the startupist

You may remember my overall negative pre-impression of Movenbank, the self proclaimed next generation bank that is looking to create a revolutionary new bank with no paper, no plastic, and no hidden fees.  Well, the startup debuted in alpha mode at the beginning of the month.  I received my alpha invite two days ago.  Here’s an inside look at phase 1.

It all started with a series of 40 questions designed to gauge my personal spending habits, saving habits, and my overall views on money and personal financial management.  The questions are fairly repetitive, with at least 5 of them asking me in one way or another how I view/react to impulse purchases.

It all ended with the results of the survey.  Based on the answers given to the 40 questions, Movenbank groups their users into 1 of 9 classes.  I spend quite a bit of time and energy analyzing my money and allocating it, which is obviously reflected in my classification as an “Accountant” in the table below.

Also, I received a badge!  Gamified banks are fun!

That’s about as far as the alpha goes at this point.  Take a survey, and they tell you what your “financial personality” is.  Cool.  I couldn’t help but ask myself what was next.  Luckily, Movenbank anticipated that question, and had an answer ready.

So, before we get to get all Bank 3.0 up this this interweb, it looks like we’ll have some sort of Mint with game mechanics.  Admittedly, I don’t have high hopes or opinions about Movenbank at this point.  I will reiterate, as I said in the previous Movenbank post, that I want them to prove me wrong.  I love banking, and am excited to see what they put out - whether or not I think it will ultimately be successful.