Trending in the latest financial tech news, challenger bank Monzo closed a £85 million investment. This has made the fintech valuation to reach a whooping £1 billion. With this, Monzo is now a bonafide member of the U.K. fintech unicorn club, joining recent entrant Revolut.
The bank raised these new funds from venture capital firms General Catalyst and Accel Partners. Monzo is also planning to raise more funds later this year in a crowdfunding round. These funds would allow fans and customers to own a slice of the bank too. Let us explore what more Monzo has to offer with this huge stride.
Fintech Firm Monzo
Monzo – the app-only bank is known for its coral-colored cards and has recently switched its prepaid card system to current accounts. It’s the bank’s pledge to make its money work for everyone that has had investors and customers flocking to it alike. Monzo now also has one million customers and counts for 15 per cent of all new bank accounts opened each month in the UK.
For Monzo’s founder, Tom Blomfield, hitting one million customers was more important than being crowned a unicorn. He went to say, that the company internally was very happy to know that one million people are using the product they created.
This year Monzo started an initiative to make it easier for people without a fixed address to get a bank account. This was started to help someone who is homeless or a recent refugee or immigrant to the UK. The bank has also been congratulated for its gambling block feature which allows customers to self exclude from gambling transactions. This feature particularly helps if it is something they have struggled with in the past.
Further Opportunities for Monzo
Monzo’s new funding will primarily used for increasing headcount to further develop their product line and to cover other operational costs. Since now that the challenger bank has reached “contribution margin positive“. The bank currently employs 450 people but plans to double that to 900 in next 12 months. Representatives at Monzo claim that there is a huge opportunity ahead of them and they need to capturing as much of it as possible is key.
The bank has opened up its fundraising to its passionate community other armchair investors. Monzo’s marketplace is the next focus going forward. Since now that their current account, with the omission of savings accounts and cash deposits, is done. General Catalyst managing director Adam Valkin said: “In the process of making a new bank for the mobile generation, Monzo has become one of the fastest growing consumer financial applications in history”.
With Monzo’s such huge steps, the banking sector is going to look very different. Representative at Monzo claim that the blockbuster moment is yet to come. As they are working towards a day of completely changed scenarios of the banking sector.
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Monzo has been the subject of takeover interest over the years, and according to the chief executive has received multiple offers. Whilst becoming a unicorn and gaining one million customers are major markers for the three-year-old company, it seems Monzo is just getting started.
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