe’s latest FinTech unicorn

By Leandra Monteiro

Papara, a Turkish neobank, announces the acquisition of Madrid-based neobank Rebellion, bringing the Turkish neobank’s valuation to over $1 billion.

Papara has purchased Rebellion from its current owners, Beka Finance, in a multi-million-dollar cash and stock transaction, making the business Europe’s latest unicorn and one of very few to have reached this milestone with no prior external investment. As well as being bootstrapped, unlike other challenger banks, Papara became profitable just two years after being founded by Ahmed Karslı in 2015.

Commenting on the acquisition, Rebellion, co-founder, Sergio Cerro said, “This acquisition presents an exceptional opportunity to propel a project that aligns seamlessly with the Spanish neobanking market. Given the absence of a dominant player in the Spanish sector, and considering the prevailing economic landscape, I strongly believe that Papara is the ideal partner to synergistically blend resources, business vision, and ambition.”

Papara’s acquisition of Rebellion which will rebrand to Papara Spain offers the business a strong foothold in the fast-growing Spanish banking market. Current Rebellion employees will also join Papara’s team and report to CEO, Emre Kenci.

Papara, founder and Chairman, Ahmed Karslı said, “Papara was founded on the principal of financial inclusion for all, and this deal will allow us to ensure that is reality for even more people. 2023 is the year in which we are beginning to execute our ambitious international growth strategy, and we are confident that Rebellion is the perfect foundation upon which to expand our global reach. The business and team stood out to us for a number of reasons, primarily its unrivalled local market knowledge, best-in-class products and, most importantly, alignment of goals to our own. We look forward to working with their talented team and building on Rebellion’s local market success.”