The first pure-play online bank, Security First Network Bank (SFNB), launched in 1995, just a year after Amazon. But unlike ecommerce, digital-only banking was slow to catch on. The legacy banks (Wells Fargo, Bank of America, et al) maintained market share by providing digital services deemed “good enough” to retain customers loath to switch banks.

But that began changing in the mid-2010s, first in the UK, then elsewhere as well-financed digital players started making inroads with consumers. There was Monzo, Revolut, Starling, Nubank, Chime, just to name a few. But we still haven’t seen a breakout small business bank, partly because of the love/hate relationship business owners have with big banks.

In the adjacent SMB lending space (see our Top 30 Digital Lenders list), top brands such as Square (Block), Paypal, Amazon, Brex, and others have grabbed significant share. But there is not yet a place where small businesses flock to get deposit, payment, and financing needs met in a single interface.

So who are the best digital challenger business banks? Let’s start with our definition.

  1. Centered around deposit and debit/charge card services (eliminates Bluevine and most SMB lenders)
  2. Core business is small-business financial services (eliminates Paypal, Amazon, Block
  3. Primarily digitally delivered (rules out Wells Fargo, BofA, and the majority of traditional banks*)
  4. Founded since 1999

Resources: Looking for digital banks, lenders, payment providers, insurance or digital accounting for small businesses? Check out our latest lists: Small Business (SMB) savings/treasury accounts (7) | SMB online lenders (33) | SMB challenger banks (15) | SMB insurers (15) | SMB charge cards/expense management (16) | Billpay & invoicing (16)| Payment processors (7) | Subscription processors (7) | SMB digital accounting/bookkeeping (21)

The FAB Score (Fintech Attention Barometer) is a proxy for the size of a private fintech company.


Leading Digital Small Business Banks (United States)
ranked by our FAB score (Fintech Attention Barometer**)

Rank Company FAB** Reviewed Founded HQ Funding ($M***) Visits (Nov’24)
1 Mercury 364 6 Jan 25 2017 SF $152 1,700,000
Ad* Relay 186 6 Jan 25 2018 Toronto $52 820,000
Ad* U.S. Bank NA 6 Jan 25 1863 Minneapolis NA 27,000,000
Ad* Rho 47 6 Jan 25 2018 NYC $205 74,000
2 NOVO 213 6 Jan 25 2016 NYC $296 600,000
3 Relay 186 6 Jan 25 2018 Toronto $52 820,000
4 Found 128 6 Jan 25 2019 SF $121 450,000
5 Lili 56 6 Jan 25 2018 NYC $80 210,000
6 Baselane 50 6 Jan 25 2020 NYC $8 220,000
7 Rho 47 6 Jan 25 2018 NYC $205 74,000
8 Arc 46 6 Jan 25 2021 SF $181 73,000
9 Slash 42 6 Jan 25 2020 SF $19 135,000
10t Grasshopper 39 6 Jan 25 2016 NYC $172 42,000
10t Viably 39 6 Jan 25 2021 NC $71 27,000
12 NorthOne 34 6 Jan 25 2016 NYC $90 100,000
13 Every (NEW) 28 6 Jan 25 2021 SF $32 28,000
14 Meow 15 6 Jan 25 2021 NYC $27 47,000
15 ZilBank 10 6 Jan 25 2021 Dallas $0 21,000
16 Winden 8 6 Jan 25 2021 LA $5.3 7,600
17 Arival 6 6 Jan 25 2018 Miami, FL $11 5,200

Sources: FintechLabs, Pitchbook, Crunchbase, SimilarWeb; 6 Jan 2025

*Our business model depends on revenue from referrals and sponsors. When you see a referral link in the URL, we may earn a fee for new accounts (thanks!). This can improve visibility on our website, but does not impact the company’s FAB score.
** The FAB score, Fintech Attention Barometer, is a proxy for the overall size of a private company since they typically do not release traditional metrics (# customers, deposits, AUM, etc). The score is based on VC funding, website traffic, mobile downloads, and the number of employees. It’s a work in progress, so expect changes in the formula.
***Funding is the amount invested into the company as either equity or debt.


