Monzo

Monzo Bank was founded as Mondo in 2015 by Tom Blomfield,{{Cite news |last=Burn-Callander |first=Rebecca |title=Banking industry primed for a pocket-sized revolution |publisher=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/03/26/banking-industry-primed-for-a-pocket-sized-revolution/}}{{Cite news |last=Baker |first=Stephanie |date=18 August 2015 |title=A Bank for People Who Hate Banks |website=Bloomberg |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-18/mondo-s-ceo-wants-to-build-a-bank-for-people-who-hate-banks}}{{Cite web |last=Carey |first=Scott |title=The UK's new breed of digital challenger banks: Atom, Mondo, Starling and Tandem - Ranked |url=http://www.techworld.com/startups/ranked-uks-new-breed-of-digital-only-challenger-banks-3635411/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409025921/http://www.techworld.com/startups/ranked-uks-new-breed-of-digital-only-challenger-banks-3635411/ |archive-date=9 April 2016 |access-date=10 April 2016 |website=Techworld}}{{Cite news |last=Treanor |first=Jill |date=29 June 2015 |title=Digital banking: Mondo hopes to become the Google or Facebook of the sector |website=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/jun/29/digital-banking-mondo-hopes-to-become-the-google-or-facebook-of-the-sector}} Jonas Huckestein, Jason Bates, Paul Rippon and Gary Dolman.{{Cite web |date=24 May 2015 |title=GoCardless Founder Tom Blomfield's New Startup Is A "Full Stack" Mobile-First Bank |url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/05/24/mondo/ |publisher=TechCrunch}} The team originally met whilst working at Starling Bank. In February 2016, Monzo set the record for "quickest crowd-funding campaign in history" when it raised £1 million in 96 seconds via the Crowdcube investment platform.{{Cite web |last=Dawson |first=Freddie |title=App Bank Mondo Crowdfunds £1M In 96 Seconds |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/freddiedawson/2016/03/04/app-bank-mondo-crowdfunds-1m-in-96-seconds/#4dce0073f4c6 |website=Forbes}}{{Cite web |last=Williams-Grut |first=Oscar |title=App-only bank Mondo is valued at £30 million in an oversubscribed £6 million fundraise |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/mondo-bank-valued-at-30-million-in-6-million-fundraise-2016-2 |website=Business Insider}}{{Cite news |last=Turvill |first=William |title=Mobile challenger bank Mondo reaches £1m crowdfunding target in 96 seconds, adding to £7m venture capital investment |publisher=City AM |url=http://www.cityam.com/235956/mobile-challenger-bank-mondo-reaches-1m-crowdfunding-target-in-96-seconds-adding-to-7m-venture-capital-investment}}

On 15 May 2016, Monzo was named the 59th top startup in Startups.co.uk's annual Startups 100 ranking.{{Cite web |title=59. Monzo |date=15 May 2016 |url=https://startups.co.uk/startups-100/2016/59-mondo/ |publisher=Startups.co.uk}}

On 13 June 2016, a company blog post announced that the "Mondo" trademark had been legally challenged by an undisclosed company with a similar name.{{Cite web |title=Goodbye Mondo, Hello M... |date=13 June 2016 |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2016/06/13/new-mondo-changing-our-name/ |publisher=Monzo}}{{Cite web |title=Startup bank Mondo is letting customers change its name |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/mondo-name-change-trademark-users-chose-banky-mcbankface-2016-6 |publisher=Business Insider}} As a result, a naming suggestion contest was organised and the new name, "Monzo", was registered at Companies House under the legal name "Monzo Bank Ltd" in August 2016.{{Cite web |title=Mondo is now Monzo! |date=25 August 2016 |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2016/08/25/monzo/ |publisher=Monzo}}

On 16 May 2017, Monzo announced that over £250 million had been spent through its prepaid card, between 200,000 customers.{{Cite web |title=200,000 Customers and £250,000,000 Spent! |date=16 May 2017 |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2017/05/16/200k-250m/ |publisher=Monzo}}

In April 2017, Monzo was granted its full banking licence by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority, having previously operated under a restricted banking licence.{{Cite web |date=2017-04-05 |title=London startup Monzo has been granted its full banking license |url=https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/london-startup-monzo-granted-full-173017113.html |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=Yahoo Finance |language=en-GB}} The full licence allowed Monzo to provide its customers with current accounts, who up until that point were only able to be offered pre-paid debit cards.{{Cite web |date=2018-04-04 |title=Monzo sees 94% of active users upgrade to current accounts |url=https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/31905/monzo-sees-94-of-active-users-upgrade-to-current-accounts |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=Finextra Research |language=en}}

Monzo's full current account was launched in October 2017, with its pre-paid card users being asked to move to its new current account. By April 2018, it was reported to have 500,000 current account customers.

