Neobanks
A neobank is a digital-first bank that operates without physical branches.
By Geoffrey Lyons
Published on May 9, 2025
Last modified on Feb 26, 2026

A neobank is a digital-first bank that operates without physical branches.
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Every flavor of bank
Banks come in many forms - cooperative banks share profits with member-owners; microfinance banks support small entrepreneurs - but at root all banks are institutions that enable two things:
Deposits Money that’s placed in the bank for safekeeping. | Loans Money that’s borrowed from the bank for financing various expenses. |
A “neobank” is generally used to mean any digital-first bank, i.e., a bank in which these deposits and loans are done online rather than in-person.