The Co-operative Bank has invested £500,000 in Manchester-based fintech Bankifi as part of a major co-development deal.
The new funding follows the successful delivery of two projects, including the UK bank's SME mobile banking service and a new Request to Pay (RTP) app, Incomeing, allowing SMEs to manage invoices, link their accounting software and receive payments.
The cash will be applied to the development of further products for the SME market, beginning with cash management.
The latest investment from The Co-operative Bank follows a recent funding round of £2.2 million led by Manchester-based Praetura Ventures with participation from Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), in addition to a previous 2019 investment by Nationwide.
Catherine Douglas, managing director at The Co-operative Bank comments: “We are committed to build on the enhanced digital capabilities that have extended our Business Banking proposition to serve a wider range of SMEs during 2021. Working with; and investing in, technology partners such as BankiFi will enable us to deliver our shared vision of supporting micro businesses and SMEs with digital solutions that will help them thrive.”
The Co-operative will be the first to take any products developed to market, but those services will then be made available to other banks.