Royal Bank of Scotland has launched a digital bank as it bids to take on rising challengers such as Monzo, Starling and Revolut.
The new app, named Bó, is focused on helping people manage their money by allowing them to budget, set goals and track their progress.
RBS analysed the data of 2.6 million customers and found that half of them spent every penny they earned, while a quarter consistently spent more than their income. To combat this, RBS claims, Bó helps customers replicate the behaviour of successful savers.
Many of the features will sound familiar to people who have already used one of Bó’s competitors. Users can analyse all of their spending by retailer, category and location, put money aside in a “piggy bank” and set goals.
Curiously, however, the app is not yet linked up to the Bacs payment system so it will not allow customers to set up direct debits or have their salary paid into their Bó account.
1/50 28 November 2019
Cyclists make their way up a tree lined hill near to Moor Crichel in Dorset. November’s dismal weather will finally change, with drier and colder conditions coming for the start of December, forecasters have said
PA
2/50 27 November 2019
The moment a swan flew over a flock of 60,000 starlings as dusk fell on Whixall Moss Nature Reserve in Shropshire
Andrew Fusek Peters / SWNS
3/50 26 November 2019
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon plays with local children during a visit to the Jelly Tots & Cookies Play Cafe in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire
PA
4/50 25 November 2019
Prime Minister Boris Johnson poses with sheep as he visits the Royal Welsh Showground, in Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, whilst on the General Election campaign trail
PA
5/50 24 November 2019
Cush Jumbo attends the 65th Evening Standard Theatre Awards at London Coliseum
Getty Images
6/50 23 November 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn meets a supporter on a train on his return from a visit to Sheffield
PA
7/50 22 November 2019
Gallery assistants adjust ‘The Ancient Town of Uglich’ by Konstantin Yuon, 1913, estimated at £600,000 to £800,000, during a press preview of the sale of works by some of the most pre-eminent creators of Russian art at Sotheby’s in London
PA
8/50 21 November 2019
A mother seal appears to hug her pup as grey seals return to Donna Nook National Nature Reserve in Lincolnshire, where they come every year in late autumn and winter to give birth
PA
9/50 20 November 2019
After Mauricio Pochettino’s sacking the eveninfg before newly appointed Tottenham head coach, Jose Mourinho, takes his first training session in charge
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty
10/50 19 November 2019
Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a visit to Jimmy Egan’s Boxing Academy at Wythenshawe, while on the campaign trail ahead of the General Election
PA
11/50 18 November 2019
Mist over Buttermere lake in the Lake District
PA
12/50 17 November 2019
Stefanos Tsitsipas lifts the winners trophy after beating Dominic Thiem at the ATP World Tour Finals tennis tournament in London
EPA
13/50 16 November 2019
Duke of York, speaking for the first time about his links to Jeffrey Epstein in an interview with BBC Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis
BBC/PA
14/50 15 November 2019
Brazilian indigenous leader, Kreta Kaingang from the Kaingang People, holds a petition letter with over 200,000 signatures asking the UK government to suspend trade talks with Brazil until the Amazon and its people are protected, as he poses outside 10 Downing Street
AFP via Getty
15/50 14 November 2019
Spanning all four spaces and the corridor of the White Cube Bermondsey gallery Anselm Kiefer’s new exhibition encompasses large-scale painting and installation
Rex Features
16/50 13 November 2019
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wears a pair of mittens that say ‘Pick Pam’, referring to Labour MP Pam Duncan-Glancy (not pictured) as he visits the Heart of Scotstoun Community Centre in Glasgow
Getty
17/50 12 November 2019
Head glass conservator Sam Kelly inspects the Angeli Laudantes and Angeli Ministrantes stained glass windows at Salisbury Cathedral as restoration work to clean, conserve and restore the windows, installed in 1879, gets underway
PA
18/50 11 November 2019
Flooding in the village of Fishlake near Doncaster after a month’s worth of rain fell in 24 hours
PA
19/50 10 November 2019
World War II Supermarine Spitfire fighter performs a flyover over White Cliffs of Dover during Remembrance Sunday celebrations
Reuters
20/50 9 November 2019
Snow falling in Glyn Ceiriog near Llangollen in Denbighshire
Steffan Williams/PA
21/50 8 November 2019
Scottish National Party candidates, including SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford (centre left) and Nicola Sturgeon (centre), with a Brexit message at the party’s General Election campaign launch in Edinburgh
PA
22/50 7 November 2019
Delivery lorry stuck in flood water at Coston Ford, Leicestershire after heavy rainfall in the area
PA
23/50 6 November 2019
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson makes a statement to announce the general election at Downing Street in London, Britain
Reuters
24/50 5 November 2019
Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson speaking at the launch of their general election campaign at the Institute of Civil Engineers in London
PA
25/50 4 November 2019
Pelicans in St James’s Park in central London
AFP/Getty
26/50 3 November 2019
Dancers perform a mass Ghoomar dance during Diwali celebrations in Trafalgar Square, London
