Best Monabanq alternatives

#1 alternative

BforBank

active

Crédit Agricole’s online bank. ACPR credit institution. FGDR. French IBAN, bank code 16218.

Paris · ~500,000 · Crédit Agricole group / 2025 recapitalisation

7.1Solid

BforBank is a French credit institution in the Crédit Agricole group. ACPR plus AMF. FGDR. Bank code 16218, BIC BFOBFRP1. Founded 2009, about 500,000 customers. Recapitalised in 2025. This is a bank. Qonto is an EMI-class business account. Different objects. N26 is a German IBAN.

Best for: France residents who want a CA-group online bank IBAN without living in a branch, and do not already sit at CA for the cap.

Licence

Credit institution

Protection

FGDR up to €100,000 per depositor per credit institution — Crédit Agricole group, so do not blindly double-count next to a CA / LCL salary account

Monthly

BforBASIC often €0 — confirm live; paid SKUs exist

#2 alternative

L by LCL Pro

active

Crédit Lyonnais digital pro account. ACPR bank code 30002. FGDR. €9 HT. Not a startup charter.

Lyon / Paris · LCL pro digital · Crédit Agricole / LCL

6.8Mixed

L by LCL Pro is Crédit Lyonnais in a January 2026 app. ACPR, bank code 30002, FGDR up to €100,000. The €9 HT pack is for auto-entrepreneurs, freelancers and SASU. LCL individual clients were pitched a waiver. Qonto is a payments firm. BforBank is CA’s other digital bank. This is LCL. Shared-group cap maths still apply. Keep reading the live tariff — launch pricing moves.

Best for: French auto-entrepreneurs and SASU who want an LCL IBAN without a branch theatre.

Licence

Digital brand of Crédit Lyonnais (LCL) — bank code 30002, Crédit Agricole group

Protection

FGDR up to €100,000 — L by LCL Pro is Crédit Lyonnais. Shared group cap with LCL / Crédit Agricole. Do not double-count.

Monthly

€9 HT / month — waived for LCL individual clients on launch copy

#3 alternative

Revolut

active

Global money app that finally became a UK bank.

4.7

London · 50M+ · $1.7B raised · ~$45B val.

8.6Strong

The default comparison set for a reason. Treat the UK bank product and the e-money wallet as different legal objects, then Revolut wins most travel and multi-currency briefs. It is not the quietest home for a salary if you want a full-licence high-street feel — that is still Starling or Monzo in the UK.

Best for: People who live in more than one currency and want one app for spend, FX, and extras.

Licence

UK bank (eligible customers)

Protection

FSCS up to £85,000 on UK bank balances; EMI safeguarding on e-money wallets

Monthly

Free · Plus/Premium/Metal/Ultra paid

#4 alternative

Kestrl is a habit layer. Keep a Monzo/Starling/high-street account for the actual deposit. Halal branding does not move FSCS.

Best for: UK Muslims who want a money app that speaks their constraints, with a real bank still underneath.

Licence

App + partner EMI/bank rails

Protection

If a spending account exists, it is partner-EMI or bank — not Kestrl-as-bank

Monthly

Freemium / subscription SKUs — confirm live

#5 alternative

Found

active

US banking for the self-employed: taxes, invoices, and a debit card.

4.8

San Francisco · Self-employed base · Series-era (Allianz x others)

7.3Solid

Found is the freelancer current account. Novo is generic SMB. Relay is multi-entity ops.

Best for: US freelancers who hate QuickBooks more than they hate banks.

Licence

Fintech with partner banks

Protection

FDIC via Piermont Bank and partners

Monthly

Free core

#6 alternative

Varo Bank

active

The rare US neobank that is actually a bank.

4.6

San Francisco · 7M+ · Bank holding + private capital

7.2Solid

When a US page asks ‘is it a real bank?’, Varo is the yes. Chime and Current are the no-with-an-asterisk.

Best for: US users who want a neobank app without the partner-bank asterisk.

Licence

National bank charter

Protection

FDIC insured as Varo Bank, N.A. — not pass-through theatre

Monthly

No monthly on core checking