Musicians to gain dedicated neobank with Nerve
A neobank created specifically for musicians is due to launch next month. Nerve will offer customised tools to help English and Spanish-speaking musicians manage their finances and plan for the future.
Nerve CEO John Waupsh
It will include business debit and savings accounts; artist streaming and social follower data; a private networking feature to help professional musicians find each other, make payments, and collaborate; and free instant payments to anyone with a Nerve account. Users will also have free access to 55,000 ATMs.
The Texas-based start-up says the music business deserves music banking. Its mobile app is intended to bring together user experience and financial technologies to help artists build stronger communities and sustainable careers. The banking services will be provided by Piermont Bank.
Nerve was co-founded by John Waupsh (CEO) and Ben Morrison (CTO), who drew upon their 15-plus years of consumer banking and fintech experience.
Waupsh is also the founder and CEO of Preservation Project, a boutique label dedicated to releasing rare funk and soul. It was in that role that he first identified the need for a modern, sophisticated banking tool catering to independent musicians.
He says: “Today, banking communities aren’t defined by rivers and railroads, but by the shared experience and goals of their customers. Financial empowerment for musicians means giving them a banking platform that understands their unique needs with the tools to help them better manage their money.”
Nerve plans to announce additional features and services for musicians following its 15 September launch. In addition, Nerve has a beta project called Nerve FM, a direct-to-fan streaming app that allows creators to earn subscription revenue from self-generated audio and video content. Musicians keep up to 80% of the revenue generated from their subscriber base, and also retain the user data.
