Seed Debuts First Full-Service Digital Bank Alternative for Small Business

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 18, 2017 -- According to a recent survey, small businesses are falling through the cracks of the banking industry. Big banks don’t always offer the service small businesses need, and community banks don’t always provide the technology small business customers are looking for. Seed is providing an alternative to traditional banking by offering a full-service online banking service designed specifically for the 28 million small businesses in the US.

“Traditional banks have struggled to take care of their small business customers because they only have two banking options to offer — consumer or enterprise. Consumer banking products don’t offer all of the features and service small businesses need, while enterprise offerings are unnecessarily complicated and expensive,” said Brian Merritt, co-founder and CEO of Seed. “Seed is solely focused on serving the small business community. 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.”

The challenges small business owners face with their banking services can have a real impact on their business. According to a new survey conducted by Researchscape on behalf of Seed, one-third of small businesses aren’t provided with online and mobile bill-pay; that same percentage pays monthly, often hidden fees to their banks. Perhaps most surprising, 32 percent of survey respondents are not properly separating their personal and business bank accounts, which can lead to serious accounting, tax, and reporting challenges for business owners.

And, despite the rise of mobile, more than half of small businesses said that they don’t have access to an intuitive, simple mobile banking app, while 65 percent have banks that don’t offer phone and in-app messaging support. The lack of mobile banking support makes it impossible for these business owners to manage their business on the go and leads to unnecessary time spent in a branch.

Meanwhile, managing cash flow is the number one financial challenge every small business has, but according to Seed’s survey, banks are not helping. Less than one-third of banks offer financial insights and only 24 percent of banks provide owners with advice on how to manage their business. 

In response to these challenges, Seed provides a full suite of banking features built into easy-to-use, beautifully designed online app, including a Visa^® Business Debit card, free bill pay, transfers, mobile deposits, and electronic vendor payments via ACH or paper check.

In addition to standard banking services, Seed offers unique features and benefits designed for the small business owner:

• A complete mobile business banking solution so that you can run your business from wherever you are.
   
• Personalized attention and support via phone and in-app messaging.
   
• An online knowledge-base to help answer the many vexing questions small businesses need answered.
   
• Automated monthly cash flow reports that save time spent on accounting.
   
• Real-time data can be categorized, searched, and edited with memos, making it effortless to keep tabs on your finances at all times.
   
• Bills, receipts, and documents can be stored alongside transactions and all data is available on accounting platforms and via download.

Seed is live now for iOS and the web.  For more information, visit Seed.

Survey Methodology
Researchscape conducted a study on behalf of Seed of 423 small businesses in the United States using a comprehensive online survey in order to better understand behavior, usage and attitudes around small business banking. The survey was fielded Sept. 20-26, 2017. The credibility interval is +/- 7 percentage points for questions answered by all respondents.

About Seed
Seed is simply a better way to bank. As a mobile first banking service designed with the small business in mind, Seed empowers small businesses with modern, easy-to-use digital tools and customer-support resources for starting, running, and growing a business. With Seed, business banking has never been easier. Learn more at https://seed.co.

Banking services provided by The Bancorp Bank, Member FDIC. The Seed Visa Business Debit Card is issued by The Bancorp Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa Debit Cards are accepted.

Press Contact:
Carolyn Adams
dot4 Public Relations
Email: [email protected]