French fintech Qonto intends to acquire German rival Penta

(Reuters) - Qonto, a French online bank for small and medium-sized companies (SMEs), announced on Friday its intent to acquire German rival Penta, in a move that aims to create a European digital business finance leader with more than 300,000 customers.

The deal, which is expected to close in the coming weeks, represents a "natural next step" in Qonto's long-term ambition to become the finance solution of choice for 1 million clients by 2025, the French fintech said in a statement.

"The acquisition of Penta will enable Qonto to become the market leader in Germany - the largest European SME banking market - and to further accelerate profitable growth across all markets," the company added.

Qonto currently serves more than 250,000 clients across France, Germany, Italy and Spain, while its German rival serves 50,000 customers in Germany.

The group did not disclose the purchase price.

Qonto's latest fundraising raised in January 486 million euros, bringing its valuation to 4.4 billion euros ($4.98 billion).

(Reporting by Diana Mandiá in Gdansk; Editing by Matthew Lewis)