NEO = NIYO

The business of banking is changing drastically, with the emergence of a large number of fintechs, aiming to cater to the ever evolving customer behaviours and expectations. Of late, all the talk in the world of banking and finance is the advent of ‘neo-banks’ or ‘challenger banks’. To a large extent, neo-banks are technology platforms that integrate with traditional banks through open APIs and offer a combination of traditional banking products and services bundled with innovative product features, tools and value added services, all through a mobile or digital mode.

Neo-banks are inherently scalable, nimble, and flexible, with the ability to innovate on product propositions and business models. Here we look at some of the salient features of neo-banks.

1. Distribution platform with multi-bank integrations

The traditional banking model is based on a physical platform, a brick and mortar model whereas neo-banks are completely digital and mobile-based. Neo-banks also have a lower customer acquisition and servicing cost as compared to traditional banks where they basically service on a high touch model. Leading neo-banks globally prefer to have deep product, process and tech integrations with multiple banking partners.

At Niyo, we offer a range of product propositions, including prepaid cards, credit cards, savings account plus debit cards, virtual accounts and virtual corporate wallets, through deep integrations with multiple partner banks.

2. Hassle-free account operation

When everything is digital, there is no need to stand in a long queue at a bank branch or fill out extensive paperwork. A neo-banking account can be opened through a paperless, presence-less, digital process that takes less than five minutes to complete. What’s more, you can do it on your smartphone.

At Niyo, we have a completely digital customer acquisition through a digital, paperless process at the fraction of cost as compared to traditional banks. Through solutions such as eKYC and AADHAAR offline KYC, customer accounts get opened almost instantly.

3. Seamless UI/UX

Neo-banks offer crisp, well detailed, highly responsive mobile apps with innovative features such as fingerprint locking and facial recognition, the ability to hide or show your account balance through hand gestures, swiping up/down/right/left for different functionalities, etc.

At Niyo, we put a lot of emphasis on seamless UI/UX, and we have built in-app functionalities to manage a customer account through few clicks, taps, swipes and even gestures. You can show/hide your account balance by simply waving your hand over your screen.

All of this is reflected in our best in class app ratings and NPS scores.

4. Niche features

Global leaders in neo-banks, such as Revolut and Monzo, have pioneered the concept of paying seamlessly in any currency for cross-border transactions, free of forex mark-ups or any other charges. Neo-banks also offer many innovative tools for safety and security, which are critical especially when spending abroad or in unfamiliar destinations.

At Niyo, we offer cross-border transactions in over 150 currencies at zero forex mark-up as well as several innovative features such as ATM locator, real time block/unblock of card, any spend category, setting spends on different transaction categories, location based transaction risk monitoring etc.

5. Full stack bank account

Neo-banking is much more than just a cool mobile interface on top of a traditional bank account.

While digital banking (or mobile banking) has been prevalent for at least a decade or so, neo-banks bring much more to the table. Increasingly, the global trend is to offer full fledged savings/current/checking accounts through a neo-banking platform.

Niyo, as one of India’s leading fintech offers a full fledged savings account product – Niyo IDFC First Bank savings account. It’s a unique, first of its kind proposition in India, offering industry best interest rate of  up to 7% on account balance, direct mutual fund investments at zero cost, zero forex mark-up on cross-border transactions in over 150 currencies and many more value added services.

With Niyo IDFC First Bank savings account, the aim is to make banking simpler, cooler, smarter and refreshing again.

Niyo works in partnership with,
– IDFC FIRST Bank for it’s savings account offering
– DCB Bank for it’s Niyo Global offering
– YES Bank and DCB Bank for it’s Niyo Bharat offering