Reuters
27/50 2 November 2019
Campaigners listen as SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon addresses a rally calling for Scottish independence in Glasgow
AFP via Getty
28/50 1 November 2019
Police and recovery workers remove a damaged bus from the scene of a crash in Sevenoaks Road, south-east London. A man has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving after a person died and 15 others were injured
PA
29/50 31 October 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn gestures as launches the party’s election campaign in south London. Britain will go to the polls on December 12
AFP via Getty
30/50 30 October 2019
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon joins Alyn Smith, the SNP’s candidate for Stirling, at the Made in Stirling Store and Creative Hub, during the general election campaign trail
PA
31/50 29 October 2019
A 1264 locomotive travels through an autumn scene along the North York Moors National Park
PA
32/50 28 October 2019
Paul Hayes of Lower Lydbrook ferries children to dry land after the River Wye burst its banks flooding the Gloucestershire village
PA
33/50 27 October 2019
Cosplayers during the third day of London’s Comic Con
PA
34/50 26 October 2019
England fans celebrate after their side beat New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup semi-final match in Japan. Eddie Jones’s side won 19-7
PA
35/50 25 October 2019
Meerkats at Blair Drummond Safari Park, Stirling, investigate a carved pumpkin as the park celebrates national pumpkin day on Saturday October 26.
PA
36/50 24 October 2019
A giant inflatable monster, created by artists Filthy Luker and Pedro Estrellas, is unveiled in Manchester ahead of the city’s annual halloween celebrations
PA
37/50 23 October 2019
Thirty-nine bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex, police have said.
The discovery of 38 adults and one teenager was made at an industrial estate in Thurrock.
Police said they believed the lorry had come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead, in Wales, on Saturday.
Essex Police said it had launched a murder investigation after its officers were called to Waterglade Industrial Park, in Grays, in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
A 25-year-old-man from Northern Ireland has been arrested on suspicion of murder
PA
38/50 22 October 2019
Ships out at sea before the sun rises off the coast of Whitley Bay, Northumberland
PA
39/50 21 October 2019
Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator’s Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife. The messy display is the culmination of a weekend of festivities where first years say thank you to their more senior student “parents” for mentoring them
PA
40/50 20 October 2019
Wales players celebrate after beating France in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final in Japan. Warren Gatland’s side had to battle after France’s fast start but capitalised on their rivals’ ill discipline to squeeze into the semi-finals, 20-19
Reuters
41/50 19 October 2019
People gather in London to join the Final Say march for a people’s vote
Angela Christofilou/The Independent
42/50 18 October 2019
Protesters on Whitehall in London during an Extinction Rebellion climate change protest
PA
43/50 17 October 2019
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands during a news conference after agreeing on a Brexit deal, in Brussels
Reuters
44/50 16 October 2019
A man walks his dog through the fallen leaves in Clarkes Gardens, Allerton in Liverpool
PA
45/50 15 October 2019
Police officers carry away an activist as Extinction Rebellion protesters block a road with a caravan in central London
Reuters
46/50 14 October 2019
Queen Elizabeth II sits with Prince Charles on the Sovereign’s throne ahead of delivering the Queen’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament
AFP
47/50 13 October 2019
Great Britain’s Joe Fraser competes on Parallel Bars during the World Gymnastics Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. He claimed GB’s second gold with his victory. The 20-year-old from Birmingham nailed his routine to score 15.0 then watched as a series of rivals failed to live up to his total
Getty
48/50 12 October 2019
St Helens players celebrate with the trophy after they won the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford in Manchester. They beat Salford Red Devils 23-6
PA
49/50 11 October 2019
Richard Ratcliffe, husband of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe jailed in Tehran since 2016, holds his daughter Gabriella during a news conference in London. Their five-year-old daughter has arrived back in Britain, after making the “bittersweet” decision to bring her home
AFP/Getty
50/50 10 October 2019
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at Thornton Manor. Their meeting focused on further Brexit proposals
EPA/Noel Mullen
1/50 28 November 2019
Cyclists make their way up a tree lined hill near to Moor Crichel in Dorset. November’s dismal weather will finally change, with drier and colder conditions coming for the start of December, forecasters have said
PA
2/50 27 November 2019
The moment a swan flew over a flock of 60,000 starlings as dusk fell on Whixall Moss Nature Reserve in Shropshire
Andrew Fusek Peters / SWNS
3/50 26 November 2019
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon plays with local children during a visit to the Jelly Tots & Cookies Play Cafe in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire
PA
4/50 25 November 2019
