British business bank OakNorth has completed a strategic transaction with Berlin-based financial management platform Monite as it looks to develop financial automation capabilities.

The deal will see OakNorth add Monite’s core technologies - including its accounts receivable, accounts payable and expense management features - to the banking service it offers to entrepreneurs across the country.

In addition to leveraging many of Monite’s main financial management technologies, OakNorth has also onboarded the fintech firm’s product and engineering teams as part of efforts to bolster its digital offering.

According to OakNorth, these steps will enable the small and medium-sized businesses it works with to automate complicated financial operations that currently take up a lot of their time and budgets.

Now that OakNorth and Monite have concluded this deal, they plan to roll out the first of OakNorth’s new automation features in the second quarter of this year.

Anna Kuriakose, chief product officer at OakNorth, said that by OakNorth and Monite working together, the business bank will be better equipped to cater to the needs of what she described as “lower mid-market businesses”.

She added: “By embedding AR/AP capabilities into our core offering, we will provide a more comprehensive, intelligent banking experience that removes pain points acutely felt by our customers.”

While both firms have avoided describing this transaction as a merger or acquisition, it will see a major leadership change.

Ivan Maryasin, co-founder and CEO of Monite, is joining OakNorth as a general manager. He’ll be responsible for leading growth activities within OakNorth’s business banking division.

“We built Monite to simplify financial operations for businesses. Seeing our technology and team contribute to OakNorth’s ambitious roadmap is an exciting next step,” he said.

“The strategic alignment between our platforms creates meaningful opportunities to enhance the experience for lower mid-market businesses.”

---