| 5 star: | (26) | |
| 4 star: | (8) | |
| 3 star: | (12) | |
| 2 star: | (10) | |
| 1 star: | (40) |
My large six-figure check was refused by their app because it was more than their limit. Trying to get my large check deposited was a saga that didn't end well. This went on for several days, one week to be exact, and each time having to suffer through their horrible phone system, waiting for an interminable amount of time, every time, before being able to talk with someone, then being placed on hold again while the person checked with someone else in another department. Good grief. Finally, after several days of this insanity, one agent finally said the check would be accepted and he sent me an email, saying so. Great. Or so I thought. When the check didn't show up on my account, after another long wait, and many put-on-holds, a supervisor. gave me the bad news. "Your check was rejected because it was co-endorsed by someone who is not on your account." Really? Did it not occur to anyone to tell me that? Never mind that I have an email from one of their agents saying the check would be placed into my account. Oh sure, it's not your money, so why would you care. Such a waste of time and loss of interest on that amount. No apologies, either, not even one. So, no thank you, CFG Bank. Although I sincerely hope you will get your stuff together, I cannot take that chance and am closing my account for good. Adios.
Maybe this message can help others.
I tried to open a CD account. Next day got email that no valid email. But I've got email! Requested to reregister. Done. Then 2 applications appear. One is approved but still need to provide valid email address which we use for communication :-).
I reregistered 4 times and had to quit the process.
I opened a CD at this bank after researching here on DA - and one of the most important things to me was being able to have my maturing funds transferred out via ACH transfer. The information here clearly stated (and still does) that this can be done.
But CFG claims this is not an option and I have to have a paper check mailed via the USPS. This is outrageous in 2024. What sort of serious financial institution doesn't offer free ACH transfers? I have multiple bank accounts and I have not found any bank with this insane policy. I would have never opened a CD had I had a hint this was the case.
Not only that, but the customer service (or lack thereof) has been stunning. Totally unhelpful, non-answers no explanations, no offers for assistance, no apologies. Stay away from this "bank". I wouldn't trust them with 25 cents
Do not bank with CFG.
Do not be attracted by their rates as their customer service is terrible.
They are nice when you speak to them but that doesn't make up for losing money.
I had a 12 month CD mature.
I opted to get a check instead of paying the $7-8 transfer for whatever it cost and chose a check.
The check never arrived and now the solution is for me to fill out a 4 page PDF, pay $60 to get it notarized and email it back.
Then...
If the 2nd check gets lost, I pay another $60 and wait another month.
This is CFG's pathetic solution to the problem.
Real banks would apologize profusely for this and offer a free, overnight transfer at no cost.
They wouldn't ask the customer to pay for their screwup.
And for the record, if someone at the USPS lost or stole the check, guess what? It's still THE BANKS PROBLEM. IT'S NOT APPROPRIATE TO BLAME THE POST OFFICE AND THEN!!! ASK THE CUSTOMER TO PAY FOR IT AND WAIT ANOTHER 3 WEEKS IN HOPES THAT A 2ND CHECK ARRIVES.
CFG is god awful.
I hope and encourage everyone who reads this to refrain from doing business with them.
I'm now off to report the bank.
My advice is when looking at CD Rates, compare the rate with a REAL BANK. Not a crap bank like this. You'll probably find that the REAL BANKS rates are pretty close to CFG and as such, should go that route knowing that you'll be paid AND if there IS A PROBLEM, the REAL BANK isn't going to charge you money to fix the problem.
I'm currently out $11,000 dollars.
I recently discovered that my online banking access to CFG had been cancelled due to inactivity.
When I called the customer service # indicated at the failed log in screen, I was told that was because I had not logged in for "quite some time." Although re-establishing online access was not particularly onerous, I am irked by the fact that no specific time period is associated with this cancellation policy.
I was told by customer service at the time that this policy was covered in their account disclosures, however, upon subsequent review of them, I was unable to find any coverage of this topic. Here is the the subsequent email exchange on the topic:
ME: "As I said in my original message, I can't find anything in those disclosures regarding frequency of log-in to maintain the online account. PLEASE POINT OUT THE SPECIFIC LANGUAGE THAT ADDRESSES THAT REQUIREMENT.
And, additionally, specifically clarify what interval CFG is currently using to disable access
Thank you"
RESPONSE:
"Thank you for your email. We do not have any paperwork that discloses that information. Feel free to call us if there is anything else we can provide. "
So, neither in person Customer Service nor email CS will give me any specificity as to the interval before online banking access is denied.
It took a lot of looking around but I found a Business checking account that currently earns 4.37% interest. It took many steps with emails to and from their team to get everything set up, but now it looks like I can write checks, use a debit card, and accept ACH transfers in to the account so I hope to be able to ditch my prior checking account soon. Apparently to have an official business account requires more steps and security than a personal account, and banks are not so generous paying interest to businesses than to personal accounts.
Accessing the account on the web requires using a dedicated "secure browser" but I can do the same things more easily with their CFG Business App which accepts Face ID on iPhone.
Initially I had to fund the account by old fashioned checks sent in the mail, and one check was delayed because they moved their main office, but now it looks like I can be mostly electronic and I hope to keep this account for years.
With the money market account, transfers are limited to a maximum of $25k at a time, and seem to be also limited to $25k per month. It would take 4 months to transfer $100k.
