Challenger bank Monzo applying agile development techniques to business banking product
Monzo is applying agile development techniques to the creation of its first business banking account, after a survey of customers revealed this is what they want next.
Monzo, a mobile only challenger bank which received its banking licence in April 2017, has amassed a customer base of about a million consumers so far. It now wants to expand into business banking.
One of the advantages that challenger banks have is they are used to experimenting with new ideas. Agile approaches to software development with constant updates and tests are being applied to the banking services they offer businesses.
Like challenger banks have created personalised banking experiences for consumers Monzo wants to do the same for business banking.
Monzo said the small test is to help it ascertain how account features and its internal processes need to change before we can launch more broadly. “We will work closely with our initial users to understand what problems we can actually solve, what works well, and what doesn’t work so well.”
The decision to test a business banking account followed customer engagement. Monzo said when it asked customers what else they wanted from Monzo business banking was top of the list.
“Over the past few weeks, we’ve spent lots of time talking to small business owners, reading your comments on the community forum, and understanding what you expect from a business account,” said Monzo. “Your feedback made it clear that business banking is broken. Your existing business account isn’t meeting your needs.”
Monzo said feedback has found that opening a business account is too difficult for many small businesses, as is understanding the different fees customers have to pay.
Monzo wants to make accounts more personalised for businesses. “Your business isn’t only defined by your turnover or your headcount. What you need from a bank account depends on where you are, and where you’re heading,” said Monzo.
“We won’t lump you in a big bucket labelled small or medium-sized alongside businesses you’ve got nothing in common with. We want to offer you a set of features that solve the problems you’ve actually got, helping you to achieve your goals.
Monzo will Beta test business accounts with 100 small business customers and has opened a waiting list for businesses that are interested in one of its business banking accounts.
But Monzo said it wants to become more than just a business bank account with features to help businesses with their finances. “In the future, we want to become the financial hub for your business.”
“We want to take away the hassle of financial management and empower you with information to better understand your business, manage your cash flow, and make better decisions.”