Online banking might seem like a ‘smooth sailing’ service available to all, but back in the day, it looked a whole lot different. In a then-world which still did not rely on internet services, virtual banking basically had to be invented from scratch.

Along came the man whose future vision would change the game of finances for generations to come.

In a society that had yet to grasp the concept of online banking, Norris introduced novelty and innovation in developing just that.

The concept of e-banking might not seem like a big deal from today’s standpoint, but in the early 00s, being able to set up an account in less than ten minutes was a seminal milestone in the online and cash-savvy world.

Read on to learn how Norris Koppel paved the path to accessible online banking as we know it:

Humble Beginnings

Raised in a working-class Estonian family, Norris Koppel never had success come easy to him. Due to his challenging upbringing, Norris’ teacher mother and counsellor father oftentimes struggled to make ends meet and find the resources to further support their son.

And yet, it was thanks to his diligent parents that Norris came to learn that it was hard work and consistency that always paid off in the long run. The first step to Norris’ brighter future was to finish high-school, which he did swiftly, and head to University to both further enrich his knowledge and avoid enrolling in the military.

As a result, Norris enrolled in Law studies and soon enough, he realized he had no natural knack or desire to learn the law in depth. Instead of continuing his studies, Norris dropped out of Law school and decided to pursue a degree in economics.

Although not an expert in finances, growing up modestly had always encouraged Norris to master the art of earning money and a lot of it. Unfortunately, it turned out that economics was also not Norris’ forte, so he quit his second enrollment and took the road less travelled.

This time around, Norris enrolled in computer science studies and- mind you- managed to stick to his career path, ultimately graduating at the University of Westminster in London.

For Norris, however, obtaining a diploma would mean nothing without him actually putting his knowledge into practice. Even more, Norris had spent almost a decade in earning a single diploma, and now had a huge financial debt to clear.

Realizing he had to pay back what he owed- one way or the other- didn't spend much time regretting his past decisions. Instead, he shifted his focus on becoming financially strong - so strong that he never had to worry about money again!

Building From The Ground Up

Before he could find a job that suited him, Norris had to reshift his mindset and acquire as much self-confidence and knowledge as possible. Since confidence was an issue for Norris from a very young age, he struggled to see himself as worthy of success.

But if there was one thing Norris had never been- was a quitter. The more work you put into it, the more fruits you’ll get to harvest, he believed. Soon enough, Norris succeeded in more than just believing, and actually started doing whatever it took and regardless of how long it would take.

Once he expelled the fear that prevailed him, he would be able to do it all, and do it right. What Norris thought would take years to master actually took a mere few weeks.

With his revamped public speaking skills and greater confidence in what he was capable of achieving, Norris would soon land his first prosperous gig at a marketing agency - which added another change to his mindset, one that allowed him to take the next step!

First Taste of Success

Working at a marketing agency for two years has taught Norris everything he wanted to know about business. Although for Norris having a steady job meant being able to clear off his student debts, working at a marketing agency was still far from his original vision of success.

After two years of hard labour and learning, Norris was ready to go back to his freedom of choice and consider his business options in greater depth. Hungry for that sense of liberty in doing your own thing, Norris felt he was not one to follow into someone else’s footsteps. The only way he could free himself from the chains of traditional working was to develop a business plan of his own and go for it with all he had.

The first step to success for Norris was to read as many books as he possibly could and get the gist of what it takes to own your own business.

Baby Steps to Business Glory

In 2007, Norris dove in entrepreneur waters for the very first time.

His first line of business was called MyJar and it provided credit services to interested clients. It was an undeniably difficult business to succeed in, Norris figured, especially since he cared to help the less fortunate, which everyone knew, cost more money than it earned.

Not long after MyJar’s initial loss of funds, Norris realized that one of the reasons he failed in this line of business was due to him relying on the old ways of measuring customers’ credit worth.

To rethink how credit worked was now more essential to Norris than ever before, and soon, he would develop new ways to lend people money even without having an existing credit history. The next thing he worked on was to increase the speed of money delivery, which he managed to round to a total of three working days.

A bit of effort and readjustment later, MyJar went from rotting in ruins to becoming one of the top three lenders in the UK.

If there was ever a time for Norris to stop and smell the roses - this wasn’t it. He had bigger things to achieve, new tech businesses to learn, and trustworthy client software to develop!

Norris Koppel as a Humanist

Raising money for Norris was a piece of cake at this point. With this kind of cash, he would help develop a foundation to educate children on the consequences of borrowing money from giants who had them. Although the foundation was not the hardest to set up, it was keeping it afloat that posed the biggest challenge.

For Norris, however, giving up his lifelong journey was out of the question so he kept pushing forward and brought smart money management classes closer to his homeland of Estonia.

Even today, Norris’ practices are applied among youngsters, who are taught how to manage their money by applying his effective and practical system.

And just when you thought he couldn’t grow even more successful, Norris launched his final and most relevant project of all - Monese!

Eureka!

Norris first had his epiphany moment while laying on a beach. Given his early experiences, no one understood the struggles of opening a bank account as a foreigner quite as good as Norris. With this thought came the enlightenment followed by a ponder.

Could he, Norris Koppel, develop a banking service that will enable foreigners in the UK to open a bank account more easily?

Along with this thought came others, such as the reason why no one had thought of the idea before, and whether there were any legal obstacles in enforcing his vision. Quick research later, Norris figured that the window of opportunity - by chance or otherwise- was now open to him to walk it and make the most of it.

The massive shift to technology did not escape Norris, and he soon realized what he needed was to develop an app that would work independently to using computers. While creating the app was not his biggest worry, Norris figured the most important piece of the puzzle was to earn people’s trust in using his app.

Two years and a whole lot of effort later, the last jigsaw fell into place and Norris finally had a launch-worthy product in his hands.

The Launch of Monese

Early in 2015, Norris saw that the global movement of labor wasn’t going to decrease - on the contrary, it was only getting bigger!

Also, the mobile revolution was emerging from the dark, and sensing that it would dominate the future, he launched the first mobile-friendly banking app for locals and foreigners - Monese.

Eager to improve people's banking experiences, Norris’ app focused on two major aspects: developing the use of smart licensing applications, and figuring out how to label potential money lenders as reliable.

Next, he approached several potential investors, and, it didn't take them long to realize the problem Monese wanted to solve. Before he knew it, Tera Ventures YYX Capital investors seeded the first round with a total of $1.8 million.

In 2016, £41 million were moved through the app with over 50,000 people installing it on their Androids. Due to the huge interest, Monese was launched on iOS the same year.

Norris didn't stop here either, raising another dazzling €1.1 million by Tera Ventures to aid him launch Euro current accounts. Next thing you know, Monese was in the European market!

Come 2018, and more and more people are downloading the app - 600,000 sign ups and counting!

From then on, growth was inevitable.

Monese, Today

Monese makes financial transactions for foreign residents easier than ever. The service does not require domestic addresses from users, and what’s more, it allows them to manage their financials through a simple-to-use app.

Once the app is installed, it requires an ID or passport photo, and three minutes of data entry later, boom, a baking account is activated.

Today, Monese provides more than two million migrants with the financial freedom they deserve.

Far from just being able to create a bank account, the service now offers a broader experience to users and allows them to receive salaries, shop at stores or online, pay bills or send money abroad - all done with Monese’s super-smart contactless card!