Prior to enrolling I spoke to an CSR about required credit report; they do a soft pull using ChexSystems
.
I just completed an on-line High Yield Money Market enrollment. I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was. Funding the account is an ACH pull from your designated financial institution. As for the mobile phone number entry, I entered a landline number. No driver license photos required, just number and dates.
I just opened a money market account and found your bank is holding the deposit for three days although it withraw the money in one days from my other account. I really lost lots of interest with large amount being withheld, especially if you transfer in Wednesday or Thursday or Friday, will lost interest for five days. I have other banks are only one day to transfer, so beware of the interest you are losing.
Generally speaking my overall recent experience with CFG has been much improved since 2022.
I opened an 18 mo CD at 5.25% way back in May 2023. That was quite high back then, and I thought it would be smart to tie up some $$ long term at what once was a very high rate for 12 mo let alone 18. I have no complaints about the application process, the transfer of funds.
I think the app is a bit cryptic and not as user friendly as I would like, but when I did call in I did speak to nice people so I have no issues.
I'm always amazed when people lament about the transfer times or amounts or how and when you need to determine how an what you will do with your CD at maturity, when it is all spelled out for you when you choose to open the account if you do your homework. If they have some great "deals" when my CD matures fabulous, if not, I'll move cash elsewhere. End of story.
Opened up a 12 month CD 11/2022 @4.65% and "No" I do not get a statement but I got a notice that my CD is due this month. Also opened a high yield money market account which currently pays 5.19%/month. I do get a monthly statement. This is the best deal, you can take your money out whenever you like, no penalty, write checks etc. I will be renewing my CD @5.25%. I see many people have experienced poor customer service which always amazes me that people in customer service do not know their jobs very well on how to answer simple stuff they should know. I had a good experience at Timonium, walked into the bank, did not have to wait, the gentlemen opened the account with no problem, got a green folder with very little paperwork which I liked, no frills, they are the 2nd largest community bank in MD (FDIC insured), and have an excellent rating and reputation. I check the rates frequently, they have the top rate other than an on-line bank which I'm a little hesitant since they do not have a brick and mortar branch. If something goes wrong, where do you go? On-line banks will have a recording, no live person. Just my view, hope it helps. Janet H. of Lutherville, MD
I opened my high yield money market Dec 2022 after doing research on high interest rates. This bank had the best options and also their interest accrues daily and adds the amount to your balance monthly. So I decided to open the account. The process took some time as they asked several personal questions and the process was annoying but then I realized that it was for my security the way its done. Once all was ready I had more money to transfer than their allotted initial amount so was told that all I needed to do was ask to be approved for the higher amount, which it was so I was happy about that. I opened a 12 mo CD because of the daily accrued interest. I just started using their bill pay option so will see how it works. Once you figure out how everything is done ie: account setup, using their app and how to navigate it's fine.
The only negative thing I have to say is the amount of time it takes for transfers to be processed. I live in Washington state and have a credit union here so I have to plan before doing a transfer.
Overall I'm very satisfied and feel bad that others haven't had a good experience.
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER USE THIS BANK!
I have NEVER had this amount of difficulty with an online bank. TERRIBLE. Am POA for my mother, took 1 MONTH to close her account. They insisted on speaking with her, She is 100 yrs old with dementia. Had already sent in copy of POA and other papers they wanted. They had made it so difficult to try to transfer funds on line that I decided to close account and transfer the funds elsewhere.
Save yourself the aggravation. NEVER USE THIS BANK!!!
As I live in Maryland and like the idea of being able to walk into a bank rather than wait on ACH transfers, I have been considering CFG Bank. Tried calling several times to get questions answered but could never get anyone on the phone (red flag #1).
So last week I walked into the Timonium branch to get those questions answered. The gentleman at the front of house could not answer them. Specifically, what is PLAID funding (listed in their disclosures as a means of doing an initial funding) and he had no answer. He walked into a back office twice to ask someone else and they gave him a word-salad answer (red flag #2). I then asked for a print copy of their account disclosures and his response was "there's nothing other than whats on the website" (red flag #3). At this, I got up an walked out. They seemed like a nice option but when you don't know how your own product works, I gotta pass.
I applied for a savings account online with this particular financial institution and was, ultimately, denied without a reason or explanation of why. It refused to release the reason(s) for denying the account application. I would NOT recommend this particular financial institution for any type of financial products or services.
CFG Bank burned a new HYSA customer in less than 3 business days!
Wednesday evening I decided to open a high yield savings account with the promising rates CFG Bank was offering. Put in my personal information and set up a deposit of a couple thousand to get the account started. Checked the account on Monday, less than 3 business days later and I see that my deposit has been returned and I've been charged $12. I am unable to make a transfer within my account and unable to reach customer service. Please stay clear from CFG. I gave them the benefit of the doubt and was burned in less than 3 business days!
I found that the application process asked for a lot of personal information but the website and application process was very well written. I am a software developer so I understand how meticulous the developers were. However once I opened up the CD's and reached the end of the first month I found out that the bank does not provide statements! I have to take screenshots as proof of the transactions on the CD's. So far I am letting the interest accumulate in the cds so I have not tried to transfer the monthly interest out of the accounts yet but will want that when I retire. You can not set the transfers up online. I was given a document to fill out to make that happen but I have no idea how well that works. I will update the post once I finally go through that process. The mobil app seems to work well too.
