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Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

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Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#151

Post by M2Ys4U »

amsterdam_guilt wrote: post #105
astannard wrote: post #36

I do like Monzo, they are one of the few startups I have invested in. I tend to personally use them for my fun money and still use my long time bank for paying the bills and getting my wages etc I transfer my monthly spending money to Monzo and when that runs out the fun stops.

How do you invest in them? Seems like an good bet.

Every now and then they solicit crowdfunding.

You buy a beneficial interest in a fraction of an allotment of shares owned by a crowdfunding platform through the Monzo app.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#152

Post by tommypalm »

rchaud wrote: post #136
nicoburns wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure I agree with this. A huge number of young people I know in the UK have switched to Monzo as their primary bank account. The business model is simple: the same as any other bank. Their competitive advantage is: 1. Having better technical capabilities than traditional banks (they have apps, but they're usually limited and clunky). 2. Not having physical branches, and the associated costs.

The article was very light on details, so I'd appreciate if could you elaborate on the technical capabilities of the app. I get suspicious when I see comments like: > One reason that led Y Combinator to invest, Hariharan said, “was the traction with which they hit 2 million users in the U.K., with engagement metrics that almost look like a social network.” It's a bank app. I can't speak for most people, but I don't o…

> it's to pay my CC bill

Most people in the UK don't put regular spending on a Credit Card. Nearly everyone will use their Debit Card for day to day spending.

A lot of the traction it has got has been with the 18-30 age bracket who are wanting better budgeting tools than what larger banks have offered.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#153

Post by lol768 »

benj111 wrote: post #77
matthewmacleod wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It offers literally all of those services.

Its savings products are other peoples, they are just a reseller. And the only insurance I've seen is travel insurance as part of a packaged bank account. Or did I miss something?

Yeah .. that's the entire premise of Monzo's marketplace concept. Really not sure what point you're trying to make here.

Monzo offers the current account and works with other organisations to offer the savings accounts (with the same UX, in the app, just as if it were a native pot). If the ISA didn't have "provided by OakNorth" in small text next to it, the customer wouldn't know any different.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#154

Post by lol768 »

benj111 wrote: post #24
lol768 wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Overdrafts, interchange, reasonable fees (Monzo Plus, business accounts), commission (marketplace: savings accounts, insurance etc).

I don't believe it offers most of those services, overdrafts in the UK are being restricted so be much less profitable [1], I believe one of its sell points is no commission on foreign currency, so no money there. So are they planning on launching (their own) savings, or insurance? [1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48553193

>I don't believe it offers most of those services

Incorrect.

>overdrafts in the UK are being restricted so be much less profitable

Incorrect, the fees are being regulated to ensure they're reasonable and customers are not being taken advantage of. There is still room to make a profit (and as the article says, they are per customer).

>I believe one of its sell points is no commission on foreign currency

I mentioned commission in relation to the marketplace concept, I am unsure why you are discussing foreign currency, it's irrelevant to the point I made.

>So are they planning on launching (their own) savings, or insurance?

They already offer savings accounts via multiple partner organisations. Unsure why you have such a fixation on bringing this entirely in house -- the bank still profits from customers using these partnered services.

Since the beginning the company has been pretty transparent and clear in that the idea is to build the best current account and make use of other providers as appropriate.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#155

Post by benj111 »

lol768 wrote: post #154
benj111 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't believe it offers most of those services, overdrafts in the UK are being restricted so be much less profitable [1], I believe one of its sell points is no commission on foreign currency, so no money there. So are they planning on launching (their own) savings, or insurance? [1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48553193

>I don't believe it offers most of those services Incorrect. >overdrafts in the UK are being restricted so be much less profitable Incorrect, the fees are being regulated to ensure they're reasonable and customers are not being taken advantage of. There is still room to make a profit (and as the article says, they are per customer). >I believe one of its sell points is no commission on foreign currency I mentioned co…

"Unsure why you have such a fixation on bringing this entirely in house "

A bank takes in deposits then lends them out, when trying to understand a bank it makes sense to talk about them in those terms, because if it isn't doing those things, it is really a bank.

Monzo are currently charging 50p/day £15.50/m, £186.00pa on a £20 overdraft they seem unlikely to get away with charging the same level apr, which in turn will mean less profit.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#156

Post by collyw »

Jonnax wrote: post #132
collyw wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taking away the option of doing something is positive?

One of my bank accounts didn't let me change my address online. I had to go to the bank and do it. A branchless bank must have an alternative

So what you actually need is the ability to change your address online. Not the ability to go into a physical branch removed.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#157

Post by jon-wood »

Folcon wrote: post #21
randomvectors wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is where they actually bring value right? - Delivering a good banking product outside of the UK. Because as a UK customer I see no reason to switch after trying Monzo for a couple of months. Positives: - a nicer mobile banking app Negatives: - no credit cards and no option to top up using a credit card from another bank - no physical branches Everything else is comparable to most other banks in the UK. Which isn…

I wouldn't undervalue the effect of getting a notification every time your account gets used with additional details and the trivial ability to look back over past transactions whenever you want. I'm constantly surprised by how useful the app is.

That alone has been something that keeps on Monzo. I once had someone try to buy a flight with my card - I immediately got a notification, froze my card to prevent further payments, and had the whole thing resolved within 20 minutes of the first payment. With a conventional account likely the first I’d have known of it was when I tried to make a payment and it was declined, and I’d then have to unpick everything.

I’ll also admit I have on occasions gone through my transaction history the morning after to work out which bar I ended up in.

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#159

Post by rkangel »

rchaud wrote: post #136
nicoburns wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure I agree with this. A huge number of young people I know in the UK have switched to Monzo as their primary bank account. The business model is simple: the same as any other bank. Their competitive advantage is: 1. Having better technical capabilities than traditional banks (they have apps, but they're usually limited and clunky). 2. Not having physical branches, and the associated costs.

The article was very light on details, so I'd appreciate if could you elaborate on the technical capabilities of the app. I get suspicious when I see comments like: > One reason that led Y Combinator to invest, Hariharan said, “was the traction with which they hit 2 million users in the U.K., with engagement metrics that almost look like a social network.” It's a bank app. I can't speak for most people, but I don't o…

Reasons I've opened my Monzo app in the last week:

How much did my London Underground yesterday actually cost.

Send a Monzo request to a friend who said he'd pay for a taxi ride (he also has monzo, so I can just select his name and the amount, and all he has to do is press 'yes' when it pops up).

Check how much of my discretionary budget I had left to decide whether or not to buy a game.

Pay the window cleaner (bank transfer).

Re: Y Combinator invests in Monzo through its Continuity Fund

#160

Post by grey-area »

xioxox wrote: post #96
Liquid_Fire wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For me the killer feature is foreign currency transactions with no fees at the MasterCard exchange rate, both online and abroad. My "traditional" bank charges me a flat fee and a percentage for any transactions in other currencies.

The Halifax Clarity card does this, and they have highstreet branches.

they have highstreet branches

Is that a good thing?

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