Ask HN: Cheap and Reliable API for Building a Bank? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Cheap and Reliable API for Building a Bank?

Hi,

I'm looking for some more information on what people think are the best banking setup APIs. I'm considering a few different options:

1. Stripe - I've used it a bit in the past. Easy to use but I'm a bit worried about costs, 2.9% is high.

2. SynapseFi - I'm curious if anyone has used this product/API? I couldn't find any pricing on their site either.

3. Any others people can recommend that I can check out.

I'm looking for the cheapest API to quickly spin up a financial service (and hoping to avoid larger fees) and thought people here might have some suggestions. Thank you.

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What product(s) do you want to build? Your submission suggests it might be one or more things.

"API for Building a Bank?"

Do you want to take customer deposits?

"Stripe"

Do you want to sell stuff to people, and allow them to pay you by card?

"SynapseFi"

Do you want to engage the services of another company, which is a bank, so that you can, e.g. issue payment cards?

Based on the lack of specificity in your post, maybe one or more of the following applies?

A) You aren't sure what you want to build yet?

B) You want to provide a wide range of retail banking products?

C) You're still getting up to speed with what banks, card networks, processors etc. each do?

Feel free to email me (address in profile) if you don't want to share here. I've only recently moved to the US, but have launched financial products (covering payments, deposits and loans) in the UK, which is somewhat similar.

Thanks, I'll shoot you an email.

Search for BaaS i.e. "Banking As A Service" and you will find lot of startups already offering an API to start neo/digital banks.

Check out Dwolla and KeyBank KeyNavigator.

How do you like using Dwolla versus Stripe? Specifically around pricing too. Thanks

You could try the blockchain

I'd be skeptical of anyone building a financial platform on the cheapest things money can buy

I'd be skeptical of anyone trying to build regulated financial services on a technology that is still unregulated in large part of the world.

Getting a financial service license is possible, getting a blockchain-based banking service recognized by you financial authority might be a stretch. And you'll likely spend a lot in accountants and lawyers fees, not even talking about KYC and Anti-Money-Laundering requirements.

Disclaimer: I work in blockchain (not for finance) and used to work in financial services in particular gearing up financial systems for new regulations (Basel III [1], EMIR [2], KYC, Anti-Money-Laundering...)

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basel_III

[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Market_Infrastructure...

I was being a bit facetious w.r.t. blockchain :]

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