- Tide is a UK financial technology company providing services for small businesses.
- The company was established in 2015 by George Bevis.
- Tide is based in central London, with offices in Sofia, Bulgaria and Hyderabad, India.
About Tide
Tide provides current accounts to small businesses and freelancers. It was one of the first digital-only platforms to offer business current accounts in the UK. Founder George Bevis previously worked as a banker, starting his career at Capital One. He also held the positions of Head of Innovation at the Royal Bank of Scotland and Business Strategy Director at Barclaycard.
As an experienced entrepreneur, Bevis encountered the issue of time-consuming administrative tasks while running several small businesses concurrently. He saw Tide as the solution to this, providing a time-efficient and straightforward finance platform for small-business owners.
The fintech app aims to revolutionise how small businesses and freelancers manage their finances, offering a range of competitive features and fees. The company currently provides business accounts to over 140,000 small-business owners.
What Tide Does
Tide gives small-business owners easy access and control of their finances through the mobile-first platform. It takes less than five minutes to open an account and credit approval is instant. Tide’s financial services are available instantly via the app and include automated bookkeeping and integrated invoicing. Tide also offers loans services of up to £1,500, helping businesses at times when they need a small cash injection.
One of the company’s big selling points is its competitive fees. Tide does not charge for card transactions and has no extra costs for transactions or withdrawals abroad. There is a 20p charge on transfers in and out of accounts, but Tide-to-Tide transfers are free. Tide also has partnerships with the Post Office and PayPoint to facilitate cash deposit services. Post Office deposits have a £1 fee, and PayPoint deposits charge 3% of the transaction value.
Tide stands out from other fintech current accounts because it doesn’t lend, or invest its users’ money, meaning it is always accessible. It also boasts reliable security measures. All payments through your phone have to be authorised, and Tide also requests a selfie every time you log in to a new device to make sure it’s you. With its array of unique and user-friendly features, Tide has been praised by technology and consumer critics.
Tide in 2020
This year, the company plans to introduce new appealing features. These will include both Apple Pay and Google pay integration. Security improvements are set to be made too, adding 3D secure authentication. Tide is also in progress with introducing a payroll feature this year.
