Comment by verdverm
19 hours ago
They refused my business because I didn't have SV VC money
Chase got it instead, but they are losing it next month because of their shenanigans and greed
Wish crypto hadn't been co-opted by the same people and worse
19 hours ago
They refused my business because I didn't have SV VC money
Chase got it instead, but they are losing it next month because of their shenanigans and greed
Wish crypto hadn't been co-opted by the same people and worse
> Chase got it instead, but they are losing it next month because of their shenanigans and greed
Well, on a related note: https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bont...
"Capital One marketed its 360 Savings accounts as “high interest” accounts with “one of the nation’s best savings rates”...However, while interest rates rose nationwide...Capital One kept the interest rates for its 360 Savings accounts artificially low...Instead, Capital One created “360 Performance Savings,” a nearly identical type of savings account that provided much higher interest rates than 360 Savings..."
“Capital One misled consumers through false marketing and a lack of transparency regarding its savings account system, cheating consumers nationwide. Given an opportunity to make loyal customers whole, Capital One sank their teeth in even more, attempting to underpay people it harmed and continue its deceptive practices"
In a bit of a faux pas at a social gathering, I was ranting to everyone about the theft of these big banks offering <0.25% interest rates while the fed rate is at ~4-5%. There I was telling big bank customers that they could be losing hundreds of dollars a month by not switching to a proper bank or credit union. But their response was muted, mild confusion.
Now I have a good job, and have been fortunate, but I don't live in a tech hub or am I surrounded by other high earners.
It struck me in that moment that these banks offer high convenience to people who never really have ever had true savings. The interest rate is largely meaningless when your account is chronically in the $250 to $1250 range. Things like app integration, and easy user friendly deposits and withdrawals are much more important.
I think if you are someone who financially made your way to a place where interest payments are meaningful in size, you probably left those "convenience" banks a long time ago. The thought has made me more mindful about my bank rants now.
America's banks enjoy pulling a bait and switch on HYSAs: They will create new account types with better rates, while they let their old ones become uncompetitive. Citi has pulled this too.
Unless you really think you might need the money immediately, chances are that keeping your money in a brokerage account and using a money market fund (say, VMFXX or something like that) will lead to less headaches with rate manipulation, as the funds aren't playing games with the general public.
I highly recommend the Fidelity CMA (Cash Management Account), it behaves mostly like a checking account but it autosweeps into SPAXX so you get the best of both worlds - your money is instantly accessible but you get the earnings of a money market account. I no longer bother with a HYSA.
It's not a bank account so you will still need a backup checking account if you need Zelle or similar, and it has no way to deposit cash - but the CMA has direct deposit, ACH transfer, debit card access, and check writing, so 95% of the time it does all you need.
1 reply →
I'd recommend US Bank.
I have a credit card with them for cash back on utilities, and their customer service is awful. For example it takes a lenghty phone call to do anything, in contrast to my primary bank where I can just leave a written message in a minute or so and they respond asynchronously. I also heard from someone who worked with US bank for institutional banking services that they're just as awful there, as well as frequently causing problems for this person's employer's customers, who were mostly low income.
US Bank is way behind in tech though. You need to get in touch with one of their agents for anything. Like I'd love to have a human agent when I need one but for regular tasks, I'd rather use a Web or Mobile App that let me figure things out.
I am with US Bank for 20 yrs... they will not do dark stuff Chase does, but they are really not competitive. I don't want to change them because others are not significantly better.
I see you getting downvotes, but can you elaborate a little on what happened? What kind of business did you mean? If you don't want to share more here, you can email me.
In 2022, Brex shifted away from SMB to refocus their offering. They cut "tens of thousands" of SMB customers who didn't fit their new ICP. They announced this in June 2022 and gave all of those customers 2mo to find a new provider and move their funds.
The new qualifications to be a Brex customer at that time were:
> Received an equity investment of any amount (accelerator, angel, VC or web3 token);
> More than $1 million a year in revenue;
> More than 50 employees;
> More than $500k in cash;
> Tech startups who are on a path to meeting the criteria above, and are referred by an existing customer or partner.
SMB? ICP?
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Brex got out of the SMB segment in 2022 and required some sort of "professional funding" for clients (e.g. VC money or sizable angel funding). There was a lot of reporting on it at the time: https://techcrunch.com/2022/06/19/what-was-really-behind-bre...
Typical HNer, started a startup around some tech. Brex refuses to do business, even though I had positive cash flow, they apparently only have clients with VC funding. (at least at the time, I don't know if they later changed their policy.
If you don’t mind me asking, who are you moving to?
(in the industry, but not at a startup)
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Crypto is just extension of the banking system and VC powered money extraction schemes. Bitcoin is the only notably different thing in my opinion.
VCs are pretty good at extracting money from Gulf state oil funds (sometimes via Softbank as the intermediary) and subsidising below-cost services for customers like office space sharing or ride hailing.
Of course, the VCs take a cut, but overall the redistribution seems net positive to me.