Bank-backed fund invests in fintech Monit

Monit, a Boston fintech that has created a financial platform for small businesses, has become the first investment for JAM FINTOP Banktech, an investment fund that is targeting tech firms. 

Monit said in a press release that the investment also includes a commercial partnership with the fund, which is backed by 66 small and midsize banks. JAM FINTOP Banktech is a created  by JAM Special Opportunity Ventures, an affiliate of Jacobs Asset Management, and FINTOP Capital. 

Monit was launched last year. JAM FINTOP Banktech raised $150 million in April.

The amount invested in Monit was not disclosed, though the fintech had previously raised $5.2 million.

“We are excited to add JAM FINTOP Banktech to our team of amazing investors,” Steve Dow, Monit’s CEO, said in the release. “The partnership goes well beyond investment. As a team of bankers and technologists ourselves, our visions are aligned in helping America’s business owners thrive and supporting the drive of community bankers to add value as trusted advisers to those businesses.”

“At Busey, we are always looking for ways to stay close to the customer base and implement tools that allow our business customers to operate more efficiently,” Farhan Yasin, chief technology officer at Busey Bank, said in the release. 

“A partnership with Monit is a natural integration that provides our customers access to critical information for their business like cashflow and accounts payable and receivable for an aggregated customer view,” Yasin added. 

“SMBs are woefully underserved by the large national banks, which gives regional banks like Valley an opportunity to step into the gap using modernization and innovation like Monit,” said Stuart Cook, chief digital product officer at Valley Bank. “There’s an opportunity for every bank to serve their SMB customers better using new tech and innovation but they don’t have the time or resources to build it.”