Best Small Business New-Account Bonuses (United States)
ranked by BV (bonus value)*

Company Offer Bonus Value* Product Min Deposit Min Days Expires Other fine print
U.S. Bank Ad* $900 $641 Checking: Platinum $30,000 90 15 Jan 25
Citibank $2,000 $1,137 Checking $200,000 45 7 Jul 25 Varies by zip
Citibank $1,500 $1,068 Checking $100,000 45 7 Jul 25 Varies by zip
Huntington Bank $1,000 $885 Checking: Unlimited Plus $20,000 60 10 Feb 25
PNC Bank $1,000 $741 Treasury Management $30,000 90 31 Mar 25
Citibank $750 $664 Checking $20,000 45 7 Jul 25 Varies by zip
U.S. Bank $900 $641 Checking: Platinum $30,000 90 15 Jan 25
M&T Bank $1,500 $637 Checking $100,000 90 28 Mar 25
Associated Bank $750 $635 Checking: Choice $20,000 60 30 Jun 25
BMO $750 $606 Checking $25,000 60 1 Feb 25
Central Bank $500 $500 Checking $3,000 1 31 Mar 25
M&T Bank $750 $491 Checking $30,000 90 28 Mar 25
Chase $500 $471 Checking $10,000 30 2 Apr 25 Min 5 trans
Huntington Bank $400 $386 Checking: Unlimited $5,000 30 10 Feb 25
PNC Bank $400 $383 Checking $2,000 90 31 Mar 25 Min 20 trans
Associated Bank $400 $371 Checking: Balanced $5,000 60 30 Jun 25
M&T Bank $500 $371 Checking $15,000 90 28 Mar 25
U.S. Bank $400 $357 Checking: Silver $5,000 90 15 Jan 25
BMO $350 $327 Checking $4,000 60 1 Feb 25
Chase $300 $294 Checking $2,000 30 2 Apr 25 Min 5 trans
Citibank $300 $278 Checking $5,000 45 7 Jul 25 Varies by zip
American Express $300 $271 Checking $5,000 60 None
Min 5 trans; Reward is 30,000 points
M&T Bank $300 $257 Checking $5,000 90 28 Mar 25
Mercury $250 $249 Checking $10,000 1 None
Bank of America $200 $171 Checking $5,000 60 31 Dec 25
Huntington Bank $100 $94 Checking 100 $2,000 30 10 Feb 25
Associated Bank $100 $88 Checking: Access $2,000 60 30 Jun 25
Axos Bank $300 $12 Checking $25,000 120 31 Jan 25 Min 10 trans
Axos Bank $400 -$175 Checking $50,000 120 31 Jan 25 Min 10 trans

Source: FintechLabs, 13 Jan 2025
*BV calculated assuming an alternative use of cash with a 3.5% annual return


Challenger SMB Banks Currently Active in the United States


1. Mercury Technologies
FAB Score = 364 (down 58 from Nov)
HQ: San Francisco Bay Area
Founded: 2017
Partner banks: Choice Financial Group, Evolve Bank & Trust, and a network of 20 banks to hold excess deposits; Patriot Bank (IO card issuer)

Traction
– More than 200,000 customers (Techcrunch, May 2024)
– Current run rate of $4B in payments per month (Techcrunch, May 2024); $50B processed in 2022, double the $23B in 2021
– Raised $152M (Crunchbase) including $120M in 2021
– Valuation: $1.7B (based on July 2021 round); $1.6B based on Q3 ’23 secondary market sales
– Website visits: 1.7 million (Nov. 2024; SimilarWeb<<<< Most website traffic
– Employees: 999 (Pitchbook), up 117 since Nov, up 117 since Aug, up 271 since March, up 318 since January, up 330 since August ’23

