If you press reply but your post is directly below, it doesn’t mark it as a reply. Which isn’t helpful at all.
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you can actually change payee names, for one…
Literally the only reason I am leaving monzo after 2 years
I’m sick of waiting years for something so basic
I miss the days when Monzo were responsive to feedback, but I understand that it’s been a few years now so they can’t throw money at it anymore.
Monzo have stagnated - major banks are now catching up with them, their big features are now standard in the banking app industry
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Generally I think a lot of detractors here just don’t have very good investment strategies. If you are trying to make money investing in products based on your personal opinions on how good the product is, that’s just poor investing.
With Monzo, you have a rare opportunity to invest at the same price the large VC firms are investing out. They will already have done a huge amount of due diligence and closely examined the performance numbers, which are what really matters when investing. We can (and will!) do our own backseat estimations but we don’t really have the same access to information they do.
If you have money to invest in start-up’s, following the VC firms is going to be your best bet. Generally, I think, just don’t confuse financial investing with product evaluation, if al you’ve got to go on is ‘do I like this product’ you probably shouldn’t be putting your money towards it.
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Finally some sense. “I personally don’t like this product so therefore logically it won’t be a success” - No!
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If Monzo was a public company, or had any hope of an IPO, perhaps. Until they do, whilst they haemorrhage cash they’re not a sound investment. I’d hesitate to even call it an investment as you are unlikely to ever see your money again. The shares are very illiquid and they may become worthless while you wait to sell.
If Monzo’s annual report had said “hey, we’re massively profitable and we no longer need to rely on VC funding”, then it would still be a risk that their eventual IPO might do a WeWork. As it happens, the report cast doubts about its ability to continue. As red flags go, they don’t get much more red than that.
The difference between many of us and the large VC firms is that ultimately, they can afford to throw a pile of cash into a metaphorical active volcano. It’s very much a fun-money scenario using funds you’re not relying on, but if you’re not convinced by the product being offered, why would you invest in it?
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To be fair, the auditors are under an obligation to make this statement. Think of it of more a regulatory requirement. But yes, the optics are not ideal.
I’d consider a top up investment at the current valuation, and the lates follow on should be seen as positive.
Thing is, it’s easy to be a Monzo bear when respectfully, not so many people understand the dynamics of VC, valuations and financial services as an investable sector. That’s not an attack, but it is a reality. Monzo and Starling are playing in a different league now they’re fully UK regulated banks.
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If you can’t afford to lose the money you 100% shouldn’t invest.
This is the very nature of it. An amount you invest in startups should be something you aren’t relying on coming back and it should be spread between as many companies as possible.
If the report said they were ‘massively profitable’ the valuation would be a lot higher. The price rises and lowers to reflect risk, so no, it being ‘massively profitable’ wouldn’t make it any more attractive an investment, it would make it a lower risk, lower potential return investment.
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I’m on the fence, because I agree with this quote, although I still think it’s the best current account for my needs. The app is awesome. I am disappointed by Premium though - I was looking forward to it, but its over-priced, seemingly because of an unnecessary metal card. Covid obviously came just at the wrong time (not that there’s a great time…), but hopefully they’ll get through it and begin to grow again before they run out of money.
Even though Plus is doing very well and has exceeded expectations, because you personally don’t like it you wouldn’t invest?
Is that wise for an investor ? 
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There’s someone up there who singled out this forum as a reason not to invest. Wild.
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I said I was on the fence, and I also said Premium 
The point is that this was the big delivery in 2020, and I can’t see anything further in the pipeline. Even the forum has gone very quiet - most of the chat seems to be either other topics, bug reports or other issues. If I was looking to increase revenues, especially at a time of lower card use, I would try and get a lot more than 1% of customers onto either Plus or Premium, or be adding more lucrative products like credit cards and mortgages. I’m still a huge supporter of Monzo and recommend them all the time. I’m very glad I invested, but if they are to continue to grow at the same rate as they were, they’ll need to keep innovating. Now that a lot of talent has left, they need to prove that they’ve still got it - I hope they have. My concern is that investors may see another dilution or downround before things get better. The question was whether to invest now. I think my existing shares (bought at lower prices) are probably a safer bet if the raise was tomorrow. If things recover and there’s a raise in 2022, there’s all to play for.
I’d say yes. Why would you invest in something you had no experience of? If the product disappoints you, chances are you are not the only one with that opinion. If you see trouble ahead, coupled with the worrying fundamentals from the annual report, you might as well take your money to a casino and roll the dice.
Investing in a company that doesn’t excite you, that is burning through its cash reserves is not “investing”, but gambling. The difference here is that in a casino you can cash out your chips when you’ve had enough.
Right now existing Monzo investors are caught between IPO and insolvency. The question is whether Monzo are closer to one than the other. It’s not something I’d want to leave to chance with my money whilst there are still profitable companies out there to invest in, with shares that are liquid.
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Investing in start ups is not gambling.
It’s at the riskiest end of the investing spectrum and the results may look like gambling to you (i.e. low odds of ‘winning’ (exiting) a ‘jackpot’ (unicorn)) but if your investment process looks like gambling too (i.e. rolling a dice, throwing money at the wall and seeing what sticks) - you’re doing it wrong.
There are a whole host of criteria/filters/investment rationale you should be thinking through. Clearly the end result is a good part luck/chance but also comes down to the management executing a sound strategy.
Attributing a potential IPO simply to ‘chance’ is frankly ridiculous and rather insulting to any management team who is good enough to take a start up through from VC funding to IPO.
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And that’s why the shares are selling at a big discount right now. There’s always going to be a price where it’s worth buying at. The only real question is whether the valuation is reasonable given the risks.
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Yeah because the facts and figures tell me otherwise.
I don’t like peanut butter and have no experience in it but if it was profitable and I had the chance to invest I absolutely would.
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I didn’t say investing in start-ups was gambling. I said that investing in a company that you had no experience of was. If there is a company out there where you really love what they do and believe they have something that changes the world for the better, great. You still may not see your money again, but it’s not because their offering wasn’t good or that the fundamentals were poor.
Given where Monzo is right now, we know quite a lot about the company already, mostly from recent press coverage about its losses, its staff cuts and its annual report. We also know that they are competing with a similar bank that is already approaching profitability; has weathered the pandemic far better and isn’t reliant on subscriptions.
Throwing more money in with the hope of a sudden turnaround is a gamble. It’s a bit like trying to land on black when 95% of the wheel is red.
I think that is where we differ. I’d want to understand the market that any company I invested was in, as well as the balance sheet.
If I was going to invest in a peanut butter-producing company I’d need to know that their product was good, that it had a strong position in the market and that the supply of peanuts was sustainable.
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We know that Plus is doing good. Monzo told us the uptake rate and percentage of customers who have subscribed. We also know it’s sustainable because it’s easily expanded and Monzo have also told us they’re going to do this as well. You can also verify most of this yourself too.
Everything else you’ve said is just hearsay, dramatised “news articles” and your emotions getting in the way.
For the record I personally don’t like Premium/Plus either but it seems well received.
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These types of investments should always be treated as risky and subject to write-off.
Having said that - I’m pretty stunned how quickly Monzo went from a company I thought was going somewhere to an also-ran.
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Possibly a little harsh but I’ve been critical at times of how things have been this year. I do like the bank and have kept my account, and I did invest previously in it. However I’m waiting for the next financial report to see whether to return to using it as my main bank.
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