Been with CFG since March when the HYMM hit 5.02% since I missed the deal at Primis and honestly I'm glad I decided to go with them. Not only do they pay great rates, but anytime I had an issue reaching customer service was quick and easy and they could always answer my questions.
The only little mix up I had is when I opened up a checking account to go along with my MM. It was supposed to come with free checks but it took a while for those to come. Not only did they send me those checks but they sent over 80 free of charge for my inconvenience! I also opened up a 12 Month and an 18 Month CD with them as well. All in all it's been a great few months with CFG and hopefully this is the start of a beautiful partnership.
They have decent rates however, their daily and monthly limits are ridiculously low. 5K per day 30k per month. This is not for users with large accounts . Pass.
Has anyone closed a CD with CFG Bank upon maturity? Since you cannot do it manually per their website to set up the transfer of funds, I am not sure how to do this. 'Normally' I would have all funds then transferred to a savings account and then transfer out of that account however as far as I know CFG does not offer savings accounts in order to hold the funds until you can set up an ACH pull from another bank in order to remove the funds.
Any input would be appreciated; thank you.
Closing my Matured CD as I can get a better rate at another bank. I had to call to close but, the experience was excellent. Britney was very helpful, I was going to do a wire transfer. But she said I should do the mail as they use Fedex Overnight and I would save $25 and have my check the next day. Big thumbs up for Britney at CFG
So, it takes weeks to open a CD....
And....if your chex systems report shows you have a lot of accounts, they will deny you.
Pros: CSR's are quite nice, polite, etc.
Cons: It's almost impossible to open an account LOL!
I have a bucket load of dough in CFG, in CD's and a MMA, and it would have been convenient to have a checking account....but they denied me, after holding my application for over 12 days, because of Chex.
It's not the first time Chex has caused me to be assessed as a fraudster, it's really a problem, but trying to fix that, well, you might as well try to fly to the moon, without EM. I just have a LOT of accounts, and CFG is not willing to deal with you as in individual....even though I've spoken with one rep, several times....they still tag me as someone who doesn't deserve a checking account. Regardless of the rather obscene amount of money I have in CD's with them.
I think it's funny....mainly because I can pull and push and wire, so having the checking, although nice and convenient, isn't all that big of a deal.
Their loss....I would have put bucketloads more into CFG, if I'd gotten the checking account, but...whatever.
If you're an impatient person, and expect a bank to open an account for you, ASAP, and you have an over 830 credit score, and it angers you to be rejected...don't bank here!
LOL.
The online application experience to CFG Bank's products has been nothing short of a disaster.
This so-called "bank" may appear to have a friendly web user interface for the initial application submission. However, once the online application is submitted, a random "customer rep" will require you to submit a host of personally-sensitive information via ShareFile or Fax. Once they harvested your sensitive personal information, they will either reject your application or give nonsensical run-arounds stories to make you go away.
The customer phone wait time is often more than 40 minutes, and the customer reps over the phone are completely unprofessional. They do not even introduce the name of the bank or themselves as a first line over the phone, and simply say "Hi..." and then go silent on the line, until you start talking. It was superbly unfriendly, outright hostile, and gave me a vibe of a scam boiler room operation.
When you attempt to communicate with them in person, you get the feeling that the online arm of this smallish community bank in the state of MD exists to harvest your personal information, and then who knows what happens to that information. I would not trust this little community bank's internal controls with ANY personal information. The high interest rates advertised for money market accounts and CDs may just a bait to capture your SSN and other sensitive information. The data capture of thousands of potential customers may be worth more to them than any new account openings. After all, this so-called bank is proud to fund the marijuana / narcotics industry, which is still federally illegal today. I doubt they are on the conservative side when it comes to customer information protection, or legal compliance, for that matter.
I think CFG's attempts to lure people to submit online applications for bank accounts is pretty close to a legalized scam for personal information data capture. It may even be an outright scam, considering the bank's proud, publicly-disclosed association with the narcotics industry. Consumers be aware and stay away from CFG.
very easy to open a CD, probably took less than ten minutes for initial submission, and just a couple more minutes to add beneficiaries. received confirmation email almost immediately, and online login instructions the next day. funds withdrawn from funding back quickly, without verification deposits. can't recall a more straightforward new account process, and rate over 5% apy for 12 month certificate.
Applied for 18 month CD
Wrote an email asking how long for processing - never answered.
Did not get any communication from them for 5 business days -called said someone would get back to me - never did.
Waited 3 more days called again - said someone would call me back Didn’t happen.
Finally gave up and told them cancel the application.
1 star rating is too high for this bank.
My online application to open a CD account still not approved.
Long wait times for customer service. Yesterday a customer service rep said that I would be approved by today. Well that didn't happen.
I have been an existing online customer for some time, but have not opened a new CD there for about six months. I went online to do so today. I noticed their account has a banner "bragging" about a new online application system ("We are pleased to have upgraded our online account opening system for an improved customer experience."). As I proceeded to open a new CD, one of the firs 4 items of information required was a mobile phone number. There was no way around this.
I refuse to deal with institutions that require this. Some of these reasons have been discussed at length on the Live Oak board when they went to this approach (security/SIM card fraud, inconvenience)
Update: CSR by email says to just input my land line number where it asks for mobile, thus permitting the application to proceed (so they don't really need a mobile #?). I did this and received confirmation that my CD was open and it appears on my online banking list of accounts. I also checked my account profile and the contact phone number is my land line #, which I provided with my initial application. Let's hope there is no negative repercussions...
