‘Mainly, you fast fooded’: Monzo under fire over ‘shaming’ year-end reviews | Monzo bank

When does light-hearted banter become inappropriate and degrading?

Digital bank Monzo has been accused of overstepping the mark by using its data to tell a customer with a history of eating disorders that she ate too much fast food, spent “more than most” on Just Eat takeaways and was knocking out her life goals through her spending choices.

Fiona Taylor* took her complaint to the UK financial ombudsman after being offended by what she called “disgraceful language” in the year-end review the bank sent her.

Similar to Spotify Wrapped, which shows streaming service users the best songs and artists from the past year, Monzo sends customers a personalized annual review of how and where they spent their money.

The bank says the aim is to “provide an engaging and sometimes lighthearted summary of the customer’s year,” but that divides opinion.

Open Forums like RedditSome customers criticized the Year at Monzo service for “judging” them and making “sarcastic” and “sarcastic” comments, while others said they were “a bit of fun”.

some customers shared screenshots From their reviews highlighting how much money they spent on the Greggs bakery chain or mocking them for having an “unused oven”.

Taylor, 42, from Kent, said Monzo used his financial information to “generate derogatory behavioral comments” that “translate into personal and moral judgement”. He claimed that this was not appropriate behavior for a bank and amounted to misuse of personal data.

Personalized spending review describes 2025 as “the year of glory and madness.” There are many references to food, telling him: “You gathered and feasted. But mainly you ate fast food.”

It was later noted that he was in the “top 15%” for Just Eat, adding: “You like your banquets beige and boxy.”

This seems to be a reference to the “beige” diet, which is dominated by soft or processed foods such as chicken nuggets, chips and pasta.

He later returned to that theme, telling her: “You spent more on Just Eat than most. Did anyone say stop?”

The second sentence refers to the food delivery company’s advertising slogan, “Did Someone Just Say Food?” but Taylor said this implied his spending “needed to be cut.”

He said he lives with chronic fatigue, which affects his ability to cook and go to shops and means he often relies on delivery apps for groceries and takeaways. She has also previously suffered from an eating disorder and said: “Comments that framed my food-related spending in a sarcastic or judgmental way were particularly upsetting and unwelcome.”

Taylor said this was not information that Monzo knew, so comments interpreting its data were inappropriate. “A bank cannot know the medical, personal or trauma-related context behind spending decisions.”

His review also included a section on leisure spending: “You’ve eliminated boredom thanks to your entertainment choices. And your life goals.”

He said it was upsetting to talk about his life goals because he had recently experienced a “significant setback in his career” and the comment left him with “combined feelings of loss and failure.”

On Reddit forums, some Monzo customers expressed pride in being named among the top spenders at their local bar or chicken shop, but others were not so happy.

Someone said “the world is fucked right now” and they didn’t need the bank to tell them “how I threw away my life’s goals… I felt like it was ‘kicking us while we were down’”.

When Taylor contacted Monzo to raise her concerns, Monzo told her it “could not find evidence to support your complaint.” The letter from the complaints specialist continued: “I accept that in your case the automated and standardized language we used was inappropriate and caused genuine distress.” He said he would pay her £20 as a goodwill gesture to make things right.

Taylor then complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service but the investigator effectively sided with Monzo, saying they did not think the bank needed to take any action. He appealed the decision and his case will now be reviewed by a senior ombudsman who will make the final decision.

The bank argues that Year in Monzo has automatically generated content based on spending patterns, rather than personalized reviews written by a human.

A Monzo spokesperson said: “It was never our intention to cause upset here and we are truly sorry that this has happened.

“Whilst The Year at Monzo is designed to be a fun summary of people’s spending and has been well-received by millions of our customers, it is completely optional and individuals can choose not to have their own spending captured if they wish.”

* Name changed