Vancouver startup Koho wants to revolutionize banking, signs deal with Visa

A Vancouver startup tech company wants to change the way millennials bank, and they are one step closer to launching thanks to a new partnership with Visa.

Koho Financial aims to eliminate fees associated with banking. Once they launch, users will be able to transfer funds from a Peoples Trust to their Koho card, which works just like a debit card, but is processed by a credit card company, avoiding fees in the process.

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Now that the company has a partnership with Visa, their dreams may soon become a reality.

“With Visa, Peoples Trust Company and Galileo, I really feel like we’ve put together a world class team,” said CEO of Koho Daniel Eberhard.

As well as no fee banking, Koho will offer automatic goal savings, daily budgets, and spending insights through their app, all useful things for millennials.

The Visa cards will be prepaid, so there’s no going over budget – the money on the card is the money you have to spend.

“We think Canadian consumers need to raise their expectations. It’s not just about core functionality, it’s about understanding your financial position and providing the tools to help you improve it. We don’t care what your financial goals are, we just want to help you get there,” said Eberhard.

Despite still being in beta testing, the Vancouver-based company is already receiving accolades around the world. They recently won the NASDAQ NY Day award for Best FinTech (Financial Tech) company. The company also reached their $1 million funding goal this year.

In an interview with Vancity Buzz last year, Eberhard said they don’t like to think of themselves as a bank.

“We don’t talk, think, or act like a bank, which spills over into all kinds of functions, designs, and philosophies. However, we built a lot of things we thought a bank account should have. We provide customers with two balances, one that shows them how much money they have, and another that shows them how much they have to spend, which is an important distinction,” he said.

To learn more about Koho, visit their website.

Image: Koho