New account opening seems to have too many unwanted, unnecessary questions. Plus the customer support rep is asking for tax form. Not sure why they require this, what if the data is compromised. All customer info will be exposed.
I have used numerous other money market savings account. None has these requirements. I'm waiting to see what happens after this.
My review is to acknowledge the excellent customer service from CFG. As background, after the SVB and Signature Bank failures, I became aware that FDIC insurance would not cover all of the balance at my primary bank, so I had to open new accounts to receive full coverage. I opened 4 other accounts over the last 2 months, all of which offered 4.65% APY or more. CFG was one of the 4.
In comparison to the 3 other new accounts, CFG's HY Money Market rate was one of the highest AND they provided noteworthy service with follow-up phone calls, whereas the other institutions relied on email/other online correspondence to address questions.
Side note: I had to subsequently close one of the new accounts because they didn't have an option to designate POD beneficiaries.
Hope this information is helpful.
I recently opened Money Market account in CFG bank via the Internet. Looks to me, the account opening procedure is almost same as regular banks.
I applied account creation via the Internet. I had to enter my name, phone#, address, SSN ..etc etc. Also, in the page, I had to enter an account info (routing# and account#) to transfer money from. Here, their verification system is a little bit troublesome. First, CFG bank deposited very small amount of money into the other bank account two times. For example, they were 41cents and 52cents. Once the deposit was observed, I had to open a link that CFG sent me via email and enter the amounts (41 and 52). Once it's verified, I was redirected to the account creation page and to proceed final account creation step. There I had to enter my Money Market's account number (they gave me the account# earlier and I memorized it). For me, it took 3-4 days to open Money Market account.
As other reviews say, Money Market account has a limitation for # of transfer and/or amount to transfer per 30 days. For me, this is not a problem at all because I believe Money Market account is to keep money for certain long term.
Their web site is quite simple but not problem.
I asked some questions via email. I got response in a couple of days. This is also acceptable for me.
They have only a couple of branches in Baltimore. For me, I don't think there is a need for me to visit their branch. So, it's not a problem.
So far, I'm very satisfied with CFG bank. As long as they offer very high interest ratio, I'm happy with them!
thanks
Poor customer service. One hour holds to speak with any one. You name it and it is bad. It is clear that they can't handle the demand and the consequence is almost a complete inability to reach anyone or talk with anyone. Even using their online mail system produces no real results. Take a smaller interest rate and avoid a "failure to communicate."
With SVB scare I am looking for a 2nd and even 3rd bank with great rates. But so many banks with high Savings rates have ridiculous withdrawal restrictions. CFG is one of them. You cannot withdraw more than $30K in a 30 day period. So be sure you understand this. There are still a couple out there that dont tie up your money like this. So Shop around
"We’re not your typical bank. We are one of the few banks supporting the national cannabis industry with lending and deposit services to help your cannabis business grow."
While doing my due diligence I discovered the above fact. You may personally like this or not like this. However, most U.S. banks do not service cannabis companies as marijuana remains federally illegal despite several states legalizing its medicinal and recreational use and is a Schedule 1 drug.
Only about 10% of all U.S. banks and about 5% of all credit unions provide cannabis banking, as per analysts' estimates. This could increase the risk to CFG Bank. Smaller banks, regional lenders and credit unions that typically extend credit to the cannabis sector have been flagged by analysts as facing higher risk from the current turbulence.
Average interest rate in the cannabis sector can be as high as 20%, according to True Trading Group, an online community of traders and entrepreneurs. That compares with the 5% to 5.7% average rate for business loans from traditional banks, as per Bankrate, an online publisher of finance content. This could be why CFG has high rates on it's high yield money market account.
I have read the reviews on this platform about many banks here. I have to say there were a lot of questions to answer but only a little time consuming.
Moving money into the account was all done by ACH very easily up to the FDIC limit. Customer service is very important to me and I have been with many online institutions over the years especially the big ones that offer just mediocre rates today. ( Bye Bye American Express) They may not answer the phone right away which usually is a huge priority to me but the best thing to do is leave your number and someone gets back to you within an hour. The staff is very helpful and polite. The rates are among the best out there right now. The website is a bit behind the times but it does what it needs to. From Depositacounts.com I have called many banks been on hold for well over an hour and to find out when I did reach staff they were less than helpful. CFG is one of my favorite banks. I understand ACH limits with some institutions but you have to just do a wire transfer if you need things done ASAP.
You can deposit in all you like but maximum withdraw is $5,000 per day and maximum of 30,000 per month. They hold your money hostage all while they are free to change the rate they pay you at any moment
Consistently good interest rates, and unlike some other banks, they pass them along to existing customers. Helpful staff.
I needed to transfer money from CFG to open a CD at my credit union. CFG was very slow (3 days!) and said just depends on our scheduling...meanwhile I wrote a check to start the process because it was the last day to lock in that rate. My CU said, no worries we will run the check twice and it should be there by then, nope, and they didn't seem to care. Not impressed.
