Start Business

Start Business by Komerční banka at a glance

Start Business is a basic business account from Komerční banka (KB), aimed mainly at people who are just starting a business, or anyone who only needs the most essential banking services for everyday operations. According to the product description, this is a tariff that is "permanently free with no time limit" — not a short-term promotion for new clients that turns into a monthly fee later, but a lasting offer for this specific target group. As standard, the account includes one current account held in Czech korunas, domestic and SEPA payments, one debit card, and the option to withdraw and deposit cash in a shared ATM network.

For a sole trader or a freshly founded limited liability company, the question of monthly account-keeping costs is often one of the first decisions to make — and Start Business answers it simply: regardless of turnover or number of transactions, the bank charges nothing for maintaining the account.

Fees and account terms

The main selling point of the Start Business tariff is that account maintenance is free with no time limit. This is not a "free for the first year" model, nor a conditional fee waiver tied to hitting some minimum turnover or number of card payments, as some other banks offer on their entry-level tariffs — here, the zero fee is a permanent feature of the product, not a temporary perk. According to information on the bank's website, opening the account is also free, and the whole process can be completed online, with no need to visit a branch.

The tariff price includes domestic payments and payments within the SEPA system, i.e. non-cash transfers in euros to countries in the European Economic Area under standardized terms. For entrepreneurs who also trade with counterparties outside the Czech Republic but within Europe, this means routine payment business can be handled without extra charges. Cash operations — both withdrawals and deposits — are available through a shared ATM network used jointly by several banks in the Czech Republic, which in practice widens ATM availability compared with a situation where a client could only use one institution's own machines.

Neither the product database nor the bank's website specify a concrete price list for withdrawals outside the shared network, for issuing or renewing the debit card, or for outgoing payments beyond the included domestic and SEPA transactions for this particular tariff — we therefore deliberately leave these items out of the review rather than giving readers an unsupported figure. Anyone who needs these details in advance should check them directly in Komerční banka's current fee schedule before opening the account.

Perks and additional benefits

The Start Business tariff does not include any one-off cash bonus for opening or actively using the account — neither the source data nor the bank's current website offer mention any such premium. We would rather state this explicitly than leave the reader guessing or implying a bonus the product does not actually offer.

Instead of a cash premium, the bank currently offers a set of free add-on services for this tariff that can save a starting entrepreneur money elsewhere:

• 6 months free of the online invoicing tool Fakturoid — useful especially for sole traders and small businesses that issue their own invoices and want invoicing linked to their bookkeeping
• 1 year free of the PayPhone mobile card payment terminal — lets you accept card payments outside a classic till, which craftsmen or market vendors will appreciate
• a free website design proposal — marketing help for entrepreneurs who don't yet have their own website

Keep in mind that these add-on perks can change over time, since they are marketing bonuses attached to the account rather than a guaranteed permanent part of it — it's always worth checking the current offer directly with the bank before signing the contract. The account itself also allows an unlimited number of account holders, which will appeal to, for example, an association or a company with multiple directors who want simultaneous access to the account, without paying separately for each additional co-owner.

Who the account suits

Start Business is aimed primarily at starting entrepreneurs and sole traders who need a simple, low-cost account for everyday operations — accepting payments from customers, making domestic and SEPA payments, and having a debit card available — without paying a monthly fee. A typical user is therefore a freshly registered sole trader, a one-person limited liability company in its first months of business, or a small online shop that doesn't yet generate a large transaction volume and doesn't want to needlessly increase its fixed costs through account fees.

Conversely, for businesses with more demanding requirements — regular foreign payments outside the SEPA system, the need for multiple cards for employees, an overdraft, or accounts held in multiple currencies — this basic tariff, based on the available information, does not offer sufficient scope. Such businesses should consider Komerční banka's higher business tariffs, which typically include these features, albeit for a monthly fee.

How to open the account

According to the bank's website, the Start Business account can be set up completely online, without visiting a branch, and opening the account itself is free. The bank's page does not describe the exact application steps in detail, but the sign-up button is labeled "Otevřít účet" ("Open account"), and the process corresponds to a standard digital opening of a business account — that is, filling in an application and client identification as part of the bank's online process.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Account maintenance permanently free, with no time-limited promotion
• Free account opening and online sign-up with no branch visit
• Domestic and SEPA payments plus one debit card included in the price
• Unlimited number of account holders
• Extra free perks included (Fakturoid, PayPhone terminal, website design)

Cons

• No cash bonus for opening the account
• Fees for withdrawals outside the shared network, the card, and other charges are not publicly specified
• The basic tariff may not suffice for businesses needing an overdraft, multiple cards, or payments outside SEPA

Summary

Start Business from Komerční banka is a solid choice for anyone just starting a business who wants a business account with no monthly fee, with domestic and SEPA payments and one debit card included as standard. It lacks a cash bonus, but the bank partly makes up for that with a set of free add-on services tailored to starting entrepreneurs. Anyone planning rapid growth who will sooner or later need more advanced features, such as an overdraft or payments outside SEPA, should expect to eventually move to one of Komerční banka's higher tariffs.