In October 2018, Monzo reached one million customers, and was also named the best tech startup to work for by LinkedIn UK.{{Cite web |date=30 October 2018 |title=London gets another fintech unicorn as Monzo reaches £1 billion |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/tech/monzo-challenger-bank-unicorn-tom-blomfield-a3976146.html |access-date=14 June 2019 |website=Evening Standard |language=en}}{{Cite news |title=LinkedIn announces top 25 start-ups to work for in the UK |language=en-GB |work=Evening Standard |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/tech/top-25-uk-startups-linkedin-monzo-a3949731.html |access-date=16 July 2019}} Later that month, Monzo became a pound “unicorn,” with an £85 million fundraising round valuing the company at £1 billion.

In August 2019, the company announced that it had inadvertently logged 480,000 customer personal identification numbers, making them accessible to Monzo's internal team of engineers. The issue arose because PINs were transmitted in the query string of a HTTPS request.{{Cite magazine |last=Stokel-Walker |first=Chris |date=6 August 2019 |title=Monzo's PIN security breach, explained |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/monzo-pin-security-breach-explained |magazine=Wired UK |issn=1357-0978 |access-date=9 August 2019}}{{Cite web |last=Cimpanu |first=Catalin |title=Monzo admits to storing payment card PINs in internal logs |url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/monzo-admits-to-storing-payment-card-pins-in-internal-logs/ |access-date=9 August 2019 |website=ZDNet |language=en}} That month the company also launched its loan products for customers.{{Cite web |last=Tesfaye |first=Mekebeb |title=Monzo has officially launched loans for its 2.6 million customers |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/monzo-introduces-loans-to-threaten-incumbent-peers-2019-8 |access-date=27 April 2020 |website=Business Insider}}

In March 2020, Monzo announced the creation of two business bank accounts for sole traders and small-to-medium sized businesses.{{Cite magazine |title=Monzo's next big move is taking on broken business banking |language=en-GB |magazine=Wired UK |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/monzo-business-account |access-date=2023-06-01 |issn=1357-0978}} This was followed by Monzo's first loan products for its personal current account customers in April 2020.{{Cite news |last=Megaw |first=Nicholas |date=2019-08-15 |title=Monzo starts offering loans to current account customers |work=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/f3b5f8a8-bf3c-11e9-b350-db00d509634e |access-date=2023-06-01}}

In May 2020, Blomfield announced that he was moving from CEO to president of the company and TS Anil would become the company's CEO.{{Cite web |last=O'Hear |first=Steve |date=2020-05-20 |title=Monzo co-founder Tom Blomfield moves from UK CEO role to president |url=https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/20/monzo-co-founder-tom-blomfield-moves-from-uk-ceo-role-to-president/ |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Ts Anil, Monzo Bank Limited: Profile and Biography |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/21388341 |access-date=2024-03-30 |website=Bloomberg.com |language=en}} He left the company in January 2021, citing personal pressures heightened by the coronavirus pandemic among other reasons.{{Cite web |title=Tom Blomfield departs Monzo |url=https://www.altfi.com/article/7481_tom-blomfield-departs-monzo |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=AltFi |date=21 January 2021 |language=en}}

