Three vie for digital signature of Movenbank

US start-up Movenbank is talking to three banks in Australia about a partnership that will enable the bank to launch locally next year.

And, Brett King, a founder and chief executive, said not all of them are big banks. King spoke to Banking Day on the sidelines of an industry briefing hosted by Sitecore in Melbourne yesterday.

King said there were two main criteria for selecting a banking partner. One was a passion for mobile banking and the second was a signature-free sign-on process for customers.

Movenbank is yet to open in the US, with its negotiations with technology suppliers being one source of delay.

Funding is another issue, though the firm recently said it had obtained US$2.4million in seed funding from the Anthemis Group, Raptor Ventures, Kevin Plank and a group of Singaporean investors.

Movenbank lacks a banking licence in the US and will instead rely on the deposit-taking licence of a small bank based in Utah.

Key founders, including King and chief information officer Scott Bales, began their banking careers in Australia.