Seed Says Banks Fail Small Businesses On Mobile, Cash Management Solutions

Seed, which launched in 2015 to disrupt small business (SMB) banking, is emphasizing its focus on mobile-first solutions in the wake of revelations of its recent survey.

In an announcement on Wednesday (Oct. 18), Seed revealed news that it is rolling out small business banking solutions and released the results of a survey of 423 small businesses in the U.S. that found more than half don’t have access to “an intuitive, simple mobile banking app.” Sixty-five percent said their banks don’t offer phone or in-app messaging support.

“The lack of mobile banking support makes it impossible for those business owners to manage their businesses on the go and leads to unnecessary time spent in a branch,” Seed said in its announcement.

With its new services, the company positions itself as an “alternative to traditional banking” for small businesses, providing them with a mobile platform that supports features like mobile bill pay, cash flow management, in-app banking support, real-time data management and document management.

“Traditional banks have struggled to take care of their small business customers because they only have two banking options to offer — consumer or enterprise,” said Seed Co-Founder and CEO Brian Merritt in a statement. “Consumer banking products don’t offer all of the features and services small businesses need, while enterprise offerings are unnecessarily complicated and expensive.”

“Seed is solely focused on serving the small business community,” he continued. “We’re responding to the frustrations of small business owners by offering an alternative to the status quo — a complete online banking service designed just for them.”

According to Seed’s survey, less than a third of SMBs said their bank offers financial insights, and only about a quarter said banks offer them business management advice.

Seed’s integrated solutions include the Visa Business Debit card, free mobile bill pay, mobile deposits and electronic supplier payments via ACH or paper check.