In March 2023, the company announced that it had become profitable for the first time.{{Cite web |last=Browne |first=Ryan |date=2023-05-31 |title=British digital bank Monzo hits monthly profitability for the first time after spike in lending |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/31/british-digital-bank-monzo-hits-profitability-for-first-time.html |access-date=2023-06-04 |website=CNBC |language=en}} The following year, Monzo was named to the 2024 CNBC Disruptor 50 list.{{cite web |website=CNBC

|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/14/monzo-cnbc-disruptor-50.html

|title= 16. Monzo

|date=May 14, 2024

|access-date=October 11, 2024

}}

Monzo reported its first annual profit of £15.4 million for the year ending March 2024, compared to a £116.3 million loss the previous year. The company also announced to open an office in Ireland to expand into Europe. Revenue more than doubled to £514.4 million due to increased lending and savings products, though provisions for loan defaults nearly doubled to £204 million.{{cite news|last=Withers |first=Iain |title=UK's Monzo reports first annual profit, targets European expansion |date=3 June 2024 |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/uks-monzo-reports-first-annual-profit-targets-european-expansion-2024-06-03/ |access-date=10 June 2024}}

Monzo announced on 13 June 2019 that it would begin offering services in the United States. The company said that it would distribute about 2,000 debit cards to prospective members who attended events it held in major U.S. cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City.{{Cite web |last=Fuscaldo |first=Donna |title=U.K. Digital-Only Bank Monzo Comes To The U.S. |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/donnafuscaldo/2019/06/13/uk-digital-only-bank-monzo-comes-to-the-u-s/ |access-date=11 July 2019 |website=Forbes |language=en}}

In February 2021, Monzo announced Carol Nelson as the new US CEO, taking over from TS Anil who became Monzo's global CEO after temporarily holding both titles.{{Cite web |last=Daniel |first=Ellen |date=2021-02-12 |title=Challenger bank Monzo appoints Carol Nelson as US CEO |url=https://www.verdict.co.uk/monzo-us-ceo/ |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=Verdict |language=en-US}}

After it was told by US regulators it was unlikely to be approved for a banking licence, Monzo announced that it had withdrawn its banking licence application in October 2021.{{Cite news |last1=Megaw |first1=Nicholas |last2=Morris |first2=Stephen |date=2021-10-04 |title=Monzo withdraws US banking licence application |work=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/8ea6d977-c2fc-47a8-9d93-1ec02eb4f9a9 |access-date=2023-06-01}} Shortly after, Carol Nelson stepped down as US CEO.{{Cite web |last=O'Brien |first=Amy |date=February 9, 2023 |title='The time is now': Monzo searches for US CEO to double down on expansion |url=https://sifted.eu/articles/monzo-hiring-us-ceo-expansion-news |website=Sifted.eu}}

Monzo US exited beta and was fully launched on 1 February 2022.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Moves from Beta to Public Launch in the US! |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2022/02/01/monzo-us-blog-monzo-moves-from-beta-to-public-launch-in-the-us |access-date=2023-01-12 |website=Monzo |date=February 2022 |language=en-US}} Without a US banking license, Monzo operates in the US market through a partnership with Ohio-based Sutton Bank.{{Cite web |last=Muhn (@julieschicktanz) |first=Julie |date=2022-02-02 |title=Monzo Officially Launches in the U.S. |url=https://finovate.com/monzo-officially-launches-in-the-u-s/ |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=Finovate |language=en-US}}

In February 2016, Monzo set the record for "quickest crowd-funding campaign in history" when it raised £1 million in 96 seconds via the Crowdcube investment platform.

In October 2016, Monzo announced an 'interim' funding round valuing the company at £50M and raised £4.8M in the process, led by Passion Capital.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Raises 4.8M in Interim Funding Round led by Passion Capital |date=21 October 2016 |url=https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2016/10/91459-crowdcube-alum-monzo-secures-4-8m-interim-funding-round-led-passion-capital/ |publisher=Crowdfund Insider}} This round was followed by a second £2.5 million Crowdcube crowd-funding campaign with the total pledged quickly hitting the target amount.{{Cite web |title=App-only bank Monzo's crowdfunding is almost three times oversubscribed after less than 24 hours |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/monzo-crowdfunding-oversubscribed-crowdcube-24-hours-2017-3 |publisher=Business Insider}}

In February 2017, Monzo raised £19.5 million from Thrive Capital, Passion Capital, and Orange Digital Ventures, which it intended to supplement with a crowdfunding campaign for an additional £2.5 million.{{Cite web |date=23 February 2017 |title=Confirmed: UK challenger bank Monzo raises £19.5M with another £2.5M in crowdfunding planned |url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/02/22/confirmed-uk-challenger-bank-monzo-raises-19-5m-with-another-2-5m-in-crowdfunding-planned/ |access-date=14 June 2019 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}

On 6 November 2017, Monzo raised £71 million from several investors in a round led by Goodwater Capital. At the close of the round, Monzo was valued at £280 million.{{Cite web |date=7 November 2017 |title=Challenger bank Monzo raises another £71M from Goodwater Capital, Stripe and Michael Moritz |url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/06/monzo-moolah/ |access-date=14 June 2019 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}

On 30 October 2018, Monzo became a pound “unicorn,” with an £85 million fundraising round valuing the company at £1 billion.

