When you’re first starting out with your business or start-up, it’s often tempting to use your own personal bank account for your finances.
When you’re first starting out with your business or start-up, it’s often tempting to use your own personal bank account for your finances.
When you’re first starting out with your business or start-up, it’s often tempting to use your own personal bank account for your finances.
It’s easy, doesn’t cost any extra fees, and means you can have instant access to your cash. However, in the long run, you’ll always need to have a separate account, whether it’s for legal, tax, or clarity reasons.
When it comes to choosing a business bank account, there’s a lot on offer, catering to different sizes and types of companies.
However, the rise of online challenger banks means it’s easier than ever to get set up with your account.
One such newcomer is Tide and in this guide we've covered everything you need to know about what they have to offer.
Related: How to Open a Tide Business Account
| Bank | Tide |
| Founded | 2015 |
| Bank Type | Digital / App |
| Eligibility | UK businesses |
| Account ready time | Minutes to days, depending on checks |
| Overdraft | No, but other finance available |
| Monthly fee | No |
| Transfer fees | Yes (Free Tide to Tide) |
| Debit card | Yes |
As with every provider, there are positive and negative aspects of Tide’s service. Before I take a deep-dive, here are some of the notable pros and cons:
✔️ Simple to use app that allows you to manage your money
✔️ Reasonable charges and fees compared to competitors
✔️ Create business invoices and share details with your accountant with the app
✔️ Safe and secure to use, and covered by the FCA and PRA
❌ No direct customer service, only mobile contacts
❌ International money transfers can’t be made
❌ Doesn’t have all of the features of a traditional bank account
❌ You can’t pay in cheques and cash
Tide is a company offering alternative business accounts that you can open within minutes. Their product is aimed at smaller companies and freelancers who are in need of separating their business and personal finances.
The company first formed in 2015 as a fintech and has since grown from strength to strength. At the start of 2019, they secured £60 million of funding to expand their offering when they partnered with ClearBank.
The main focus of Tide is on app and card-based banking. You can set up an account, manage your finances, and order a MasterCard using the Tide app. The entire experience uses their smartphone software, giving a streamlined way of banking.
The basics of the Tide account are simple. Like many other challenger banking apps, all you need to do is sign up for an account and follow the on-screen prompts. The whole process takes just a few minutes, and it’s free to sign up. You’ll only need to provide some basic information about you and your business, as well as verify a couple of forms of ID.
Once your account is set up, they’ll send you a free Tide MasterCard, which takes around three days to arrive. However, once the sign-up process is complete, you’ll immediately be able to start using your new business account provided there
You can make transfers and payments using the app, although direct debits may take longer to set up.
It’s as simple as that. Once you have the app installed, you can manage all of your money and finances, as well as your physical MasterCard from the smartphone interface.
Despite being a relatively simple business account, there’s a lot you can do with the app:
Those are just some of the features you can expect from Tide, and you get all that with a quick sign-up, no credit checks, and no need to go into a bank.
Business banking can sometimes get expensive, yet Tide has low fees. Because the company has so few overheads and no physical locations, they can afford to offer their business accounts without charging a monthly fee. So, you can access all the great features mentioned above without paying much at all.
There are some attached transaction fees, however:
I was impressed with the fees, when compared to some of Tide's competitors, and if you’re overseas, you’ll get the MasterCard exchange rate and don’t have to pay foreign transaction fees. However, you can’t currently make transfers to overseas accounts.
Your initial MasterCard is free, and if you lose it, you’ll also be eligible for a free replacement. Additionally, if you’re transferring between Tide accounts, you won’t be charged anything.
If you’re a new small or medium-sized business owner or freelancer, a Tide account could well be suitable for you. The fact that it’s so easy to get started and set up the app means you can start making and taking transactions with minimal effort. If you deal with a lot of UK companies, send a lot of invoices, and want to integrate your bank with your accountant or accounting software, Tide is a good option.
Those who need to make a lot of cash withdrawals and payments may not find this account suitable. The fees can get a little pricey when doing so. Similarly, if you need to make transfers to overseas clients, you’ll have to do so elsewhere.
If you deal with a lot of UK companies, send a lot of invoices, and want to integrate your bank with your accountant or accounting software, Tide is a great choice.
Some business owners will want the reassurance of a face-to-face person to help them set up and manage their account. Although Tide’s customer service is good, it’s limited to a text chat on the app.
As with every account, there are some drawbacks to using Tide:
Some of these may not affect you, and others will be bearable. Ultimately, you must decide what your business banking needs are and whether Tide can meet them.
Tide's parent company is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations. Tide doesn’t invest or loan out money, so it’s not at risk. Even if Tide were to file for insolvency, your money is safe.
In terms of the app, your account is password protected, and you have to authorise any payments made on your card. Every time you sign into a new device using the Tide app, you’ll have to provide a selfie to verify it’s you. If you do lose your smartphone, you can email Tide to freeze your account and card.
Tide offers a service that will be ideal for many SMEs and freelancers. It’s incredibly simple to get started with, and using the app to manage your finances is straightforward. The fees are reasonable for most activities, and you can rest assured that your money is safe.
If you’re a cash-based business or make a lot of foreign transfers, this is perhaps not the account for you. Similarly, if you need the reassurance of a physical branch, you won’t find that here.
Address:
144a Clerkenwell Road
London
UK
Telephone: 0333 121 0266
Email: [email protected]
Find answers in Q&As and ask your question
good bank i love
I don’t recommend wasting your time on this—the worst support service I’ve ever encountered.
In one week of active correspondence and 10 long emails, I couldn’t get Patrick W* from the onboarding team to tell me what documents were needed to complete the process. I’m serious, this would be funny if it weren’t so sad.
Imagine a support team that responds without reading your previous messages, ignoring direct answers to your direct questions. It feels like you’re being trolled or talking to a wall. I’ve collected a series of memes to capture this experience, like: “We must understand that you are conducting a commercial activity, so please provide us with a certificate of sale of the apartment.” (But I didn’t sell the apartment! I clearly stated this in previous correspondence and have already provided all the necessary explanations and documents for my business activity, my business is not related to the sale of apartments and I have already provided documents and given detailed explanations about the origin of funds for my SaaS startup.)
My direct and repeated requests to switch to another “specialist” were ignored.
Think carefully and read reviews (especially bad ones, as they are usually honest) before trusting someone with your hard-earned money. Listen to your intuition. Otherwise, at best, you will waste a week of nerves and give your documents into the hands of unknown people, which do not inspire confidence at all.
Tide have deactivated my account without reason or warning, with hundreds of thousands of pounds in it. I've had to get a lawyer involved (at an additional cost).
Stay away from Tide unless you want to lose all your money.
Stay away from this bank. They have a severe lack of security your funds are not safe with them. There is no communication or customer care. They repeat scripts. I lost all hard earned funds because of an online scam. They did absolutely nothing to help or support and made me wait 2 weeks just to let me know is nothing they can do. They offered no explanation why and cut off communication when I asked about insurance for fraud. They could have issued a refund or retracted the money. Stay away from this low grade place.