Social
– Articles: 20 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 58,000 followers (1,029 up 42 since Dec, up 77 since Sep, up 223 since May)
iOS app: 4.9 (6,100 reviews, up 600 since Dec)
Trustpilot: 3.6 (1,220 reviews, up 90 since Dec)


 

2. Novo
FAB Score: 213
(down 56)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2016

Traction
– Raised $296M including $125M in Aug 2023, $125M in 2022, and $41M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 600,000 (Nov 2024; SimilarWeb)
– Employees: 437 (Pitchbook), up 14 since Sep,  up 14 since June, up 30 since May, down 8 since Mar
– Integrations: Wise, Xero, Slack

Social
LinkedIn: 33,000 followers (423 employees, down 14 since Dec, down 18 since Oct, down 10 since Aug, up 30 since Mar)
– Articles: 280 (Crunchbase)
– Industry awards: 4 (Novo)
Trustpilot: 4.3 (4,210, unchanged since Dec)
iOS app: 4.8 (17,100 reviews, up 900 since Dec)


3. Relay
FAB Score: 186 (up 4)
– HQ: Toronto
– Founded: 2018
– Partner bank: Thread

Traction
– Raised $51.6 including $32M in 2024, $15M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 820,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 199 (Pitchbook), unchanged from July, up 47 since May, up 57 since Feb, up 71 since Nov ’23

Social
LinkedIn: 11,000 followers (241 employees, up 5 since Dec, up 41 since Sep, up 45 since June)
Trustpilot: 4.6 (2,100 reviews, up 180 since Dec)
iOS: 4.8 (1,700 reviews, up 200 since Dec)


4. Found 
FAB Score = 128 (down 29)
HQ: San Francisco Bay Area
Founded: 2019
BaaS partner: LendingClubBank

Traction:
– Raised $121M including  $46M in June 2024; $60M in Feb 2022; $12.75M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 450,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 117 (Pitchbook), up 2 since Nov, up 24 since Aug, up 22 since October ’23

Social:
LinkedIn: 6,000 followers (116 employees, down 3 since Dec, up 1 since Sep, up 23 since June)
Trustpilot: 4.3 (669 reviews, up 63 since Dec)
iOS: 4.8 (21,700 reviews, up 1,600 since Dec) <<<Most iOS reviews

 


5. Lili
FAB Score = 56 (up 2)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2018

Traction:
– Raised $80M including $55M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 210,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 110 (Pitchbook), up 21 since Nov, up 22 since Sep, up 22 since June, up 5 since May, up 5 since Nov ’23

Social:
– Articles: 25 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 15,000 followers (112 employees, up 11 since Dec, up 22 since Sep, up 26 from June, up 44 since Feb, down 129 since Feb ’23)
TikTok: 234,000 followers; 600,000 likes (unchanged for a year)
Trustpilot: 4.7 (3,460 reviews,  up 140 since Dec)


6. Baselane
FAB Score: 50 (down 3)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2020

Traction:
– Raised: $7.9M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 220,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 47 (Pitchbook), up 3 since Nov, up 6 since Sep, up 11 since May, up 11 since Mar, up 16 since Feb, up 18 since Nov ’23

Social:
– Articles: 5 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 2,600 followers (46 employees, up 2 since Dec, up 1 since Sep, up 10 since June, up 13 since Jan, up 16 since Nov ’23)


7. Rho
FAB Score = 47 (down 6)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2018

Traction:
– Raised $205M ($200M since Jan 2021) (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 74,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 198 (Pitchbook), unchanged since Nov, down 2 from Dec 2023

Social:
– Articles: 18 (Crunchbase)
– Linkedin: 12,000 followers (206 employees, up 1 since Dec, down 6 from Dec ’23)
Trustpilot: 3.3 (22 reviews, up 1 since Dec)
G2: 4.8 score (111 reviews, unchanged since Dec)
iOS store: 4.8 score (37 reviews, unchanged since Dec)

