I also mistrust banks. Most banks are confusing and make it difficult to tell exactly how much money you can spend, and then lie in wait to hit you with overdraft fees. For now, I'm trying out Simple Bank, but they're in closed beta. I don't personally know anybody who wants to use the invitations that came with my account.
I'm also suspicious of "know your customer" laws and all that tracking information. I reduce the amount that they can know by keeping a small amount in cash, to use when shopping locally.
There are lawsuits out relating to accounting fraud. I know they have been caught reordering transactions to increase overdrafts. I have also experienced what seems to be deliberate delays in online reporting of transactions and even one case where a transaction somehow did not appear in the record until after I had withdrawn enough money several days later that this meant my account was suddenly overdrawn. They will also happily overdraw your account for an electronic transaction of $300 so that they can start collecting fees.
I also mistrust banks. Most banks are confusing and make it difficult to tell exactly how much money you can spend, and then lie in wait to hit you with overdraft fees. For now, I'm trying out Simple Bank, but they're in closed beta. I don't personally know anybody who wants to use the invitations that came with my account.
I'm also suspicious of "know your customer" laws and all that tracking information. I reduce the amount that they can know by keeping a small amount in cash, to use when shopping locally.