Wherefore art thou, BankSimple?

2011-10-01 16:46:33 by jdixon

Ever since I first heard about BankSimple over a year ago, I've been anxiously awaiting their public launch. They promised to "reinvent personal banking"; to make online banking simpler and effectively, to not suck.

A little over a week ago, the BankSimple blog announced their first look at their online interface. A video walks through their search capabilities and demonstrates how finding data will be much simpler than the traditional online banking UI. Much of what I saw reminded me of Mint.com.

Over the last week I've talked with a number of friends and peers about the BankSimple announcement. Meanwhile we've had events like the OccupyWallStreet protests and backlash to Bank of America's announcement that they'll begin charging customers $60/year for the privilege of using a debit card.

I hope that BankSimple realizes that this is their opportunity in waiting. We don't need another Mint.com (yet). We don't need the Facebook equivalent of online banking. We need a fair, trustworthy banking service that doesn't rape us with fees, avoids predatory behavior and bait-and-switch offerings and isn't constantly focused on their next acquisition. Convenient features, such as depositing checks with a smartphone camera, are great but not a necessity. In short, we need the online equivalent of a good credit union.

Traditional banks have chosen to innovate only where it suits them. I hope that BankSimple can seize this opportunity and usher in a new age of consumer banking. Guys, please don't drop the ball. In the meantime, I think I'll start looking at the alternatives.