On 5 December 2018, Monzo held another £20 million Crowdcube crowdfunding campaign, reaching nearly £18 million in funding in less than three hours, and reaching the £20 million goal in just over two days.{{Cite web |title=The story of Monzo |url=https://www.crowdcube.com/explore/raising/success-stories/monzo |access-date=2020-10-20 |website=Crowdcube |language=en-gb}}

On 24 June 2019, Monzo raised £113 million in a Series F funding round led by Y Combinator's Continuity fund. This round gave Monzo a valuation of £2 billion.{{Cite web |date=24 June 2019 |title=Monzo, the UK challenger bank, raises £113M Series F led by YC's Continuity fund at a £2B post-money valuation |url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/06/24/monzo-series-f/ |access-date=16 July 2019 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last=Cook |first=James |date=25 June 2019 |title=Monzo's valuation hits £2bn as the digital bank raises £113m in fresh funding |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2019/06/24/monzos-valuation-hits-2bn-digital-bank-raises-113m-fresh-funding/ |access-date=16 July 2019 |issn=0307-1235}}

In June 2020, Monzo closed a £60 million 'down round', which saw its valuation fall by 40% to £1.24 billion.{{Cite web |last=O'Hear |first=Steve |date=2020-06-16 |title=Monzo confirms £60M down round, with a new pre-money valuation of £1.24B |url=https://techcrunch.com/2020/06/16/monzo-confirms-60m-down-round/ |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}} In December 2020, Monzo closed another £60 million funding, including from investors such as for Novator, Kaiser and TED Global.{{Cite web |title=Monzo quietly adds £60m to its last funding round |url=https://www.altfi.com/article/7330_monzo-quietly-adds-60m-to-its-last-funding-round |access-date=2023-06-01 |website=AltFi |date=2 December 2020 |language=en}}

In December 2021, Monzo closed a $600M funding round at a valuation of $4.5bn, led by the Abu Dhabi Growth Fund.

In April 2024, Monzo secured its position as one of the largest ever fundraisings for a UK tech company as it expanded fundraising to £500m in a round involving prominent investors like Hedosophia and GIC. Monzo achieved profitability and a valuation exceeding £4bn.{{cite news|last=Kleinman |first=Mark |title=Digital bank Monzo expands fundraising to £500m in deal with top tech investor |date=29 April 2024 |url=https://news.sky.com/story/digital-bank-monzo-expands-fundraising-to-500m-in-deal-with-top-tech-investor-13124845 |website=Sky News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240429060819/https://news.sky.com/story/digital-bank-monzo-expands-fundraising-to-500m-in-deal-with-top-tech-investor-13124845 |archive-date=29 April 2024 |access-date=5 May 2024}}

Similar to other UK digital banks, Monzo offers current accounts, savings accounts, and lending products for personal and business customers.

On 25 June 2018, Monzo announced their team up with Wise to provide international money transfers from within their Monzo app.{{Citation |title=Send money abroad with Monzo and TransferWise! |date=25 June 2018 |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2018/06/25/monzo-international-transfers/}}

On 28 January 2019, Monzo announced a partnership with Flux to add itemised receipts and loyalty points.{{Cite web |last=O'Hear |first=Steve |date=28 January 2019 |title=Monzo teams up with Flux to add itemised receipts and loyalty points |url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/28/monzo-teams-up-with-flux-to-add-itemised-receipts-and-loyalty-points/?guccounter=1 |access-date=29 January 2019 |website=Techcrunch }} In addition to this, the API to create receipts was published by Monzo.{{Citation |title=A simple Monzo third party API client for demonstrating the new Receipts API. : monzo/reference-receipts-app |date=3 February 2019 |url=https://github.com/monzo/reference-receipts-app |access-date=3 February 2019 |publisher=Monzo}}

