Digital banking app Chime faces hundreds of CFPB complaints over unexplained account closures

Chime, a fintech company that works with partner banks to offer banking services to its customers, is facing scrutiny over 920 complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) since April 2020, including nearly 200 regarding accounts being closed against customers’ will. Chime has an estimated 12 million customers.

Why should we care?
Chime, which was established in 2013, promotes itself as a company that offers banking that “has your back.” Unfortunately, some of its customers don’t agree. They reportedly complained of accounts being closed unexpectedly, without possibilities to retrieve the lost balances. Chime said the actions were based on efforts to crack down on fraudulently obtained stimulus checks or unemployment insurance payments. Most of the complaints to the CFPB regarding Chime have been “closed with explanation,” which indicates that the neobank resolved the dispute with the customer. Chime, which is rumored to be exploring possibilities to go public, is one of the largest U.S. neobanks. Earlier this year, it curried favor with many customers over its capabilities to deliver stimulus checks days earlier than many legacy banks. Fast growth and heightened customer expectations, however, come with a responsibility to meet rigorous customer service standards, an obligation some argue its partner banks should help oversee.