I drive down to the branch to see the bank and it was very nice. The manager and the front desk person welcome me like I had a million dollars. Joanna Gonzales the manager was really nice. She went over all the benefits of the bank and my interest rates. I open the account when the rates were 3.85% now they are at 4.30%. Great Bank and customer services.
I noticed this morning (1-30-2023) that CFG had raised their 1-year CD to 4.85%
I opened an online account. Waited 2 weeks for an email with steps to deposit my money into the CFG account. I sent an email, and even called and spoke with a rep. She said would send it right away. Waited for 2 more weeks..... no response. Terrible service !! Would not recommend this bank to anybody.
There are other banks that offer better rates with much better service.
I have had no issues of any kind with CFG bank using it as a deposit account. Their rates are excellent and customer service has been superb. Can't imagine why anyone should be having problems there.
I had also used Alliant Credit Union to escape the 12 debit requirements of my local credit unions (Advantis / Rivermark). The Alliant CSR were fine and I had few issues making a 125K ACH transfer. When their rates became a joke, it was a relatively simple matter to transfer the money out without restrictions.
On balance, I don't have a high regard for any credit unions. They think "small". My local one allowed $250,000. to walk across the street rather than match a small percentage increase when renewing a CD.
Q. -Who lets a quarter of a million dollars walk out the door?
A. - Advantis Credit Union, now offering a staggering 1.29% APY if you meet their monthly requirements.
I asked to have large amount wired today at 10:00 and I was told at 12:00 it was done. I just called at 4:45 and they hope to wire it tomorrow. I paid the wiring fee, why didn't they wire it today?
I have had nothing but difficulty opening an account at CFG. First, it asks for A Lot of personal info about how you intend to use the account. The bank should change its name to CIA Bank. Ok, I thought, nothing wrong with added security measures. Secondly, for some reason, CFG is unable to transfer funds into my account at Wells Fargo to verify ownership. Other online banks have had no problem. So, as a result I had to add a second external account to transfer funds. But, the deal breaker is after opening my account, I find they have put limitations on the amount of funds I can transfer into and out of my account. Its $25,000/day, $30,000/mo. into the account. Out of the account and into my external account its $5,000/day, $30,000/mo. Of course, there is no mention of these limitations when opening the account. As a result of these limitations, I am immediately closing my account. I am a real estate investor. When I need my cash, I need my cash within 2 days, not a month or more. I have an account at savebetter.com. I have money at 5 of their member banks and credit unions. None of them have any limitations on the number or dollar amount of transfers into or out of the account.
Opened a 1yr CD in august of 2022. Now I cannot access my account online. Calling CFG bank results in no answer. Sending an e-mail results in no response. Anyone know of a different way to get some response from CFG?
Opened a CD account. Signed up, went through the process which is very secure. Money transfered and nothing from them for 3-4 days. Read reviews on here and the contacted them through email contactus@cfg. Calling will never ever get through. Suprisingly 3 minutes after my email I recieve a call from a very nice man that verified my deposit and sent me an encrypted email with my account information and then helped me get online account. I panic when at first I couldnt contact them. They are justed swamped currently getting all the new cd accounts established. I will be buying more cds soon.
I opened up both a MMA and three CD's in-branch.
Customer service both by phone and in-branch were excellent.
To date, I' m very pleased.
I saw a comment by another reader that CFG does NOT waive the EWP on the death of an account holder. I verified this is the case from a CSR this morning. This policy is very unusual and would cause concern on older account holders from not wanting to open accounts at this institution for this reason.
When someone dies, their family would probably need the funds and this is a punitive policy in my opinion. Not nice to hurt customers further on a death.
No responses to my questions, opened the account several days ago, but nothing.
I wrote emails and left voice messages at the main call center and each branch, but no responses.
Been banking with them for a few months. Two weeks ago, visited their branch in Baltimore (1st time branch visit). Small branch with 1 teller, 1 assistant manager and 1 manager. Service was quick. I asked for an ATM card, they said yes we will order one for you. After a few hours, they called and said that because my account was an online MMA, I will not have an ATM card after all. I am fine with that. Right now their rates are at the top of the pack. There is someone commenting that they are one of the few banks that do business with cannabis industry, could be a nothing burger though.
I applied for a High Yield Money Market Savings account on December 9th and the application was fairly easy to understand. I successfully submitted it and received an email almost instantly, giving me my account number and telling me that I would be contacted if they needed more info and also that I needed to verify deposits and that another email would follow with instructions to do just that. On December 12th I was contacted and they wanted a copy of a current utility bill because my address wasn't updated on the front of my DL, so I sent what they asked for and was emailed back with account approval within 30 minutes! I was told that the email about the deposits would come in the next 2-3 days, yet I received that email the very next day and I successfully verified my deposits and was then told to wait for login instructions in the next email. I waited 2 days and than called and got voicemail, so I immediately called back and was met with a very friendly rep that told me my account number and what to do to login and I was off to the races. I successfully logged in the same day to see my initial balance and to setup alerts etc. (December 14th) The website IS dated but I don't plan on accessing it much anyways, as it's a savings account with one of the best rates, so it's exactly what I wanted, nothing more nothing less... I was turned off by the reviews, but I wasn't going to be that idiot that left a negative review when I hadn't even done business with this company! I would definitely recommend CFG Bank and even though the reviews are bad, look at the other banks and you will see the same, plus I had a fully funded account in 3 business days. It's a safe place to put your money and I recommend them thus far! Don't believe everything you read, that's the moral of this story.