8. Arc
Fab Score = 46 (down 69)
HQ: SF
Founded: 2021
Banking services provider: Piermont Bank

Traction:
– Raised: $181M in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 73,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 45 (Pitchbook), unchanged since Nov ’23

Social:
– Articles: 2 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 13,000 followers (204 employees, down 124 since Dec, down 119 since Sep, up 140 since June, up 156 since Mar, up 201 since Jan, up 186 since Nov ’23)


9. Slash
FAB Score = 42 (up 7)
HQ: SF
Founded: 2020

Traction:
– Raised: $19M in 2023 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 135,000 (Similarweb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 28 (Pitchbook), up 7 since Nov, up 10 since Sep, up 10 since Jan, up 9 since Nov ’23

Social:
– Article: 1 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn: 1,000 followers (29 employees, up 4 since Dec, up 8 since Sep, up 9 since Aug, up 12 since Jan ’24, up 21 since Nov ’23)


10. Viably
FAB Score: 39
(down 5)
HQ: Charlotte, NC
Founded: 2016

Traction:
– Raised $71M including $50M (debt) in 2023 and $21M in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 27,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 37 (Pitchbook), down 2 since Oct, up 1 since Sep, up 3 since May, up 3 since Mar, up 6 since  Jan, up 3 since Nov ’23

Social:
– Articles: 9 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 1,500 followers (34 employees, down 4 since Dec, down 4 since Sep, down 1 since May, down 1 since Mar, up 3 since Jan ’24, up 2 since Nov ’23)
– iOS app: NA


11. Grasshopper Bank
FAB Score = 38
(down 7)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2016

Traction:
– Raised $172M including $10M in Jan 2024, $30M Aug 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Assets: $620 million (12/31/22), 2.1x growth year over year (source: company)
– Deposits: $550 million (12/31/22), 2.2x growth year over year
– Loans: $450 million (12/31/22), 3.6x growth year over year
– Revenues: $17 million (2022), 2.4x growth year over year
– Website visits: 42,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
Employees: 100 (Pitchbook), down 19 since Nov, down 19 since Feb, down 1 since August ’23

Social:
– Articles: 36 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 26,000 followers (120 employees, up 3 since Dec, up 1 since Sep, up 1 since June, down 4 since Mar, up 1 since Jan ’24, up 7 since Nov ’23)
Trustpilot: 4.2 (220 reviews, up 36 since Dec)


12. NorthOne
FAB Score: 34 (down 22)
HQ: NYC/Toronto
Founded: 2016

Traction:
– Raised $90M including $67M in Oct 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 100,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 57 (Pitchbook), down 3 since Nov, down 4 since Sep, down 4 since May, down 5 since Mar, down 6 since Feb, down 6 since August ’23

Social:
– Articles: 33 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 10,000 followers (57 employees, unchanged since Dec, down 4 since Sep, down 6 since May, down 5 since Mar, down 3 since Jan, down 5 since Nov ’23)
Trustpilot: 3.9 (212 reviews, up 14 since Dec)
iOS app: 4.7 (2,800 reviews, unchanged since Dec)


13. Every
FAB Score = 28 (unchanged)
HQ: San Francisco
Founded: 2022

Traction:
– Funding: $32M (Crunchbase)
– Employees: 20 (Pitchbook)
– Website visits: 28,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)

Social:
LinkedIn 4,100 followers (166 employees, up 29 since Dec)
– Articles: 6 (Crunchbase)


14. Meow
FAB Score: 15
(down 12)
– HQ: NYC
– Founded: 2021
– Banking service providers: FirstBank, Grasshopper Bank, Third Coast Bank

Rates (APY)
Top: 5.0% Treasuries/4.80% FDIC insured (11 Dec 2023**)
Minimum Balance: none