In September 2021, Monzo launched Flex, a buy-now-pay-later product.{{Cite web |title=Introducing Monzo Flex – a better way to pay later |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2021/09/16/monzo-flex |access-date=2023-01-12 |website=Monzo |date=15 September 2021 |language=en-GB}} Later in the year, they announced a virtual credit card that can be used to make Flex transactions directly.{{Cite web |title=Using Monzo Flex - a better way to pay later |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2021/11/23/monzo-flex-ways-to-pay-later |access-date=2023-01-12 |website=Monzo |date=23 November 2021 |language=en-GB}} Since 2023, physical Monzo Flex cards have been available to be ordered through the Monzo app.{{Cite web |date=2023-02-17 |title=Wiki: Monzo releases 2023 |url=https://community.monzo.com/t/wiki-monzo-releases-2023/144372 |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=Monzo Community |language=en-GB}} As of 2024, Monzo Flex is marketed as a credit card.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Flex - The award winning credit card from Monzo |url=https://monzo.com/flex/ |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=Monzo |language=en-GB}}

In July 2020, Monzo introduced Monzo Plus,{{Cite web |title=Monzo's relaunches its Plus premium offering with Open Banking integrations |url=https://www.altfi.com/article/6820_monzos-relaunches-its-plus-premium-offering-with-open-banking-integrations |access-date=2020-11-09 |website=AltFi |date=16 July 2020 |language=en}} a paid subscription service that attracted 50,000 sign-ups in its first month.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Plus garners 50,000 users one month after launch |url=https://www.altfi.com/article/6945_monzo-plus-garners-50000-users-one-month-after-launch |access-date=2020-11-09 |website=AltFi |date=18 August 2020 |language=en}} In 2021, Monzo launched Monzo Premium. On 23 April 2024, Monzo discontinued the Plus and Premium plans, with users no longer able to subscribe to these services, however, current subscribers are able to keep their subscriptions.{{Cite web |date=2024-04-23 |title=Introducing Plans {{!}} Make Monzo More You |url=https://monzo.com/blog/make-monzo-more-you |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=Monzo |language=en-GB}}

In April 2024, with the discontinuation of Monzo Plus and Monzo Premium, Monzo announced three new subscription services, Monzo Extra, Monzo Perks and Monzo Max. With Monzo Perks and Monzo Max replacing Monzo Plus and Monzo Premium, users are able to upgrade their subscriptions to one of the new plans, or keep their current subscription.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Plans {{!}} Our Take on Packaged Bank Accounts |url=https://monzo.com/current-account/plans/ |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=Monzo |language=en-GB}} Unlike Monzo Premium, Monzo Max will not offer a metal debit card.

In July 2024, Monzo announced they plan to introduce Monzo Pensions. The feature will allow customers to combine their current pension schemes, both workplace and personal, in the app, as well as open a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) with Monzo. The features will be available to all Monzo customers.{{Cite web |title=Monzo Pension |url=https://monzo.com/pensions |access-date=2024-07-26 |website=Monzo |language=en-GB}}

Monzo became the first UK digital bank to launch contents insurance in 2025.{{cite web | url=https://www.standard.co.uk/business/money/monzo-muscles-in-on-home-insurance-market-to-target-underprotected-renters-b1219940.html | title=Monzo muscles in on home insurance market to target underprotected renters | date=31 March 2025 }} Research showed 50% of UK renters lack contents insurance, with average belongings worth £12,140.{{cite web | url=https://ffnews.com/newsarticle/monzo-reveals-half-of-renters-are-unprotected-as-it-launches-contents-insurance/ | title=Monzo Reveals Half of Renters Are Unprotected as It Launches Contents Insurance | date=April 2025 }}

The product features:

• Coverage for damage and theft inside and outside the home
• Simple 5-question application process
• No-fee policy changes or cancellations
• Optional coverage for high-value itemshttps://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/monzo-muscles-in-on-home-insurance-market-to-target-underprotected-renters/ar-AA1C1ZZl

Monzo aims to create an "all-in-one app experience" for financial services.

