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Finance Stack
Entrepreneurs spend an average of $30-40K on first-year startup costs making it vital to have a dedicated and trustworthy financial institution housing your money. Fortunately, many banks offer accounts for tech startups that come with perks such as low fees, convenient mobile banking, and other rewards dedicated to small businesses.
Whether you’re just getting started or looking to optimize your funds, these are the best banks in Silicon Valley and beyond, that we see venture capital-backed startups working with most when they come to Zeni.
While no means an exhaustive list, and every startup has different needs, continue reading for a comprehensive overview of the best banks for startups, followed by a head-to-head feature comparison.
Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) specializes in startup banking and has an entire team focused on tech financing. SVB’s reputation is so renowned that 50% of venture-backed tech and life science companies in the US bank with SVB.
The deep institutional startup knowledge, proactive support, variety of banking tools and community of SVB make it an ideal banking partner for entrepreneurs responsible for early-stage tech startups to later, growth-stage startups. It even offers a suite of global banking services for startups with global ambitions.
Mercury is a tech-focused bank built for startups. While it specializes in working with tech companies, any type of business can bank with Mercury.
One of the biggest benefits of Mercury is its incredibly straightforward offering and easy-to-use platform. For example, startups can sign up and gain access to a business checking and savings account and a debit card in as little as 15 minutes.
See also: 8 Best Accounting Tools for Startups
While Brex Cash technically isn’t a bank, we decided to include it here for their “cash management account” offering. A cash management account (CMA) provides all that a business bank account does with fewer fees. You can manage all transactions on one portal, make deposits, trade securities, and even write checks with a CMA.
Brex Cash has raised a whopping $732.1 million from venture capital firms to reimagine the financial services landscape for startups and currently offers one of the most comprehensive CMAs for businesses.
First Republic is a popular banking option for startups with its ‘Banking for Innovators’ services. These services include access to basic business banking needs, plus startup-specific offerings such as complimentary 409a valuation, robust online and mobile banking tools, and access to strategic advice from a dedicated banking partner.
First Republic emphasizes building personal relationships with its customers, offering direct phone and email support, and going the extra mile to meet the needs of its customers. Its emphasis on providing “extraordinary customer service” truly sets it apart.
Wells Fargo is one of the most well-known banking solutions for individuals and businesses and is a leading small business bank. Even as a well-established financial institution, they offer many perks for startups, including an excellent small business credit card and small business loans.
They also offer different business checking accounts; for startups, the Navigate Business Checking Account includes up to 250 transactions and $20,000 in cash deposits processed per fee period at no charge. This type of account supports new and growing businesses with a steady volume of banking activity.
See also: Startup Bookkeeping: Common Mistakes VC-Backed Startups Make and How We're Solving Them
The devil is in the details, as with most vendor and partnership decisions. This head-to-head comparison of the key features of each startup banking partner will help founders make an informed decision for their business.
For clarity’s sake, we’re comparing the best checking accounts for businesses in this section (or, in the case of Brex Cash, the cash management account). We will compare:
Other options for startup banking accounts range from simple checking and savings accounts, to more complex money market accounts and cash management accounts.
Silicon Valley Bank | Mercury | Brex Cash | First Republic | Wells Fargo | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cash Management Account | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
Business Checking Account | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Business Savings Account | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
Business Money Market Savings | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Before moving forward with the application process, be sure you and your business meet the qualifications to open an account.
Silicon Valley Bank | Mercury | Brex Cash | First Republic | Wells Fargo | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Qualifications | • Federal EIN • Most companies will qualify unless associated with adult entertainment, marijuana, or gambling |
• Business must be incorporated in US with a valid federal EIN, and in good standing • Most US companies will qualify, aside from money services businesses or businesses involved with adult entertainment, marijuana or internet gambling |
• Business must be incorporated in US with a valid federal EIN, and in good standing (sole proprietors do not qualify) | • Business must be incorporated in US with a valid federal EIN • Must not be associated with adult entertainment, marijuana, or gambling |
• Business must be registered in the US, with a business tax ID # and state ID |
Documentation | • Federal EIN • Account holder (founder/s) social security number and copy of government issued photo ID • Traction & financing details to-date, including accelerator involvement |
• Federal EIN • Account holder (founder/s) social security number and copy of government issued photo ID |
• Federal EIN • Account holder (founder/s) social security number and copy of government issued photo ID |
• Original articles of incorporation • Federal EIN • Account holder (founder/s) social security number and copy of government issued photo ID |
• Original or certified copies of your articles of incorporation • Federal EIN • Account holder (founder/s) social security number, and two forms of personal identification, one of which must be issued by a government agency |
Minimum opening deposit | No minimum | No minimum | No minimum | $5,000 | $25 |
How to apply | Initiate online or at branch | Online only | Online only | Online or at branch | Online or at branch |
International availability | • SVB has offices in the US, Ireland, UK, Germany, India, Israel, and China. • It has an international banking network in Canada, Chile, Brazil, South Africa, Australia, NZ, Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, and Europe (some exclusions apply) |
Mercury was made for US-based startups but international businesses who work in the US can also form a Mercury bank account | Available only to customers (C-corp, S-corp, or LLC) that are incorporated in the US | Available in the US only | Wells Fargo has locations around the world to help businesses succeed on an international scale, with locations across the Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Latin America regions |
New entries into the startup banking industry offer the most competitive low and no-fee banking products and services.
