Are you up to speed with fintech?

financial technology, or fintech, start-ups are doing for cash what uber did for taxis and Amazon for shopping. Here’s niki chesworth’s guide…

Here’s a helpful guide

Grow your savings

MonEybox (moneyboxapp.com) works like a virtual piggy bank for your spare change. simply connect a credit card or current account to the app, and every time you make a purchase using your card you can put the change away for a rainy day. so if you spend £2.40 on a coffee, the app will round it up to £3, and 60p is saved on the app. moneybox says its average user squirrels away £440 a year just from these pennies. At the end of each week, your spare change is put into a stocks and shares isA. you can stick the bulk in a low-risk cash fund, but also split it between two other investment funds to get a better potential return (with some risk) by investing in some of the world’s biggest companies. you can only have one isA, but can put your moneybox cash into a Junior isA for each child. fees are £1 a month (free for first three months) and 0.45% of the value of the fund.

nutMEg (nutmeg.com) is good for anyone who wants to start investing rather than seeing their money languishing in a savings account, plus you can save it tax free in an isA. you can start with as little as £500 (£100 per month if saving regularly) and have as many savings pots as you want (up to the £20,000-a-year limit) – such as for a holiday, a new car, a deposit for your children’s first home.

there are five portfolios to choose from to suit your risk level – so stick long-term investments in higher risk funds and short-term savings in the lower risk one. you can also track and move money around within the isA from your smartphone, and withdraw money when you like. fees are

0.75% of the money invested, and the company, which is backed by some big venture capital firms, is fcA regulated. thE atoM (atombank. co.uk) is for the risk averse. you will need a smartphone and, once again, it is easy to set up. if you are worried about fraud or losing your money, the protection is the same as for other banks (up to £85,000 covered by the financial services compensation scheme), and Atom is backed by some large investment firms. However, unlike other banks you get a better return. tie your cash up for one year, and you’ll earn 1.95%; tie it up for two years and that rises to 2.1%. the minimum investment is £50.