File:Monzo Card CA.png

Monzo initially issued (with partner company Wirecard{{Cite web |title=Mondo selects Wirecard as their prepaid card issuer |url=https://www.wirecard.com/newsroom/press-releases/newsdetail/mondo-selects-wirecard-as-their-prepaid-card-issuer/ |publisher=Wirecard}}) a variety of alpha, beta and investor cards to its customers who wanted to be early adopters.{{Cite web |title=What it's like to use a Mondo card and account |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/56000-people-are-waiting-to-use-this-british-banking-startups-credit-card-heres-what-its-like-to-use-it-2015-12 |publisher=Business Insider}} These were prepaid Mastercards which the user could top-up via bank transfer or via an existing debit card.{{Cite web|url=https://monzo.com/legal/terms-and-conditions/|title=Terms & Conditions|website=Monzo}} The balance on the card could then be spent via contactless, chip and pin, magnetic stripe or online. From early on, Monzo has issued cards in a neon "hot coral" colour - initially intended as a temporary measure during prototyping{{Cite magazine |title=Monzo Card Design |magazine=Wired UK |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/monzo-card-design |publisher=Wired}} - but later, a deliberate decision arising from the success of the "eye-catching" design.{{Cite web |title=Breakthrough brands: Monzo, a modern approach to brilliant banking |date=2 July 2018 |url=http://fabrikbrands.com/breakthrough-brands-monzo-bank-branding/ |publisher=Fabrik}}

In December 2017, Monzo issued new Debit Mastercard cards to all its existing and new customers as the bank began rolling out current accounts. Customers signing up for the current account are issued a Debit Mastercard.{{Cite news |last=Peyton |first=Antony |title=Monzo gently rolls out current accounts |publisher=Banking Technology |url=http://www.bankingtech.com/911451/monzo-gently-rolls-out-current-account/}}

{{Update|section|date=June 2023}}

Banks in the UK currently offer customers limited or no programmatic access to their financial data.{{Cite web |title=Data Sharing and Open Data for Banks |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/382273/141202_API_Report_FINAL.PDF |publisher=Fingleton Associates}} Whilst the UK Government is looking into legislation to require existing banks to comply with and adopt standards for secure and open APIs,{{Cite web |title=Government could legislate to ensure open data in banking and other regulated industries by 2017 |url=http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2015/december/government-could-legislate-to-ensure-open-data-in-banking-and-other-regulated-industries-by-2017/ |publisher=Pinesent Masons}} Monzo has already released a prototype API based on the OAuth standard within a year of the company's founding.{{Cite news |date=2023-09-08 |title=Analysis {{!}} Shut Out of Banking? Blame the Machines |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/09/08/bank-bureaucracy-at-odds-with-maintaining-account-access/18808f18-4dff-11ee-bfca-04e0ac43f9e4_story.html |access-date=2024-03-30 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}

The company has also hosted four hackathons{{Cite web |title=Mondohack IV |date=May 2023 |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2016/04/21/mondohack-iv/ |publisher=Monzo}} and previously maintained a "Monzo Developers" Slack channel for developer discussion and support. The API allows developers to view transactions and accounts, receive notifications for events via webhooks and create their own items to appear in the app.{{Cite web |title=Monzo API Reference |url=https://monzo.com/docs/ |publisher=Monzo}} The responses are encoded using JSON which allows for data access in any programming language with JSON support.{{cite IETF |title=The JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) Data Interchange Format|rfc=7159|last1= Bray |first1= T. |author-link1= Tim Bray|date=March 2014 |publisher=IETF |access-date=13 September 2016}}

During June 2018, Monzo gained significant public interest after fraud analysts with the bank spotted signs of and publicly announced a Ticketmaster data breach in April 2018, before Ticketmaster had spotted the breach themselves, and two months before Ticketmaster admitted the breach had occurred.{{Cite news |last=Priday |first=Richard |title=The Ticketmaster hack is a perfect storm of bad IT and bad comms |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/ticketmaster-data-breach-monzo-inbenta |access-date=15 August 2018}}{{Citation |last=standupmaths |title=How to detect bank fraud with maths |date=25 July 2018 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kpl3BGYtY7g |access-date=15 August 2018}}