Prime Minister Boris Johnson poses with sheep as he visits the Royal Welsh Showground, in Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, whilst on the General Election campaign trail
PA
5/50 24 November 2019
Cush Jumbo attends the 65th Evening Standard Theatre Awards at London Coliseum
Getty Images
6/50 23 November 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn meets a supporter on a train on his return from a visit to Sheffield
PA
7/50 22 November 2019
Gallery assistants adjust ‘The Ancient Town of Uglich’ by Konstantin Yuon, 1913, estimated at £600,000 to £800,000, during a press preview of the sale of works by some of the most pre-eminent creators of Russian art at Sotheby’s in London
PA
8/50 21 November 2019
A mother seal appears to hug her pup as grey seals return to Donna Nook National Nature Reserve in Lincolnshire, where they come every year in late autumn and winter to give birth
PA
9/50 20 November 2019
After Mauricio Pochettino’s sacking the eveninfg before newly appointed Tottenham head coach, Jose Mourinho, takes his first training session in charge
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty
10/50 19 November 2019
Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a visit to Jimmy Egan’s Boxing Academy at Wythenshawe, while on the campaign trail ahead of the General Election
PA
11/50 18 November 2019
Mist over Buttermere lake in the Lake District
PA
12/50 17 November 2019
Stefanos Tsitsipas lifts the winners trophy after beating Dominic Thiem at the ATP World Tour Finals tennis tournament in London
EPA
13/50 16 November 2019
Duke of York, speaking for the first time about his links to Jeffrey Epstein in an interview with BBC Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis
BBC/PA
14/50 15 November 2019
Brazilian indigenous leader, Kreta Kaingang from the Kaingang People, holds a petition letter with over 200,000 signatures asking the UK government to suspend trade talks with Brazil until the Amazon and its people are protected, as he poses outside 10 Downing Street
AFP via Getty
15/50 14 November 2019
Spanning all four spaces and the corridor of the White Cube Bermondsey gallery Anselm Kiefer’s new exhibition encompasses large-scale painting and installation
Rex Features
16/50 13 November 2019
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wears a pair of mittens that say ‘Pick Pam’, referring to Labour MP Pam Duncan-Glancy (not pictured) as he visits the Heart of Scotstoun Community Centre in Glasgow
Getty
17/50 12 November 2019
Head glass conservator Sam Kelly inspects the Angeli Laudantes and Angeli Ministrantes stained glass windows at Salisbury Cathedral as restoration work to clean, conserve and restore the windows, installed in 1879, gets underway
PA
18/50 11 November 2019
Flooding in the village of Fishlake near Doncaster after a month’s worth of rain fell in 24 hours
PA
19/50 10 November 2019
World War II Supermarine Spitfire fighter performs a flyover over White Cliffs of Dover during Remembrance Sunday celebrations
Reuters
20/50 9 November 2019
Snow falling in Glyn Ceiriog near Llangollen in Denbighshire
Steffan Williams/PA
21/50 8 November 2019
Scottish National Party candidates, including SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford (centre left) and Nicola Sturgeon (centre), with a Brexit message at the party’s General Election campaign launch in Edinburgh
PA
22/50 7 November 2019
Delivery lorry stuck in flood water at Coston Ford, Leicestershire after heavy rainfall in the area
PA
23/50 6 November 2019
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson makes a statement to announce the general election at Downing Street in London, Britain
Reuters
24/50 5 November 2019
Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson speaking at the launch of their general election campaign at the Institute of Civil Engineers in London
PA
25/50 4 November 2019
Pelicans in St James’s Park in central London
AFP/Getty
26/50 3 November 2019
Dancers perform a mass Ghoomar dance during Diwali celebrations in Trafalgar Square, London
Reuters
27/50 2 November 2019
Campaigners listen as SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon addresses a rally calling for Scottish independence in Glasgow
AFP via Getty
28/50 1 November 2019
Police and recovery workers remove a damaged bus from the scene of a crash in Sevenoaks Road, south-east London. A man has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving after a person died and 15 others were injured
PA
29/50 31 October 2019
Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn gestures as launches the party’s election campaign in south London. Britain will go to the polls on December 12
AFP via Getty
30/50 30 October 2019
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon joins Alyn Smith, the SNP’s candidate for Stirling, at the Made in Stirling Store and Creative Hub, during the general election campaign trail
PA
31/50 29 October 2019
A 1264 locomotive travels through an autumn scene along the North York Moors National Park
PA
32/50 28 October 2019
Paul Hayes of Lower Lydbrook ferries children to dry land after the River Wye burst its banks flooding the Gloucestershire village
PA
33/50 27 October 2019
Cosplayers during the third day of London’s Comic Con
PA
34/50 26 October 2019
England fans celebrate after their side beat New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup semi-final match in Japan. Eddie Jones’s side won 19-7
PA
35/50 25 October 2019
Meerkats at Blair Drummond Safari Park, Stirling, investigate a carved pumpkin as the park celebrates national pumpkin day on Saturday October 26.