Today I received an ominous, poorly written secure email from CFG. The email warns in tortured English that "we seen you completed a debit transaction on x/x/xxxx for the amount of xxxx.xx" and that "with this transaction its put's your account below the required limit to keep it in good standards." The email references part of my account number and I actually did complete a transaction of that amount on that particular date almost a month ago, but it brought my balance nowhere close to any kind of limit. Besides, the only balance limits on the money market savings account are $1000 in order to earn interest and of course, zero. I tried calling the bank several times but the calls go to voicemail. I'm reluctant to login to my account until I'm sure this isn't some kind of advanced phishing scam. Did anyone else receive an email like this?
Our experience with CFG mirrors those who say "so far so good." The process of opening and maintaining our MM account and CD over the past several months was reasonably efficient and staff members were very responsive in all our interactions. At our end -- our experience has been excellent while obtaining some of the most competitive rates nationally for online products.
I read the reviews, noting most problems were from Aug 2022 (due to an overwhelmed system) or user error. Decided to take a chance since their rates are so much better than my current bank. I also knew from prior reviews I would have to excerise patience with the process.
Online application asks for everything, including Joint Account holder and Beneficiary information. If you don't do this now, it's much harder later, so be prepared with all your necessary information including IDs and Passports.
Received 2 follow-up secure emails requesting ID photos. Called and easily received guidance to finish requests.
Once they had everything, it took 3 business days to receive email with account number, initial funding, and how to setup mobile banking.
Setting up External Accounts went smoothly and quickly. Only mentioned because this was the deal killer with LendingClub....
I'm pretty impressed so far.
I received multiple emails letting me know what to expect. And let's face it, setting accurate expectations is more than half the customer service battle. Start to finish took about 2 weeks, but there was a holiday in that time frame.
Mobile banking is limited and could use some upgrades for more options.
Now working on fully funding account. It will be interesting to see how long they put a hold on my funds and if they accrue interest whilst on hold....
I'll update...
What do the following have in common---the CIA, Mensa, Augusta National Country Club? They are all easier to join than opening an account at CFG. I went through the LONG application process, only to be refused for a "security question." I thought that perhaps I made a mistake and did it again (you have to start over). Nope, still declined. I've sent them an email; we'll see what happens.
The application process went fine. I never unfroze my credit so it was probably all Chex. I could add a beneficiary on the application and do old school test deposit/withdrawals. It felt great!
However everything got botched after that - partly my fault. Soon after I finished the application it occured to me that I entered the wrong account number! I called and got someone QUICKLY to fix the issue. The next day I got the test deposits/withdrawal and proceeded to verify using the link provided.
The link didn't work! I emailed digital banking to that fact but received no reply. Toward the end of the day I was called by a very nice rep to rehash the issue, so apparently it wasn't fully sorted out the first time. I confirmed the test deposits with the rep and believed everything would be fine - even though the process may be pushed back a day due to my mistake... patience.
After three business days my opening deposit had not transferred and I received no communication nor wecome email with account number. I called again and was told the transfer was "pending" and that I should wait another day.
Two days later nothing happens. I call again and the rep says that the test deposits were NOT verified - this after I was told by someone else that they had been. Since its been nearly a two week process thus far and still no account opened, I chose to stop the process and go somewhere else. I felt uneasy continuing any further and putting money there after getting contradictory info from the phone reps.
Since I made the first mistake I can't rate as terrible. If I hadn't made the first mistake I COULD have an account there with a sizeable chunk of savings earning a very competitive rate. However even though they picked up the phone within a few minutes every time it just depends on who you get as to whether they're really addressing the problem or simply reading from the script. I will say don't bother emailing them. I sent a few emails but only received one scripted reply that wasn't accurate at all.
Proceed with caution... as in get it right the first time and you MAY be fine.
I recently opened a MM account here and, doing due diligence, read the posted complaints prior to doing so. From submitting the application to online enrollment, I have had contact with three agents... Jared (branch manager), Terry and the longest contact with Taylor. They answered the phone with no wait times from the menu selection. They patiently and efficiently guided me through the process and addressed all of my questions and concerns. The best banking experience I have had in decades. As to the complaints, there is, in my view, a reasonable explanation for all of their policies...keeping the account holder safe and the bank from liability. If the push/pull limits need adjustment, just ask. If you need to add a beneficiary, they send a secure electronic form. Regarding ACH delays, for contrast, UFBDirect floated my $125K for eight days after leaving my credit union. I have nothing but praise for my experiences here thus far. Taylor, in particular, was nothing short of a breath of fresh air. Infinite patience and utmost competency. Highest recommendation.
ACH withdrawals initiated at CFG take 3 business days. In a time where there are so many banks that have your money received at your external bank the next business day, and even a small amount of banks that offer same-day ACH, it is frustrating and unacceptable that CFG has this ACH delay.
Example: Say you initiate an ACH withdrawal on Wednesday, your money won’t arrive at your external bank until the following Monday. That could be a loss of a lot of interest depending on the amount, of course.
I highly recommend only pulling the money out from your external bank.
CFG offers good interest rates, but again their ACH out time is terrible.
I opened CFG Money Market account. I validated my external bank account for funding , August 2, CFG deducted my external bank on August 5. But one week later, CFG had not opened my Money Market account yet. When I tried
to do an additional transfer I was told that there is an IT problem.3 days after the same problem was exist.
