Banking has come a long way since the days of having to make weekly visits to the local branch and waiting in long queues to deposit and withdraw cash. Internet banking, which has been common in the UK for over 10 years and originally focussed on taking the burden off of client facing roles to reduce overheads, provides consumers with a simple way to keep track of their money, make payments and access statements 24/7, 365 days a year.

Innovation has continued in recent years especially with the rise of mobile but one demographic that remains enormously underserved by the banks is small businesses owners and, more specifically, micro-businesses, which employ 0–9 people. The 2016 UK Parliament Business Statistics paper reported that out of 5.5 million businesses in the UK, 5.3 million (96%) were micro-businesses. Micro-businesses also account for 32% of employment and 19% of UK turnover.

Small transaction amounts and low volumes mean micro-businesses have failed to attract the attention they need from traditional banking players which prefer to focus on the consumer market and large business. A quick Google search of reviews on any traditional small business banking provider will show that account opening is one of the most inconvenient and frustrating aspects of banking for this type of client. It either requires making an in-branch visit, after which official account opening an take up to two weeks to get confirmed or, if the process can be done online, will often entail answering a plethora of unnecessary questions which make the customer wish they had gone in to their local branch.

Increasing banking regulations, which cover process such as KYB (Know Your Business) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering), are another reason why banks are reluctant to focus their efforts on small business. This is because it requires as much due diligence as when on boarding larger companies but without the same return on investment.

The good news for entrepreneurs facing this problem is that measures have been underway since 2015 by the UK government, through the “Open Banking Standard”, to allow FinTech companies to make use of data, on behalf of customers, in a variety of innovative ways with the objective of making banking more efficient, improving competition and stimulating the economy.

Monaize is a European FinTech start-up, which provides the first 100% mobile current account for small businesses. Using the latest technology, Monaize has taken what would normally be a complex process and made it simple: allowing small businesses owners to open an account in around 5 minutes from the comfort of their own home. As part of the account creation process, the business owner’s ID and proof of address documents are photographed and processed in real-time along with company registration information. Account opening is confirmed immediately, along with a sort code and account number, and a Monaize Business Mastercard is dispatched in under five working days.

With plans to launch in the UK in the fourth quarter, many small business owners, who often spend up to 30% of their time taking care of financial and administrative related tasks, will agree this is a game-changer and is just an example of how smart initiatives like the Open Banking Standard, along with the latest mobile technology, can be leveraged in order to make the lives of small business owners easier.

For more information, please visit: www.monaize.com