Beyond the Big Banks
THREE FINTECH APPS YOU NEED RIGHT NOW
Over the past few weeks, employees from all five of Canada’s big banks have broken their silence on pressures they face to meet sales targets at the expense of customer experience.
In nearly 1,000 emails,and anonymous interviews, employees from RBC, BMO, CIBC, TD and Scotiabank have come forward with their stories of feeling pressured to upsell, trick and lie to customers to meet unrealistic sales targets and ultimately keep their jobs.
In addition, according to Statistics Canada Canadians are paying an average of $216 annually in bank service fees*, many which are hidden in the form of overdraft fees, monthly account fees, email transfer fees, etc.
Consumers, largely led by tech-savvy millennials, are demanding a better experience and are turning to fintech companies for alternatives to traditional banking methods. These three fintech innovators are working to change the industry and meet that demand.
1. WealthSimple
WealthSimple is an online investment tool that’s disrupting the investment industry by combining user-friendly digital tools and personal financial advice at a price lower than the incumbents, including the big banks.
Unlike the banks, there’s no minimum account size and their fees are low, making them more accessible and available to a wide range of consumers.
They’ve also relaunched their registered education savings plans (RESPs) so new and existing clients can now open and fund an RESP online through Wealth-simple’s mobile or web app, and have the money invested in a smart, low-cost portfolio — removing many of the frustrations Canadians have around RESP accounts.
2. Transferwise
Transferwise is a peerto-peer money transfer app aimed at consumers making international money transfers. Sending money internationally in a foreign currency is often heavily marked up by banks, which means paying large, hidden fees. In Canada, immigrants make up 20 per cent of the population, and as much as $30 billion is remitted from Canada to developing countries every year. The big banks are charging an average of five per cent on these transactions, adding up to annual profits of $200 billion alone globally.
By offering an app-based solution to this group that allows them to drop the key barrier to foreign exchange, Transferwise is saving its users 90 per cent on transfer fees in the process.
3. Mogo
Mogo is taking a multiproduct approach to encourage financially responsible behaviours. Users can sign up for an account on the web or mobile app in under three minutes and get instant access to three innovative products: Canada’s only free credit score with free monthly credit score monitoring; a digital spending account, accessible through a Mogo Platinum Prepaid Visa Card; an instant pre-approval on a personal loan — all with no impact to their credit score, and their newly launched digital mortgage experience, MogoMortgages.
With Canadians taking on record levels of debt and seeking banking alternatives that offer better products and digital solutions, Mogo is addressing consumer demands for a digital transformation in Canada’s financial sector through its simple and convenient digital banking platform which ties products together to improve consumers’ financial health.
Mogo gamifies your finances, with features like a monthly credit score update that shows you how many points you’ve increased month-over-month, and a Level Up program on loans that rewards on-time payments with lower rates and higher credit amounts.
The MogoApp is available for iOS and was just released for Android. Visit mogo.ca for more information.
Mogo is addressing consumer demands for a digital transformation in Canada’s financial sector