Monese vs BOV 3D Secure
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Monese
This app offers a digital banking alternative, allowing users to manage multiple currencies, send and receive money internationally, and access a contactless debit card. It provides budgeting tools, real-time notifications, and features like savings pots and virtual cards for secure online payments.
- Multi-currency accounts (GBP, EUR, RON)
- Contactless Mastercard debit card
- International money transfers
- Virtual card for online payments
- Savings pots
- Real-time spending notifications
- Credit score building (UK only)
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Monese is the banking alternative you’ve been waiting for. We’re the money app that helps you budget smartly, spend wisely and switch between currencies in a flash. Whether you need a GBP, EUR or RON account (or all 3!), you’ll be able to manage your money straight from your phone and enjoy the flexibility to live, work, travel, study and thrive wherever life takes you. We even have business accounts! Join over 2 million people and open a Monese mobile money account today. It’s simple, fuss-free and easy – so how does it work? • Open a GBP, EUR or RON account, straight from your phone • Easily switch between currencies and manage your money all in one place • Get a contactless Mastercard debit card you can use globally – online, in-store or at ATMs • Spend abroad with no extra fees on card spending and ATM withdrawals • Quickly send and receive money locally and internationally in multiple currencies • Create a virtual card and pay online or in-store for an extra layer of security • Open a joint account to easily spend, share and save with a loved one, roommate or friend With our feature-rich smartphone app, you’ll also get: • Real-time notifications: Instant updates whenever you use your account • A detailed spending overview: Full transparency around your transactions • Savings pots: Put money aside for something special • Apple Pay: A fast, easy and secure way to pay with your Apple Pay • Automatic Direct Debits and recurring payments: the easy way to pay for things like mobile phone contracts, rent, or gym memberships Plus, you can also: • Build your credit score: Use Credit Builder to grow your credit history and savings at the same time (UK only) • Link your PayPal account: Manage your PayPal balance and transactions from Monese, and add your Monese card to your PayPal wallet • Enjoy state-of-the art security features: 3D Secure, card locking, strong encryption and biometric login • Get instant account statements in PDF or XLS whenever you need Enjoy the convenience of being able to send and receive money straight from your phone, get your salary paid in, set up Direct Debits and recurring payments, all while maintaining a complete overview of your earning, spending and saving. Withdraw cash from ATMs worldwide for free, within generous allowances, and add money to your account by bank transfer, debit card, or with cash at over 84,000 locations in the UK, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal or Spain. You can open an account with us regardless of your citizenship or financial history, as long as you’re at least 18 years old and live in the European Economic Area (EEA).
BOV 3D Secure
Secure your online purchases with a Bank of Valletta debit or credit card. Enroll your card once and authenticate transactions via passcode or fingerprint. Handles situations with no internet reception by using QR codes.
- Online purchase authentication
- Card enrollment
- Passcode authentication
- Biometric (fingerprint) authentication
- QR code authentication for offline use
- Push notifications for transactions
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The BOV 3D Secure app is downloadable to smart devices and will enable the user to effect online purchases with a Bank of Valletta debit or credit card. The app is simple to use: The first step is to download the BOV 3D Secure app and install it on your smart device You will then need to enrol the Bank of Valletta debit or credit card that you will use to effect online purchases. This is a one time process since once you enrol one card all your Bank of Valletta cards, that may be used for online purchases will be automatically enrolled to the 3D Secure app. During the enrolment process you will set an authentication passcode that will be used to authenticate you online purchases via the app - alternatively you can choose to set up biometric authentication by means of fingerprint, if your device supports the feature. Once the one-time enrolment process is complete, you are set to start shopping online: When checking out purchases over a certain amount, at certain merchants, the payment screen will ask you to authenticate the purchase; Simultaneously you will receive a push notification on your smart device which will prompt you to access the BOV 3D Secure app to authenticate the transaction either by passcode (established during enrollment) or biometrically, by means of your fingerprint. The app will then advise that authentication is successful and you will be able to tap the "proceed" button on the payment screen to complete your purchase. If you are in an area of no reception, or your device is not connected to an internet/data service, the payment screen will prompt you to scan a QR Code which will automatically launch the BOV 3D Secure app on your phone and following authentication a 6 digit code will be displayed. This code is to be inserted in the designated field on the payment screen. Following that simply tap the "proceed" button on the payment screen to complete your purchase. Important information Bank of Valletta will not contact you because you are using the app. So please stay alert to emails, text messages or phone calls that appear to be from us. Criminals may try to trick you into giving them sensitive personal or account information. Any suspicious communications or transactions should always be reported to Bank of Valletta immediately by calling the number on the reverse of your card, thus enabling immediate remedial action to be taken as necessary.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Monese at 4.7 against BOV 3D Secure's 1.0. Monese also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 28 months) and ratings volume (2.4K vs 2). BOV 3D Secure's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Monese holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Monese has 2.4K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 19% of Monese's written reviews are positive against 0% of BOV 3D Secure's.
Monese ships an update every 3 weeks, BOV 3D Secure every 28 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Monese | BOV 3D Secure |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (2.4K ratings) — better | 1.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 18.8% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.4K — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 28 months |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 203 MB | 51 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Monese LTD | Bank of Valletta p.l.c. |
Customer experience
Monese
BOV 3D Secure
In-app purchases
Monese
No in-app purchases
BOV 3D Secure
No in-app purchases









