021: All the small things
A smattering of announcements
Welcome to Neobanked, a newsletter focused on the quickly evolving UK digital banking market. I hope to gather enough interesting tidbits and news to share this every two weeks.
For me, Neobanks are digital-only offerings that apply internet economics (i.e. zero marginal costs) to the banking sector. My focus will be on companies such as Monzo, Revolut, and Starling.
Through this newsletter I hope to cover each of these companies as they continue to grow within the UK and beyond. Some of the regular features will include user number growth, new product/feature releases, and links to relevant interviews and analysis.
News this week
Monzo Business hits 50,000 users in six months
Monzo has likely benefitted from a general uptick in digital-first banking use and new small businesses being created throughout the pandemic. Critically this gives Monzo a recurring revenue stream in a time when transaction based revenue has dropped to near zero.
Bud’s Open Banking app enables payments
Users can now send payments directly within the iOS app using Open Banking and PSD2 integrations. The app allows users to link multiple accounts and view transaction insights with add-one like rent recognition for credit scores, bill switching, and more.
New and upcoming feature releases
Revolut adds recurring buy feature for cryptocurrencies
Revolut users can now automatically buy more of their chosen cryptocurrency at regular intervals, enabling the common dollar cost averaging strategy for those looking to invest.
Monzo Plus users can view their Amex balance in-app
Users can see up to 90 days of transactions and data is auto—refreshed twice daily, with the option to manually refresh data if required.
Recent reports and studies
Open pensions and Open Finance: building a better future for UK savers
A new report from Innovate Finance, Plaid, and PensionBee looks at the current pain points within pensions and the opportunity Open Finance presents to remedy these.
I’m pleased to see Monzo, Starling, and Revolut find more sustainable sources of revenue (primarily through business accounts, secondarily through premium accounts) to help them survive the pandemic. The traditional banks would return to a state of complacency without them and their failure may have stunted mainstream user growth in future years. Remaining a stable part of people’s everyday infrastructure in this time is critical to building a longstanding relationship.