Silicon Valley Bank | Mercury | Brex Cash | First Republic | Wells Fargo | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ACH | No fee | No fee | No fee | • $0.10 each credit • $0.02 each debit • Various setup fees |
$0.2 per ACH item received |
Transaction | No fee | No fee | No fee | Fees apply for most transfers; detailed breakdown unavailable | First 250 transactions included per fee period at no charge, $0.50 each thereafter |
Wire transfer | No fee, daily cap of $100K | • $5 for domestic transfers • $20 for international transfers • Free for Tea Room customers |
No fee | • No fee for incoming domestic & int’l wires • $35 outgoing domestic & int’l in USD • $25 outgoing intl in foreign currency • $12 outgoing wires via online banking |
• $0 per wire for incoming domestic and international U.S. or foreign currency • $30 per transfer for outgoing domestic over two per fee period |
Overdraft | $30 per item | No fee | No fee | $30 per item | $35 per item |
Maintenance | No fee | No fee | No fee | $30/month, can use earnings credit to cover costs | Varies, can avoid by meeting certain requirements |
Check | • $0.11 for checks deposited • $15 for foreign check conversion |
No fee | No fee | $0.10 per check deposit | No fee |
Details of each bank’s fees are available via their respective landing pages, where you can sift through the fine print:
Startup founders are on the go 24/7 and require a banking partner who can rise to the occasion to meet their needs. This chart will help you judge how easy it will be to access your company’s bank account or contact customer support about an urgent matter.
Silicon Valley Bank | Mercury | Brex Cash | First Republic | Wells Fargo | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Online banking | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Mobile banking | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Physical branches | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
Customer support | • Phone & email, weekdays from 5am – 5:30pm PST | • General help email • Request account-specific support when logged into account |
• Phone & email, weekdays from 5am - midnight PST, weekends from 5am - 10pm PST | • Phone & email • Dedicated banking partner assigned |
• Phone & email, 24/7 |
See also: Accounting Software Comparison for Startups
Account security is paramount when deciding where to store your startup’s cash.
Silicon Valley Bank | Mercury | Brex Cash | First Republic | Wells Fargo | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
FDIC | Insured up to the FDIC limit of $250,000 | Insured up to the FDIC limit of $250,000 | Insured up to the FDIC limit of $250,000 | Insured up to the FDIC limit of $250,000 | Insured up to the FDIC limit of $250,000 |
SIPC | Not applicable | Not applicable | Brex Treasury is a member of SIPC, which protects securities customers up to $500,000 | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Fraud protection | Choose between per item, monthly, or per transaction fraud protection. | Zero liability for fraudulent transactions. Automatically credits account. | Zero liability for fraudulent transactions. Automatically credits account. | Clients of First Republic Bank have access to Trusteer Rapport, which is designed to protect users from financial malware and phishing attacks. | 24/7 fraud monitoring with zero liability protection for free. |
Password protection | • Requires users to verify their identity via text message or a phone call at login when high-risk activities are being performed. • Offers IBM Security Trusteer Rapport® online fraud protection software. |
• Passwords are stored hashed with the bcrypt algorithm, and plaintext passwords are never stored or logged. • Time-based One Time Passwords are used for two-factor authentication via Authy and Google Authenticator. Authentication codes are never sent via insecure channels like SMS. |
• Brex Cash enforces strong password requirements and supports mobile biometric authentication (Face ID/Touch ID). | • Provide clients with multiple Identification numbers, tokens and passwords. • Forced password change every 120 days. • Uses encryption keys for Direct Transmission Service. |
• Option to sign up for 2-step sign-in verification. |
See also: Startup Bookkeeping: Common Mistakes VC-Backed Startups Make and How We're Solving Them
Whether you're evaluating a banking partner for a new business or looking to change your current banking setup, use this guide to help you compare the top startup banking options for your business needs.
And while it’s important to find the bank with the best business banking features for your startup, your financial management efforts will tremendously benefit from additional help from the experts.
For the rest of your startup's finance-related needs, take a closer look at Zeni. Zeni uses a combination of AI and human finance experts to maintain accurate books and manage all of the finance functions for your startup. Services include daily bookkeeping, ongoing accounting services, access to our finance concierge, bill pay and invoicing, budgeting and projections, and even annual taxes and CFO services.
Zeni customers also gain access to a single dashboard to see and manage their finances in real-time.
Editorial Disclosure: Zeni has business partnerships with SVB, Mercury and Brex.
Manage your cash flow with Zeni. Book a free demo below to learn about our real-time bookkeeping so you're always in the loop with your finances.
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