I requested to close the account and send the money to the original source. I was told that I have to verify me account again and add the same account again to the system. I received a request form to close the account and submitted to the banks. Than I received an email that I have to increase my limit. Finally, I filed a dispute with my bank and received my money back, I received another email from CFG that I have an $12 insufficient fund Fee. and the account can't be closed. Thanks that I filed a dispute with my bank and received my initial deposit in 1 hour.
I have a Money Market savings account that I recently opened. I was receiving paper statements and wanted to opt out and elect electronic only. I called twice over the course of 3 days and had to leave voice mail both times. They never returned my call. I will stay with them because the rate is unmatched and I don't require customer service very often but it would be nice to know that an institution that's holding a significant sum of my money will return my call at some point.
From their site:
Once funding occurs the daily external transfer limit for the CFG High Yield Money Market Account is $5,000. Your external transfers may not exceed $30,000 in a 30-day rolling period.
On Aug 24 I opened a online 12 month CD. For me the process went very smoothly with no snags. On Aug 25 I confirmed the two micro deposits and CFG pulled my six figure deposit from my linked account. I think that was pretty fast compared to some of the other online banks. However by Aug 30 I still hadn’t received a account number or confirmation of the deposit. I emailed CFG requesting my account number but got no response. On Aug 31 I called the CS number and was surprised to get a real person. I expressed my concerns and within 2-3 min the CS person gave me my account number and told me I could now go online and set up passwords etc to view my account. I did this and could now view my CD account. I was impressed with the CS. On Sept 1 I finally did get a response on my email that was basically the same info that the CS gave me. Right now I’m satisfied. I suspect CFG has probably reached their deposit goals because I have noticed they have lowered their CD rates since I opened my account.
I contacted [email protected] and Nicole Donegan responded quickly.
EDITED NOW:
My original review is below but I do not see where I can delete it, so I am updating it here.
I sent an email that I saw listed in another person's review & N Donegan replied to it within 5 minutes. WOW! She said she has asked that my welcome letter with account & login info be sent right away.
I feel like I can breathe again.
Thank you N Donegan!!
Original review:
I applied for a 5-year CD, verified my funding account & they withdrew said funds on Aug 23rd.
They have not sent me a confirmation email of the withdrawal nor any info on my new account with them so I have no way to know where my money actually is.
It was a large amount & I am sick to my stomach and in a panic.
NOT A HAPPY CUSTOMER
At this point, I would not recommend this bank.
I sent my initial application in on August 8th and they were still working through a backlog of applications so I understood there may be some delay. I have been told 2-3 times that I would be receiving micro-deposits to verify the checking account but still have not received them.
My application was approved and processed on August 16th and I was subsequently told again to keep an eye out for micro-deposits to verify but have not received them still. I have reached out to CFG and communicated with them as well and tried to see if there was another way to verify or perhaps if I should fund with another account which may remedy the issue but I have not gotten a human response.
It's been a week since money was taken out of my bank account and transferred to "my" CFG account. A welcome letter was promised within 3 days but still nothing.
I called them and surprisingly someone answered immediately and was able to provide me with my account number on the phone!
I went into the branch to open an account. I funded my new account with a check. The service was very good. I worked with a manager who showed to be knowledgeable and professional. I noticed that energy at the branch was different from other banks…I would say it was less hectic, even though the employees were extremely busy, I felt less stressed there…When I came home, I set up an online banking and an app. The website is quite basic, but it had everything I needed. The rates are great. I hope the bank will continue providing top rates. I was pleasantly surprised that I was being paid interest on my initial deposit even though the check was still not completely processed and my funds were still with another bank.
Don't pay attention to the ridiculous 1-star reviews. This bank is legit. I have had accounts with nine online banks, and CFG has been the most consistent with offering industry-leading interest rates. Since joining, I have had some website accessibility issues and a few withdrawal transaction questions. Like every other company nowadays, you will likely wait onhold or experience a lag in the processing/completing requests, but I have always found CFG's customer service to be friendly and helpful. Also, isn't slow customer service the norm today, regardless of the company?
There is a hold of up to 10-days depending on the size of your initial deposit, which is clearly stated in the agreement in a normal-sized font. I mean, god forbid folks take 30 seconds to a minute to skim the account document. CFG has a low $5K limit per withdrawal transaction when initiating from CFG bank. The easy way to get around this is to initiate all withdrawals from your receiving institution as their limits are likely higher. I have completed withdrawal transactions initiated from my receiving bank up to $100K without any issue.
CFG is not a scam. Take a minute to skim the account terms and conditions to ensure you understand the account rules, and you'll be just fine.
I opened CFG Money Market account. I validated my external bank account for funding on Sunday, August 14, and very efficiently, CFG deducted my external bank the next day, August 15. But one week later, CFG had not opened my Money Market account yet!!!
Is this a scam to quickly collect money without paying interest to their customers?
Opened a new account with CFG, email for increase ACH limits, someone called me next day, increased the limits. So I thought their customer service was great and trusted them. Issued 3 transactions transfer money to CFG, then nightmare, got automatic email “ transaction is incomplete “, “ external account suspended “, neither money posted to CFG account nor retuned to my external account, not answer phone , not reply email. It is a real bank? Where is my money? Anyone know where I can report this issue? FDIC?
