Toronto-based Wave Financial, which has developed a financial planning platform for small business owners, is launching a small business bank account solution called Wave Money. Part of the new offer includes a business bank account and a debit card.
“We are turning the banking industry upside down with the introduction of Wave Money, a one-of-a-kind business bank account.
Wave Money will grant small business owners access to no account minimums or monthly fees, free instant payments, free built-in accounting, mobile check deposit and access to the “largest ATM network. free automatic [United States]. “Wave Money is currently in a limited version and only available to US businesses.
Wave, which was acquired by H&R Block last year for C $ 537 million, touts the new offering as “the future of small business banking.” In a blog post for Wave Money, the company said, “Today we’re shaking up the banking industry with the introduction of Wave Money, a one-of-a-kind corporate bank account that helps small business owners take control of their finances. “
“Most entrepreneurs start a business to do what they love, not because they want to spend time on their finances. Few start-up entrepreneurs have accounting expertise. Yet establishing good financial management and accounting practices is essential, â€said Kirk Simpson, co-founder and CEO of Wave.
Toronto-based FinTech is positioning Wave Money against traditional banks, which Wave says “have high fees, complicated record keeping, and take days to give business owners access to their money.”
Say hello to Wave Money. With no fees, built-in accounting and instant access to your funds, it’s business banking like never before. Details on https://t.co/mtsclbCOYX pic.twitter.com/UPRNejRKIz
– Wave HQ (@WaveHQ) June 11, 2020
“Wave Money is specially designed for the entrepreneur who loves their job, not accounting. It’s free and makes it easy to manage small business finances, even for those who have little knowledge of finance and accounting, â€Simpson added.
Wave Money provides users with a business bank account, debit card, and mobile app so business owners can deposit funds, spend with the Wave debit card, and manage everything in the Wave Money mobile app. Business owners using the new service can also pay suppliers and contractors via email. Wave Money automatically categorizes expenses so businesses can track expenses and manage income and expenses in one place with what the business calls “real-time accountingâ€.
As a FinTech company, Wave is not permitted to operate as an unlicensed bank. Calling itself an “alternative banking†Wave has partnered with the New York-based Community Federal Savings Bank (CFSB) to launch Wave Money. CFSB will issue the Wave Visa Business Debit Card and hold all Wave Money deposits, which will be insured up to $ 250,000 through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
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Founded in 2009 by Simpson and James Lochrie, Wave offers a range of financial services for businesses, covering accounting, invoicing, payroll and receipts. While the startup offered a payment offering that allowed users to accept credit card and online banking payments, Wave Money marks the company’s first step into the banking space.
Wave is the second major Canadian tech company to launch a business banking and card offering this year.
Last month, e-commerce giant Shopify launched Shopify Balance, its own banking product for small businesses that featured a bank account, card, and rewards program for merchants. Similar to Wave, Shopify Balance is slated to launch for early access in the US later this year. Shopify has yet to reveal which banking partner it works with for Libra, telling BetaKit it will partner with a “trusted banking partner and card issuer.”
Notably, Wave announced its banking product exactly one year after it was revealed that H&R Block was set to acquire the Toronto-based startup. The $ 537 million acquisition marked one of the largest tech releases ever in Canada, adding Wave to a list consisting of Shopify, Eloqua, Radian6 Technologies and Kobo.
After the acquisition, Wave continued to operate independently. Simpson told BetaKit at the time that the acquisition allowed Wave to develop its platform “for the long term, to think about longer time horizons and to deliver more and more value to our customers.” .
