Today, 35% of African consumers own a financial account which has vast customer data that is siloed in banks, but with Open Banking, they can securely share this data with businesses to access services personalized to their financial needs.
Mono Connect, our very first API product, enables users to securely share their financial data with businesses. Since its launch in 2021, 4,508,840 users have linked a financial account with a business using Mono Connect and the widget.
Over time, we saw opportunities to improve the experience of account linking for both users and businesses, and this is why we have launched a new version of the Mono widget to make it easier and faster for end-users to link their accounts to make instant payments and share their financial data. We also built this new version to encourage more African users to adopt Open Banking innovation by putting a lot of clarity into the account linking and payment experiences.
Why your business should switch to the Mono widget v2
The updates we’ve built into the new widget truly make it easier for your users to pay you and link their accounts to your business. We’ve also observed closely how end-users interact with the widget and gotten insights into what possible scenarios might cause them to drop off the widget, so we built in these features to make the experience better.
Below, we’ve broken down five of these updates and how they can significantly improve the widget experience for your users.
1. Better account switching experience
Now, your users can easily switch between account types (Personal or Business) or choose a different login method for any institution, without restarting the process.
This important improvement in the widget experience reduces the number of clicks a user previously had to do to switch from one account type to another and ensures that they can complete the account linking or payment process faster.
2. Transparent and clearer user consent management
We have improved the widget consent screen to ensure that your users feel more secure when connecting their accounts, and they clearly understand what financial information they have shared and what permissions they are giving your business access to by linking their accounts using Mono.
We have also taken it a step further by notifying end-users via email immediately after they have linked an account to a business via Mono. This centres user security and data privacy for your users, ensures they are aware of their accounts being linked, and gives them a transparent view of who has access to their data and for what purposes.
3. Easier institution request
If your users are trying to link their financial accounts and can’t find their preferred institution on the Mono widget, they can now easily send an institution request to our team. Previously, we received these requests from the businesses that use Mono, now end-users are more involved in the process and can share first-hand feedback with us to better optimise the experience on the widget for them.
Also, to ensure that users return to connect their accounts and access your services, we will notify them via email as soon as the requested connection is added to the widget.
4. One-click sandbox mode
You can now test the user journey for account linking on Mono Connect without using sandbox credentials. This allows you to see the different flows your users will experience when they successfully link their accounts, complete 2FA authentication, or exit the widget during account linking. You can try out a demo here to see how this works.
5. Customised widget layout
The new widget allows you to customise the widget experience to fit your brand colour and logo, and personalize the user journey, success messages, and Call to Action (CTA) buttons according to your brand voice and tone.
This lets you stay on-brand and connect with your users even after they get redirected from your app to the Mono widget.
To access the widget customization feature, simply visit the Products page on your Mono dashboard and add it to your current pricing plan on Mono at a one-time fee. You can also learn how to customise and link the Mono widget to your app.
How to make the switch to the new Mono widget
If your business already uses the Mono Connect or DirectPay product, you can follow the steps below to upgrade to the v2 of the widget:
Log in to your Mono dashboard
Navigate to Preferences in the Settings section and toggle on access to the Mono widget 2.0
Then, follow the guide in our API documentation to update your Mono SDK and API integration
If you are new to Mono, you can create a free account here to get started and the new widget will be automatically enabled for your business.
With valuable feedback from businesses and end-users that use the Mono widget, we will continue to improve the widget experience to make account linking and payments faster and more seamless and enable your business to convert more users. If you have any product feedback or suggestions for us, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at support@mono.co.
