How it all began

bonsai, the app that lets you manage all your finances easily and efficiently through one platform and one account, the app that helps you manage your capital smartly and also makes the world a little bit better.

At launch, bonsai's core was to centralize all financial activities of the user in one platform. This made it unnecessary to keep creating new profiles or applications for different budget management tasks as users could link any existing bank account into the bonsai app. The service offered numerous features and rewards, but the biggest asset was the free virtual credit card, which you received once you created an account and downloaded the application. This card could be used worldwide via your phone, both online and in stores. 
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However, the team had a broader vision: they wanted to not only give something back to their customers but also make a positive impact on the world. “For every ten transactions with our bonsai credit card, we plant a tree for you,” was their promise. By adding a scoreboard where you could see the number of trees planted, bonsai created a competitive but fun element for users, with sustainability as a central pillar of their mission. 

Important milestones

The company grew and reached some important milestones in 2022. For example, bonsai received permission to integrate Apple Pay and Google Pay into its solution, a move that brought it many new users. From then on, even people affiliated with a bank that did not support it could take advantage of the latest payment technologies through bonsai.  
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In 2023, the company signed major festival contracts with big names such as Tomorrowland, Pukkelpop, Rock Werchter, Graspop Metal Meeting, and Suikerrock. That same year, both monthly payments and transaction volume doubled. bonsai ended the year with a bang by introducing new features, such as the budgeting feature and group split feature, which allowed users to manage their finances even more easily and share group expenses.  

You Are Gold

The year 2024 marked a promising milestone for the company. Its user base expanded to over 18,000, and customer transactions contributed to the planting of 750,000 trees. The company also introduced impactful initiatives, such as the "You Are Gold" campaign, designed to place users at the forefront. This initiative made every bonsai user feel truly valued, as though they were "gold."

Auric, a new chapter

In recent years, bonsai has developed an innovative, licensed payment and technology platform that has caught the attention of major brands, organizations, and institutions.
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As the team engaged with bigger and bigger brands and organizations, the request grew about licensing the platform technology and its financial services in a white labelled fashion.
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Also, as Embedded Financial Services started to make their entry across Europe, the attention grew from B2B institutions to source the exciting technology and services from bonsai and embed this into their own front end and customer facing channels.  It was clear that bonsai’s technology provided very attractive functionality to increase acquisition, retention and growth of our B2B partners and customers.
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As a result of this interest and a research project conducted in partnership with https://www.inthepocket.com, the team decided to adjust the company strategy and dedicate their focus entirely on B2B markets.  Auric was born as a new initiative, brand and company.
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The solution built over the years will continue under the new name Auric. The new concept will offer the “old” bonsai platform, technology and services under an embedded white label service to help companies, institutions and organisations to grow through their respective business through the offer of a white labelled embedded financial services platform.