Nearside

Nearside, formerly known as Hatch, was a financial technology company headquartered in San Francisco, founded in 2018 by Thomson Nguyen. Nguyen, a data scientist and entrepreneur, previously founded Framed Data, which was acquired by Square in 2016. His experience at Square, particularly with the data science team for small business lending, revealed the financial complexities small businesses face and inspired the creation of Nearside.

The company operated as a neobanking platform targeting the approximately 60 million entrepreneurs, micro-SMBs, freelancers, and gig workers in the United States. Nearside was not a bank itself but offered financial services through partner banks like LendingClub Bank and Piermont Bank. Its business model centered on providing accessible and fair financial products, generating revenue primarily through interchange fees from debit card transactions.

Nearside's core product was a free online business checking account that featured no monthly fees, no minimum balance requirements, and no overdraft fees. A key feature was its debit card, which initially offered 1% cashback on all purchases, a rate that was later increased to an aggressive 2.2%. The company also provided access to a large, fee-free ATM network and planned to launch a term loan program. The platform could be accessed via its website and mobile apps for iOS and Android, and it allowed for integration with accounting software.

After raising a $20 million Series A and a $58 million Series B round in 2021, with investors including Valar Ventures and Kleiner Perkins, Nearside was acquired by Plastiq in late 2022. However, due to challenging macroeconomic conditions and reported issues with customer service, Nearside announced it was closing down in November 2022, ceasing all operations and closing accounts by December 23, 2022. Both Nearside and its parent company, Plastiq, subsequently filed for bankruptcy in May 2023.

Keywords: neobank, fintech, small business banking, business checking, debit card rewards, Thomson Nguyen, Valar Ventures, interchange revenue, Plastiq, startup shutdown