Traction
– Raised: $27 million including $22 million in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Employees: 27 (Pitchbook), unchanged since Sep, up 2 since May, up 2 since Mar, unchanged since Nov ’23
– Website visits: 47,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Linkedin: 7,000 followers


15. Zilbank
FAB Score = 10 (up 1)
HQ: Grand Rapids, MI
Founded: 2021

Traction:
– Funding: INA (Crunchbase)
– Employees: 6 (Linkedin)
– Website visits: 21,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)

Social:
LinkedIn 2,600 followers (5 employees, unchanged since Dec, up 1 since July, down 1 since Jan ’24, unchanged since Nov ’23)
– Articles: 6 (Crunchbase)


16. Winden
FAB Score = 8 (down 1)
HQ: LA
Founded: 2021

Traction:
– Raised: $5.3M in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Employees: 20 (Pitchbook), unchanged since August
– Website visits: 7,600 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)

Social:
– Articles: 2 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 2,000 followers (8 employees, up 2 since Dec, up 2 since Sep, down 5 since May, down 6 since Mar, down 8 since Jan ’24 and Nov ’23)
– Trustpilot: No reviews


17. Arival
FAB score: 6 (down 1)
HQ: Miami, FL
Founded: 2018

Traction:
– Raised: $10.8M including $5M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 5,200 (Similarweb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 40 (Pitchbook), unchanged since Aug, down 4 since July, unchanged since May, down 3 since Nov ’23

Social:
– Articles: 6 (Crunchbase)
LinkedIn 15,000 followers (46 employees, unchanged since Dec, down 1 since Sep, up 2 since June, up 4 since Mar, up 4 since Nov ’23)


Other SMB checking accounts at companies whose core business is not SMB banking

Bluevine
FAB Score = 296
HQ: San Francisco
Founded: 2013

Traction
– Raised: $769M prior to 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Valuation: $1B+ (estimate)
– Website visits: 940,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 592 (Pitchbook), down 26 since Sep, down 14 since May, up 8 since Mar, up 14 since Nov ’23
– Articles: 133 (Crunchbase)

Social
LinkedIn 58,000 followers (593 employees, down 4 since Oct, up 2 since Sep, down 19 since June, down 6 since Mar, unchanged since Jan, up 13 since Nov ’23)
– Trustpilot:  4.3 (8,180 reviews, up 40 since Oct)

 

AngelList Banking
FAB Score = 181
HQ: San Francisco
Founded: 2010

Traction
– Raised: $170M including $144M in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Valuation $4B
– Website visits: 510,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Articles: 1,790 (Crunchbase)


Unlaunched or No Longer Listed

Guava (pivoted to community July 2024)
Fab Score = 4
(unchanged)
HQ: NYC
Founded 2018
Banking services provider: Piermont Bank

Traction:
– Raised: $3.1M including $650k in Feb 2023 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 1,500 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 10 (Pitchbook), unchanged since August ’23

Social:
LinkedIn: 2,000 followers (14 employees, down 2 since Oct, down 2 since Mar, down 1 since Feb, unchanged since Jan, down 3 since Nov ’23)
– Articles: None (Crunchbase)

Moves (CLOSED May 2024)
FAB Score: 11 (down 5)
HQ: Dover, DE

Traction:
– Raised: $6.6M including $4.8M in 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 19,000 (Similarweb, Nov 2024)
– Employees: 17 (Pitchbook), unchanged since Mar, down 25 since Feb, down 28 since Nov

Social:
– Articles: 10 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 2,000 followers (15 employees, unchanged since May, down 1 since Mar, down 9 since Feb, down 20 from Jan, down 29 since Nov ’23)

Lance (pivoted to Sequence spend management Sep 2023)
FAB Score: 7 (NEW)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2018

Traction:
– Raised: $4.7M (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: <5,000 (Similarweb, Sep 2023)
– Employees: 31 (Pitchbook)

