There are many ways to track your expenses, create a personal budget and save some funds for literally anything – your next amazing trip, for your retirement, some really cool gadget, you name it . Thanks to new regulations, in particular PSD2, as well as open banking regulations in the UK, that entered into effect earlier this year, individuals are now able to have their bank account data shared with third-party companies that have started to develop specific services, to take advantage of this opportunity. This has resulted in a rising number of apps that can help you put aside some funds. Here are our top picks among those currently available in Europe.
1. Oval Money
Oval helps its users to better understand their spending habits with the assistance of linked bank accounts and credit cards. The core purpose of the app is to improve spending decisions made by its users and probably enable them to save more money. It is possible to activate automatic savings deposits through the Oval Money app (e. g. when users receive their salary, spend money on certain categories of services, or post something on Facebook) to a secure digital savings account. In addition to that, it has recently become possible to invest in five different funds offered by a partner organization directly through the app.
Created by Italian entrepreneurs, the company has raised more than €2 million through various rounds of seed money, equity crowdfunding and a Series A funding. Oval is headquartered in London, and is being regulated by UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
2. Goin
This is an app with a similar concept of the one discussed above, this one was built in Barcelona and at the moment is only available in Spain, however its creators have every intention of expanding in Europe and the US. Goin is an app explicitly targeted to Millennials looking to start saving without changing their lifestyle. It’s a solution designed for those with no previous knowledge about finance and investment, as Goin enables its users to automate both – savings and investments.
Whilst the company itself is still in its infancy, it has already won a few innovation competitions and raised €625 000 in a seed round. Moreover, it has defined its long-term vision to become the bank of Millennials, providing all kinds of financial solutions matching their needs.
Money Dashboard is a free online personal financial management (PFM) service, voted as the Best Personal Finance App in the UK, aiming to help its users to make improved financial decisions. The app enables its users to see all their financial accounts in one single place, set budgeting goals, track their progress and forecast how quickly they will be able to meet their goals by analysing all of their transactions. The company has already closed three funding rounds, raising more than €8.5 million.
4. Chip
This is a money saving app calculating, how much its users can afford to save, based on their spending habits, without significantly altering their lives – all of which is done with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The app automatically transfers small amounts from the user’s current account, every few days, in a cash account held at an E-wallet Barclays, where users are able to get 1% on their savings for every friend they invite. The company raised more than €5.2 million, through two equity crowdfunding campaigns, from thousands of smaller investors.
5. MoneyHub
MoneyHub, similarly to some of the previous apps, gives its users the possibility to see all their money – current accounts, investments, assets and borrowing – in one place, providing advanced tools to achieve particular finance goals, by giving insights into their spending habits as well as useful instruments to change their behaviour. It also allows its users to easily connect their account to finance professionals who can help making investment decisions. The company is also regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.
