by Sarah Perez

There was a time when managing finances from your computer meant you had to use desktop software. Today, that’s no longer the case. There are now a number of applications that let you do your banking in the cloud, a trend we’ve dubbed “banking 2.0.” These sites aren’t just simplified versions of our former desktop apps, either. Instead, they offer a number of features that take advantage of their “always on” status. Forget downloading updates and typing in your transactions line-by-line, these new banking 2.0 sites can offer you better insight into your financial situation with no additional effort on your part beyond just logging in.

We recently reviewed the state of online accounting, an area that also may be of interest to you if you’re following the banking 2.0 trend. Since then, both the DEMO and TechCrunch50 conferences have come and gone, and at both events new competitors have now joined the online banking landscape. Here, we will look at the new companies that recently debuted as well as our old favorites.

Mint

Mint.com may be the most popular of the online banking apps today…or perhaps it’s just the most hyped. The site currently claims to serve nearly 400,000 users, manages over $12 billion in transactions, and has saved $100 million+ for its users. On Mint.com, you can manage your bank account, credit card accounts, loans, brokerage and investment accounts, and more. The site also provides guides that can help you make big financial decisions like buying a new car or home. The feature which makes Mint unique is their ability to scan through your bank account and credit card transactions in order to help you find savings. They do this by matching

you up with offers for new credit cards with lower rates or by negotiating a lower rate with your current company.

Wesabe

Wesabe takes what’s normally a private activity – financial management – and makes it social. Like other online banking apps, Wesabe lets you see all your bank accounts and credit cards in one place. You can categorize your transactions and see spending and earning summaries. Where Wesabe is different is that it takes your data, anonymizes it, and shares it with the Wesabe community. That aggregate data is then analyzed for patterns and those results are shared with everyone. For example, Wesabe can show the cost of an average transaction at a particular merchant.

Geezeo

Geezeo is very much like Mint.com in that it offers a centralized site to access all your financial accounts including banking, credit cards, loans, etc. Where they are a bit different is in their community aspect. Instead of anonymized data, they offer community-focused areas like Groups and Goals where you can socialize and learn from others who have the same financial concerns that you do. Geezeo also stands out for letting you upload your own bank account data, if you so desire, instead of having to set up accounts to upload into Geezeo automatically. Transactions can also be manually entered. Geezeo offers a mobile app too, that lets you check your balances and available credit from your mobile phone.  Read More

by Sarah Perez