In 2019 the BBC's Watchdog programme investigated Monzo after receiving complaints from Monzo customers who had their accounts frozen or closed.{{Cite web |title=BBC One - Watchdog - Monzo |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2qS0HM6nBkcPMx0W8t7fqVJ/monzo |access-date=19 July 2020 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}} Affected customers complained about the length of time they were unable to access their money.{{Cite web |last=Magana |first=Gregory |date=24 October 2019 |title=Monzo caught flack for freezing customer accounts without explanation, leaving some without access to their money for weeks |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/monzo-account-freeze-leaves-customers-frustrated-2019-10?r=US&IR=T |access-date=6 June 2020 |publisher=Business Insider}}

In a response to this investigation, the company said that account closures take place if the bank "suspect[s] there's financial crime".{{Cite web |title=Our response to the BBC Watchdog report: Why we sometimes have to block or close accounts |url=https://monzo.com/blog/2019/10/18/watchdog-response |access-date=19 July 2020 |website=Monzo |date=18 October 2019 |language=en-GB}}

A group of three individuals have created a website (OTP.Agency) that charged criminals a monthly payment, aiding in socially engineering bank account holders into sharing their passcodes or other personal data. The basic package allowed multi-factor authentication to be bypassed on a platform such as Monzo, facilitating fraudulent online transactions. The NCA's cyber investigation started in June 2020, leading to the shut down of the fraudulent website in March 2021 following the arrest of the three individuals. Eventually the three pleaded guilty in September 2024.{{Cite web |date=2024-09-22 |title=Three men plead guilty to running website for bypassing bank fraud safeguards |url=https://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/24601161.men-plead-guilty-running-website-helps-steal-bank-details/ |access-date=2024-09-24 |website=Bucks Free Press |language=en}}

Jeremy Hunt revealed that he was rejected for a bank account with Monzo in 2022.{{cite web |title=Jeremy Hunt reveals he was refused Monzo bank account |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jul/09/jeremy-hunt-reveals-he-was-refused-monzo-account |website=The Guardian |date=9 July 2023 |access-date=28 July 2023 |last1=Jolly |first1=Jasper }} Staff at the bank have been accused of branding the Conservative Party 'evil'.{{cite web |title=Staff at bank which refused Jeremy Hunt an account called Conservatives 'evil' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/08/01/bank-monzo-jeremy-hunt-refused-account-tories-evil/ |website=The Daily Telegraph |date=August 2023 |access-date=3 August 2023 |last1=Johnston |first1=Neil |last2=Somerville |first2=Ewan }}{{Subscription required}}{{cite web |title=Monzo bank denied Jeremy Hunt an account as staff called Tories 'evil' |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/economics/article/monzo-bank-jeremy-hunt-account-tories-evil-3hvrwjgnq |website=The Times |date=2 August 2023 |access-date=3 August 2023}}{{Subscription required}}

In July 2023, Gina Miller's True and Fair Party was informed that their bank account with Monzo would be closed.{{cite web |title=Gina Miller voices fear for democracy over closure of her party's bank account |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jul/28/gina-miller-true-and-fair-party-monzo-bank-account |website=The Guardian |date=28 July 2023 |access-date=28 July 2023 |last1=Media |first1=P. A. }} Monzo said that they did not accept political parties as customers, and that True and Fair's account was not originally categorised as such in its application.{{cite web |title=Gina Miller voices fear for democracy over closure of her party's bank account |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2023/jul/28/high-court-ulez-london-boroughs-conservatives-labour-rishi-sunak-keir-starmer-uk-politics-latest?filterKeyEvents=false&page=with:block-64c3b08f8f086b325af60cc7#block-64c3b08f8f086b325af60cc7 |website=The Guardian | date=28 July 2023 |access-date=28 July 2023 | last1=Slawson | first1=Nicola | last2=Banfield-Nwachi | first2=Mabel }}

In May 2025, Monzo was named the Best Children's Finance provider and Best British Bank in the British Bank awards 2025, hosted by Smart Money People.

• Neobanks in Europe

{{reflist}}

{{UK banks}}

Category:Financial services companies of the United Kingdom

Category:Banks of the United Kingdom

Category:Online banks

Category:Banks established in 2015

Category:Internet properties established in 2015

Category:Financial technology companies

Category:Mobile payments

Category:Online payments

Category:Payment systems

Category:Payment service providers

Category:Banks based in the City of London