Arcady Lapiro | Source | Founder and CEO at Agora Services

Hidden in the news of N26's funding is the admission that their US operations are moving backwards. Previously, N26 had announced they were open and building hundreds of thousands of users. Now they've switched to a waiting list, indicating that they are slowing or retreating their US operations. Given the challenges they're facing, it makes more sense for them to focus their growth on their home German market at this time.

The nation’s smallest community banks need the ability to offer the same digital banking services as challenger banks and national banks, but the obstacle has always been the expense, technology infrastructure and time needed to roll out new products. Agora is removing the barrier to entry to all local financial institutions under $500 million by offering a low-cost, fast implementation.

Community banks and credit unions need the flexibility of offering mobile-first services without sacrificing the attention paid to customer and member service. Agora is the only provider bringing challenger bank products directly to smaller financial institutions without requiring a core overhaul. And, if community banks and credit unions want to remain relevant and attract the next generation of customers and members, they need to be able to offer the same cutting-edge offerings.