Had a quick look through the site but do not see any mention of bitcoin. Thought it might be bitcoin related as its posted here on the forum.
Seems to be just another online bank without any branches and a debit card so you can spend your funds.
Have to agree with what's said on the site, it is a royal pain to open a bank account in the UK, even online. I can however not see how they are going to do it within 3 minutes. Will most probably just create a profile for you. Once that is done you will have to supply the usual urine test, blood and dna samples, full family history, fingerprints etc.....
EDIT: Fount the following article on TechCrush about Monese
http://techcrunch.com/2015/05/27/monese/“All you need from a bank, without the bank,” reads Monese’s signup page. That’s in reference to that fact that, unlike the ambitions of Starling and Mondo, the startup isn’t applying for a full U.K. banking license, which would enable it to do things like offer credit and lend out its customers deposits as a means of generating revenue. Instead the company is defined by the regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, as an Electronic Money Institution.
“This enables us to hold customers funds, provide payments and provide debit cards very similarly to the high street banks,” says Monese founder and CEO Norris Koppel.
“Unlike banks, we are not allowed to use customers’ funds to invest in markets or in any other way. Customers’ money is held in a safeguarded and segregated account dedicated to them. It is ‘ring fenced’ and separate from any other monies.”
My bitcoin wallet offers the same features