Social:
– Articles: 7 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 1,200 followers (81 employees)

Vergo (pivoted to spend management for construction industry Sep 2023)
FAB Score = 10 (down 6)
HQ: NYC
Founded: 2021

Traction:
– Raised $4.2M including $4.1M in June 2022 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 16,000 (SimilarWeb, Nov 2024)
Employees: 29 (Pitchbook)

Social:
– Articles: 3 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 1,300 followers (25 employees, unchanged)
– Trustpilot: NA

LiveOak Bank (discontinued business checking Aug 2023)
FAB Score = 45 (down 6) 
HQ: Wilmington, NC
Founded: 2008

Traction:
Raised: $152 million (Crunchbase)
Revenue (TTM): $392M (Yahoo)
Valuation: $1.4B (Public; 30 Aug 2023, up $100M since 14 July)
Website visits: 150,000 (Similarweb, Nov 2024)
Employees: 886 (Pitchbook), unchanged

Social:
Articles: 3 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 18,000 followers (915 employees, up 9 since May)
Trustpilot: 4.2 (70 reviews, up 37)


Oxygen (removed Feb 2023, because they appear to be more focused on consumers)
FAB Score = NA

– HQ: San Francisco Bay Area
– Founded: 2018
– Raised $45M including $20M in 2023 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 230,000 (SimilarWeb, Jan 2023)
– Employees: 92 (Pitchbook), down 5 since March
– Articles: 22 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 5,700 followers (97 employees, up 2 since March)
Trustpilot: 3.3 (192 reviews)
iOS app: 4.8 (24,100 reviews)

Zifi (Zions Bank)
Pivoted to card processing provider (April 2023)
– HQ: Salt Lake City, UT
– Founded: 2022
– Raised: NA (unit of Zions Bank)
– Website visits: 24,000 (SEMrush, April 2023); 4,300 (SimilarWeb)
Linkedin: 267 followers (12 employees, up 12 since March)


Challengers Closed to New Accounts

Nearside (formerly Hatch) (removed Feb 2023)
Note: Plastiq acquired Nearside in Nov ’22 for a reported $130M and is shutting down its banking services
FAB Score = 66 (down 2)
– HQ: SF
– Founded: 2018
– Raised $73M including $58M in 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 8,000 (SimilarWeb, April 2023)
– Employees: 57 (Pitchbook), unchanged
– Articles: 5 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 1,500 followers (24 employees, down 15 since March)
– TrustPilot: no reviews
iOS: 4.3 (183 reviews)


Solid (was Wise) >> pivoted to Fintech as a Service in 2021
FAB Score: NA
– HQ: SF
– Founded: 2018
– Raised $18M prior to 2021 (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: 1.9 million (Mar 2022; SEMrush)
– Employees: 126 (Pitchbook)
– Articles: 4 (Crunchbase)
Linkedin: 2,020 followers (56 employees)


Joust (acquired by ZenBusiness, 30 July 2020; currently referring customers to Radius Bank)
– Target: Freelancers
– HQ: Austin, TX
– Founded: 2017
– Raised: $11M (Crunchbase)
– Website visits: Unknown
– Employees: 18 (Pitchbook)
– Citations: 5 (Crunchbase)
– Twitter followers: 448
– Trustpilot: NA
– iOS: 4.1 (28 reviews)


Seed (Acquired by Cross River Bank currently closed to new customers)
– HQ: San Francisco Bay Area
– Founded: 2014
– Raised $5.2M (2015) (Crunchbase)
– App downloads (last 30 days): 425 (Apptopia)
– Website visits: 210 (May 2021; SEMrush)
– Number of employees: 12 (Pitchbook)
– Citations: 4 (Crunchbase)
– Twitter: 810 followers


Addendum: Other SMB/SME challenger banks around the world (not a definitive list):

UK

Germany

Australia

France

Rest of world