neon is different
People often ask us what makes us different from other account providers, and wonder whether they can’t just get the same product elsewhere. Our answer is (almost always) no! And here, we’ll show you why.
How are we different from traditional banks?
First off, even though we offer an account, we’re not a bank. We offer our account in partnership with Hypothekarbank Lenzburg. As a result, you can enjoy both the digital experience of a start-up and the security of a bank with a 150-year history, covered by the deposit protection scheme.
We don’t have any counters or branches, so we barely need to charge you anything in the way of fees. Our accounts have absolutely zero basic fees, and our cost per transaction is much lower than with traditional banks, particularly for international transactions: we’ve been passing the interbank rate on to you since January 2020. Read more about this here.
And with neon, everything is lightning-fast. It takes less than 10 minutes to open an account, and nobody handles payments more quickly. Plus, you can do all this with an app, no matter where you are.
Last but not least, we’re independent. We choose the products that are best for you, not the ones with the highest margins for us. If you suggest something you’d like us to change and we agree with you, then we’ll make the change happen. We might even do it in conjunction with a partner who shares our philosophy. No matter what the issue, we’re free to make our own, independent decisions.
How are we different from Revolut?
Since January 2020, we’ve been passing the Mastercard reference rate (0% bank fee) on to you for payments abroad, just like Revolut do. Plus, in partnership with Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, we can offer you a real Swiss bank account, covered by the deposit protection scheme. Thanks to your personal Swiss IBAN, you can have your salary paid into your account, say, and transfer money to people at other banks. And yes, we’ve even got a pay-in slip, plus an IBAN scanner and eBill. Revolut can’t give you that.
And there’s no need to make transfers to your Revolut account (and pay the fees associated with this). With neon, your card is linked directly to your account. It couldn’t be easier, and your neon card is also super-cheap to use abroad: find out more here.
How are we different from Twint?
Like Revolut, Twint doesn’t offer a bank account. Twint is a digital wallet that you can use to make payments online and in shops. However, you always need an account behind it – and that could be a neon account, in fact :) Type «Twint» into our FAQs to find out how to link neon with Twint.
Still got questions? Drop us a line.