Chase and Citi customers say their accounts are closed without warning
A new report details a disturbing model for individuals, families and owners of small businesses.
We put a lot of faith in our verification and Savings accounts . Unlike money, we do not see the money physically there - we are simply convinced that he is secure. Nobody wants to run their card at the grocery store or try to pay the rent At the beginning of the month to discover that their accounts are no longer functional. But some banking people with large institutions report disturbing recent experiences. Read the rest to find out more about Chase and Citi customers who say that their bank accounts have been closed without warning.
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Chase and Citi serve hundreds of millions of combined customers.
Jpmorgan Chase and Citibank are two of the largest banking institutions in the world - and they are certainly two of the most popular choices in the United States in terms of consumer and community banking, Jpmorgan is almost used 80 million households , according to the company's website. Citi, on the other hand, currently has around 200 million customer accounts, according to a Press release of the company.
It is impossible to deny the wide range of these two banks. But the news of the accounts closed without warning could be concern for their many customers.
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Customers claim that their accounts are closed suddenly.
In a report on November 5, The New York Times revealed that he had examined Over 500 cases Customers abandoned by their banks. And several of these complaints come from Chase and Citi customers.
Caroline Potter told the newspaper that his Citibank accounts had been closed suddenly last year, while Steven Ferker said it was started by Citi after withdrawing money in 2016 and 2017 to help finance the services of the new house he bought in New York.
Ferker said he was surprised that the bank called to ask him why he made repeated cash withdrawals - that he made $ 7,000 to $ 12,000 to pay his entrepreneur, who had asked for Payments in cash - but he explained the situation each time.
"I supposed that they called to make sure that someone did not steal my money, and I was glad they called," he told Nyt . "But I never gave him two thoughts until they throw me."
And it's not just Citi customers. Bryan Delaney , which has had several New York bars and its trading partner Jennifer Maslanka , told the newspaper that Chase suddenly closed the bar account this year, as well as accounts of personal checks and credit cards for Delaney, his wife and the Maslanka.
Meanwhile, from Nigeria OORE LADIPO , who had worked contracts as data analyst at Morgan Stanley in New York while working on his master's degree, received an offer for a permanent position when he graduated. But Ladipo could not start for a few months because he was waiting to receive his employment documents from the federal government, so his parents wired him about $ 1,500 per month from Nigeria to help him do the rent in early 2018 .
That summer, Chase sent him a letter saying that his accounts would be closed, according to the Nyt . "They were aware of my study, my work and my family history, but still closed my account after almost 10 years," said Ladipo to the newspaper, noting that he had put in bank with Chase since 'He moved to Ohio in 2010 for the university.
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They say they are not offered real explanations for closures.
For these customers, this scenario can be played in different ways, according to The New York Times . They can obtain a letter from their bank saying that all their checks for checks and savings are closed by an explanation - if there is one - which generally lacks useful details. Or they do not see the letter or never receive it, then discover that their accounts no longer work while trying to access it.
In the case of Potter, he started on the phone. "There were these strange calls with a very mysterious customer care department, and they continued to ask for our income statements. No one sees my income declarations except IRS and my CPA," She declared to Nyt .
According to Potter, she and her husband moved to Idaho during the pandemic, selling their old house in New York and buying a new one - which required large children of money between their Citibank accounts. Despite being a typical event for banks, Potter said that Citi suddenly closed everything, and that the couple's attempts to obtain an explanation were in vain.
"It was as if there was this secret department, and whoever was not in this department did not even know," she said.
Meanwhile, Ferker said that his Citi letter offered no explanation and that the director of his branch had an equally frustrating response. "The answer was:" Don't ask me. Ask the computer that reported "," said Ferker Nyt .
Ladipo shared a similar feeling, adding that he felt confused and betrayed by the brutal closure of Chase. "And in this scenario, you cannot really negotiate," he said. "You don't speak with a person who has the power to tell you what has gone wrong and what has not been bad."
Chase said that he only closes accounts after "an appropriate examination".
As The New York Times Explain that these brutal account closures are what banks call "outgoing" or "casual", in order to repress fraud, terrorism, money laundering, trafficking in human beings and other crimes. But banks seem to evolve an increasing number of individuals, families and owners of small businesses who often have no idea of the reason why their banks have turned their backs on them, according to the Nyt report.
These expulsions are generally the result of red flags or transactions which appear out of character, which are generated by algorithm. But banks will not say how often they close the accounts in this way or follow the frequency to which they are mistaken.
"There is no humanization in all of this, and these are just figures on a screen", " Aaron Ansari , which used to program the algorithms which report a suspicious activity Nyt . "It's not" no, it's a single mother who manages a babysitting business ". It's" hey, you checked these boxes for a red flag - you got out. ""
When Better life Contacted the report, Citi refused to comment. But Jerry Dubrowski , a spokesperson for JPMorgan Chase, said that "accounts are only closed after an appropriate examination and consideration of the facts", because the company aims to create long-term relationships with its customers.
"When we have concerns about the transactions of a customer, such as when someone can use our bank or our customers to commit a potentially illegal activity, or when we receive information from the application of the law - we act in accordance To our compliance program, in accordance with our regulatory regulations Bonds, "said Dubrowski. "We know it can be frustrating for customers, but we have to follow these obligations."
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