PA
36/50 24 October 2019
A giant inflatable monster, created by artists Filthy Luker and Pedro Estrellas, is unveiled in Manchester ahead of the city’s annual halloween celebrations
PA
37/50 23 October 2019
Thirty-nine bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex, police have said.
The discovery of 38 adults and one teenager was made at an industrial estate in Thurrock.
Police said they believed the lorry had come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead, in Wales, on Saturday.
Essex Police said it had launched a murder investigation after its officers were called to Waterglade Industrial Park, in Grays, in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
A 25-year-old-man from Northern Ireland has been arrested on suspicion of murder
PA
38/50 22 October 2019
Ships out at sea before the sun rises off the coast of Whitley Bay, Northumberland
PA
39/50 21 October 2019
Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator’s Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife. The messy display is the culmination of a weekend of festivities where first years say thank you to their more senior student “parents” for mentoring them
PA
40/50 20 October 2019
Wales players celebrate after beating France in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final in Japan. Warren Gatland’s side had to battle after France’s fast start but capitalised on their rivals’ ill discipline to squeeze into the semi-finals, 20-19
Reuters
41/50 19 October 2019
People gather in London to join the Final Say march for a people’s vote
Angela Christofilou/The Independent
42/50 18 October 2019
Protesters on Whitehall in London during an Extinction Rebellion climate change protest
PA
43/50 17 October 2019
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands during a news conference after agreeing on a Brexit deal, in Brussels
Reuters
44/50 16 October 2019
A man walks his dog through the fallen leaves in Clarkes Gardens, Allerton in Liverpool
PA
45/50 15 October 2019
Police officers carry away an activist as Extinction Rebellion protesters block a road with a caravan in central London
Reuters
46/50 14 October 2019
Queen Elizabeth II sits with Prince Charles on the Sovereign’s throne ahead of delivering the Queen’s Speech at the State Opening of Parliament
AFP
47/50 13 October 2019
Great Britain’s Joe Fraser competes on Parallel Bars during the World Gymnastics Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. He claimed GB’s second gold with his victory. The 20-year-old from Birmingham nailed his routine to score 15.0 then watched as a series of rivals failed to live up to his total
Getty
48/50 12 October 2019
St Helens players celebrate with the trophy after they won the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford in Manchester. They beat Salford Red Devils 23-6
PA
49/50 11 October 2019
Richard Ratcliffe, husband of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe jailed in Tehran since 2016, holds his daughter Gabriella during a news conference in London. Their five-year-old daughter has arrived back in Britain, after making the “bittersweet” decision to bring her home
AFP/Getty
50/50 10 October 2019
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at Thornton Manor. Their meeting focused on further Brexit proposals
EPA/Noel Mullen
RBS, which owns NatWest, will be hoping that its new app will be free of the technological glitches that have plagued other parts of its business.
NatWest customers were unable to use the bank’s online services on Friday during a major outage.
“Our online banking, mobile app and Bankline are currently facing intermittent problems,” the bank tweeted on the morning of Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year.
Analysis by consumer group Which?, published this week, found that the industry suffers five IT failures on average each week, shutting millions of customers out of their accounts. RBS and Santander customers endured the most IT glitches last year with both banks suffering 18 failures, according to the research.
Mark Bailie, chief executive of Bó, said: “In this digital, contactless age, people need support managing their money more than ever. It is all too easy to lose control. Our data suggests that three quarters of people in the UK are living financially unsustainable lives. We want to help change this.
“We are launching Bó to help people build the habits and routines that will allow them do money better day-by-day and week-after-week so they can fund their lives and lifestyles in a more sustainable way.
“As we’re part of NatWest, people can rely on Bó to keep their money safe.”
While app-only banks have grown their user numbers rapidly, they have yet to become profitable. London-based Revolut reported last month that its net losses had doubled to almost £33m in 2018, but revenues had jumped to £59m from £13m a year earlier.
