Not an unpopular view but an impractical one. Monzo is a bank not a charity or non-profit organization, it needs to generate income to cover staffing costs, introduction of new products, app development, card issuance and distribition, later international expansion, etc.
Unless you know some fairies or a tree that grows money on, I think Monzoās longstanding plan to cover costs thru overdraft provision is a sensible route to take.
Unlike huge mega banks they do not have other sources of funds or old branches to sell off.
Overdraft interest or charges are a certainty.
A credit balance does not prevent you from having a overdraft facility so I really donāt know where you was going with that. Just remember my money (if I had a savings account) would also be used to lead others money.
So in your case you are happy with them using your money to help fund other people, on a short term basis (though itās normally via savings accounts) which I am not sure Monzo will be offering but I digress.
Yes they do take some risk in offering credit but like I said they make money on our money during the nights, which is all very good. To offer no credit interest on credit balances (please note this is not just a Monzo only problem as almost all banks are doing this a standard now) is a bit cheap.
Hmmmmm reads it again So as you put it there are no such things as money trees fine. So you are happy for them to make money off your money and give you no credit (interest) for it. Surely you would want your money to work as hard for you as it possibly can as money does not grow on trees.
Maybe your views are slightly different then mine as you are an investor.
Look businesses should make money so your quip about Monzo not being a charity was a great soundbite but offered absolutely nothing to the conversation, as we joined Monzo fully knowing that anyway.
Monzo does not have bank branches to sell off but that means they are a low cost operation. Which means they have less overheads. So just like you are arguing it one way I can just as successfully argue it the other.
I have thought of a halfway house. Want a overdraft then forgo credit on your credit balances or have slightly less. If not then you should have credit interest as a matter of course.
When Monzo offer you an overdraft they take a risk (& lose some of that money, due to bad debts), while providing you with a valuable service. So you are paying to cover the losses & use the service - but if you donāt want an overdraft, you donāt have to take one.
Theyāre not earning significant amounts of money in other ways - medium / high return investment, mortgages, business loans etc. which the other banks do.
Since the overdrafts, which are their only significant revenue stream, will only cover their costs, it would be risky / foolish to use them to fund interest payments on deposits.
But users who want to earn interest on their in credit balance will be able to transfer & manage it via Monzoās API & marketplace. So theyāll have easy access to a Moneybox ISA or P2P lending service provider.
I know banks offer an overdraft subject to internal credit scoring.
Yes and I also know that itās one of the few ways Monzo plans to make a profit.
I also can counter what you are saying, by saying yes they donāt have to earn loads of money, like the high street banks.They donāt have the high street presence or the staff or the huge insurance bills to insure the above.
So itās really horses for courses.
Am I anti Monzo making money? No of course not. Not offering interest on credit balances is not just a Monzo thing as almost all banks do the same thing.
People are arguing it like itās Monzo one and only revenue stream. Surprise! Itās not. However itās one of the most lucrative depending on what/how they charge but we will see in due course.
I have a feeling the investors would disagree with you.
But either way, it looks like you might have missed this -
Could you break that down for me? Iād be fascinated to hear your insights on these other revenue streams.
Lol you want me to explain Mondoās additional revenue streams? Hmmmm whatever way you look at it thatās not good. Iāll be nice and offer you just 1. Keeping the credit interest for themselves. Maybe thatās too simplistic? Iāll try another one. Are they not thinking of charging for faster delivery for lost of stolen cards? If I have to tell you all of the above then like I said above thatās not good, as I thought you would be on top of things like this. I guess not.
Like I said at the end of my last post itās potentially the most lucrative charge.
It costs Monzo about Ā£50 per year to provide you with a current account. The costs come from producing the plastic debit card, posting it out to you, making a card transaction, providing customer support 24/7. Thatās before the salaries of programmers, designers, office rent, etc etc.
If you have an average balance in your account of Ā£2000, Monzo would earn Ā£5 a year from that money by sticking it in the Bank of England (at 0.25% base rate). So unless you have huge amounts of deposits (ie Ā£20k per person) sitting in your current account, we need to find an additional Ā£45 per customer just to break even (not even make any profit).
The average high-street bank earns about Ā£120 per account per year, and about half of that comes from hidden fees and charges. Things like penalty fees for rejecting unpaid direct debits, and unauthorised overdraft fees. We donāt have any of those fees.
We could offer interest-free overdrafts, but then costs would need to be covered some other way. Maybe a Ā£5-10 monthly fee. But I suspect most people wouldnāt want that.
Hi Tom, nice to have you on here. How much roughly does a bank earn by playing the money markets in the nights with our money? That might go a little bit to reduce that Ā£45.00 I guess?
Not many people know about the market markets as itās not so much a secret but itās on a need to know basis.
Banks need to post and produce debit cards once for what every 2 years on average. (lost and stolen cards) as they are normally valid for 4 years or there abouts.
Iām not an investor but I do know enough about Monzo to know that they wonāt be investing in the āmoney marketsā - see the link in my first post in this thread.
Iāve amended the above.
lol " Itās only fair that if you donāt pay us we donāt pay you. " - guess you wonāt be getting a 2nd overdraft from Monzo then
Why would I need a 2nd overdraft? 1 is enough.
but you wonāt be paying for it because its not fair that they charge you for the facility - so why should they give you another one after the first default
Canāt seem to find it.
What? If there is no fees then there are no charges which means as long as you donāt go over (and even if you did no charges would be applied anyway.) Hmmmm the perfect bank! Lol it would not last long but you know.
Actually most banks donāt or it takes a long time before they would even think about entertaining you regarding credit.
Itās explained here https://monzo.com/ethics/
Ta. Iāll have a look. Bit of a grey area as it does not say that it does or it doesnāt.
How is it grey? It explicitly states that the only places money will go is into unsecured overdrafts and the Bank of England.
If Monzo were to violate that statement, the FCA & PRA would impose severe sanctions upon them.