Newsletter Archives

• Depositors lose access to cash in bankruptcy of fintech Synapse

  Posted on June 3, 2024 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Hundreds of thousands of consumers have lost access to their checking accounts, debit cards, and credit cards due to a shutdown by Synapse, a financial-technology startup that offered “banking as a service.”

  Synapse acted as a middleman between true banks — including Evolve Bank & Trust, Lineage Bank, American Bank, and AMG Trust — and smaller entities.

  The four banks are not in any financial danger. But they say they’ve been forced to suspend depositors’ access to their funds because on May 11, 2024, Synapse turned off its online “dashboard.” Without the live data, banks can’t verify customers’ balances, as required by law.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.23.0, 2024-06-03).

  Public Defender Banking, Fintech, Newsletters, Synapse

• Is online banking secure?

  Posted on May 29, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  ON SECURITY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Over the past few years, banks have been increasing their online footprint.

  From mobile banking with cell phones to remote depositing with check scanners, banking has drastically changed. Some of the changes are forced on us due to the changing hours of operation at our local banks, but some of the changes enhance our ability to get our funds where we want them to be.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.22.0, 2023-05-29).

  On Security Banking, Credit cards, Debit cards, Newsletters, Online Banking, Patch Lady Posts, Payment Processing

• How to tell whether a fintech app such as Chime is a scam

  Posted on July 19, 2021 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  We’ve recently seen an explosion of activity in the field of fintech — financial technology — which is causing ripples in the old-school world of banking and Wall Street.

  The most-downloaded fintech app in the first six months of 2021, according to data firm Apptopia, belonged to Chime Financial, Inc., a seven-year-old, San Francisco–based unicorn that’s a darling of Silicon Valley venture capitalists.

  Read the full story in the AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.27.0 (2021-07-19).

  AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Public Defender AskWoody Plus Newsletter, Banking, Fintech, Security