Why is Monse better than Fintonic? A NOT impartial opinion.
Since I started working at monse.app I have received comments asking what do I offer other than Fintonic? Why should they use an app from an individual maker instead of a big company?
tl;dr Fintonic is insecure and sells with your bank details. They save the username and password of your bank having full access to it. In the event of a hack or a disgruntled developer, anyone could break into your bank and take your money. Monse has an opposite philosophy.
Let me tell you how Fintonic works and why you should never use it.
We agree on one thing. Your bank details are GOLD. If someone could break into your account it would be a catastrophe. Not only would he have access to personal and private information, but he could extract your money, ask for loans, and know what else.
Knowing this, if I asked you for your username and password to access your bank account through the web, would you give it to me? That is what Fintonic does.
How does Fintonic access your bank details?
To access my bank (ING), I have to enter a 6-digit security code and my ID. Just the data that Fintonic asks me to connect my bank.
These data will be stored in the Fintonic database in plain (or at least decryptable).
In the event of a data breach or, even easier, a disgruntled programmer, your data could be leaked and anyone could break into your bank impersonating you.
How does Fintonic make money?
This part is also very easy. Fintonic is a free product, nobody pays to use it. Right now they offer a bank card with which they will be earning money thanks to an agreement with a bank or similar, but this was not the case some time ago.
Fintonic makes money by selling your personal data to third parties and you can see it clearly in its legal terms .
Why is monse.app different?
https://get.monse.app
Let's be clear, I'm the creator behind monse, I'm not biased. But everything I tell you about monse below is true. If you have any questions write me on twitter .
At monse we do not ask you for your username and password at any time, we do not want to have such dangerous information. At monse we use the API of your own bank to obtain bank details.
So that everyone understands why the word API is very technical, this is the process:
You tell your bank to give us read access to the transfer history and balance of your accounts.
The bank gives us a code that lasts about 30 days (depends on the bank) and that we keep.
With this code we can tell your bank to give us your reading history and balances and it is your bank that verifies who we are, that the code is valid, that it has not expired and that you still allow access. If all this is true, your bank gives us, in text, this data.
After 30 days, when the code expires, if you want us to continue accessing your data, you will have to connect it again.
As you can see, the process is very different.
Monse do not have any control, we cannot do anything without you and your bank knowing. It is your bank that is in control at all times.
Also, we don't have any username or password. We could not, in any way, enter your bank through the web as if Fintonic does.
And how do we make money?
All the money we earn comes from users who decide to pay a monthly fee to get extra features, nothing more.
We make it very clear that we do not sell or share your data with third parties . We understand that the data is yours and not ours, therefore, we do not market with them.