UK challenger Cato Banking opens waiting list ahead of 2020 launch
The UK challenger bank scene is set to gain another entrant, as Cato Banking prepares for a 2020 launch by opening its waiting list.
Simon Phillips, Cato Banking
Formerly known as MoneySmrt, Cato is an offshoot of Money Global Limited, a financial technology and services provider led by CEO Simon Phillips. Prior to starting Money Global, Phillips was compliance officer and business developer for London Mutual Credit Union.
The challenger focuses on financial health and wellbeing, and will allow users to split their income into “envelopes” to manage their finances. It plans to offer a debit card and mobile solution compatible with Google Pay and Samsung Pay, as well as an AI assistant to track spending.
According to Phillips, Cato will be a financial ecosystem. The prospective banks claims on its website that it will offer discounts at more than 80 retailers.
At the time of writing just under 900 people had signed up to the challenger’s waiting list. Cato was included in PayExpo’s 2018 “minicorn” list, which predicted firms that could reach a $1 billion valuation in future.
Related: FinTech Future’s comprehensive list of UK challenger banks