I live in Maryland, so decided to go to the CFG Bank branch to apply. Emailed Nicole Donegan using the contact information she provided and she forwarded my request with questions to Jared Smith, Assistant Branch Manager, who set up an appointment with me and my wife as a joint owner for the next day. During the appointment today, he quickly typed up our answers to his pretty usual questions and the DL information. The application was immediately approved, and he gave us the printout with the account number. I just set up the online account access with no issues. So far so good! Really appreciate the amazing customer service!
CFG Community Bank is the most unprofessional bank I have ever dealt with. Not sure how they got there FDIC rating or if they even have one. No matter how many messages you leave them you will never receive a message back. They are in denial and a bunch of liars. RUN RUN RUN & RUN !!
is what the website says. You can email the bank from the address supplied on the website and they'll shoot you an application. Other banks CDs and MMAs need to leapfrog CFG before they'll put their application page up again.
Neither have I, obi. Total waste of time to verify my address this way when there are simpler ways used by all banks I have dealt with. Glad to be rid of them.
I "opened" an account a week ago. Today they sent me an encrypted message asking me to submit a W9 form. I've never had a bank ask for that. Is this legitimate?
Opening an account was easy. Called Customer Service a couple times with questions (and to test them) and they answered promptly and knew the answers. However once my money was transferred in I was supposed to receive a secure email within 3 business days with my account number so I could register with their online system and check my balances. I never received this email and it's been 8 business days. Got nervous on day three and started calling their various Customer Service numbers. Each time I was transferred to a voicemail box that was full and no longer taking messages. I called them more than a dozen times over three days. At this point, I'm starting to think that CFG was a fraud and my money was gone. On day 6 I finally got a hold of a live person who was clearly stressed out and she told me I needed to go into a branch to get my account number. I told her I live in California and their two branches are in Maryland. She said I need to call the branch, which I had been doing unsuccessfully for 3 days. I finally got a hold of the right person on day 8 and she gave me my account number. Also note that the Money Market account has a $5K daily withdrawal limit and a $50K 30-day limit, which makes it essentially useless for any serious money management. I'm hoping I can pull unlimited money from another institution. I'm a very experienced investor and have opened over 20 online accounts over the last few years. I'm used to jumping through hoops. This was by far the worst experience I've ever had. Their rates are great and I'd like to give them a lot more money, but I wouldn't sleep at night.
This week I received a dormancy notice on a new money market account I opened late in July 2022. Normally an account is considered dormant in perhaps a year or two with no activity. The account still had a zero balance. What is with these people?
Why go through all of this hassle for 3% when a brokered CD at your brokerage firm will also pay 3% for 1 year with ZERO hassle. It appears the mental anguish this small bank creates because they are not geared up for so much volume is not worth it, I always say if opening up and account is a hassle, how can it be upon maturity ?
I tried to open this acct after supplying all my personal details, and I have called them many times over the course of a week to check the status, and there is no information. I feel uncomfortable to have shared these details with them seeing how they do business. After opening many CDs with many banks, and credit unions, this one leaves me with many doubts.
UPDATED:
to 3 as they got back to me when I contacted [email protected]. I went with another bank, as I have never dealt with an online bank as slow as this.
Without going into the gory details, I've been having a very frustrating experience with opening an account at CFG like so many others here.
I finally got a call back from a CSR today - they are swamped. She assured me they are working to clear the backlog, but they obviously failed to realize that posting the best deposit rates in the country might attract quite a bit of interest..
.
I received an acknowledgment of receipt for my application within hours of submitting it, but the promised test deposits have yet to appear. I'm thinking it may be a few more days.
I'm also noticing now that although the high rates continue to be offered on the bank's web site, CFG is no longer listed in DA's CD and savings accounts tabs. Anybody know the reason for this?
Filled out the application for a CD three days ago and submitted it. Didn't receive any confirmation of receipt of the application by email, and I've sent emails both to their address and through their online "send us a note" form. I have called 3 different customer service numbers from the start of their business day to the close, and the only time I got an answer was after 4PM, when the POS CSR said "Oh, the bank is closed now, so you have to call back tomorrow between 9 and 4". I don't even know how to cancel my application. Not sure what to do at this point - the money hasn't been withdrawn from my account, so I don't know if anything has even happened regarding what I submitted. This shouldn't even be legal.
They answer their support emails within a day. They'll increase your ACH limits if you ask. They hold your ACH transfers without interest a few days and they're not supposed to do that. Besides that, it's an excellent bank. I took off an extra star off for putting holds (that's not listed in your balance) on transfers initiated "from" CFG when they admit they have the funds. Been with them for years, it's not like I'm a new customer. If you ACH in, they show the funds in your account the next day. PS. if you can't log in, it's probably because their site crashes every few days. They are working on it.
Tried at least 5 different applications including giving them copies of my license that all end with "unable to verify identity" - the identity verification questions never show up. I thought it was my browser having issues so I kept trying different browsers. Chatted with with customer service over email who all say they know nothing.
It turned out, they pull your Early Warning Systems report and then just make an arbitrary and automatic decision based on it and just use identify verification as an excuse to deny you. I pulled my own EWS report and found all 5 inquiries from CFG. My EWS report has no negative marks whatsoever and I have 820 credit scores so who knows what random criteria they used. Ended up parking my money at Comenity/Bread.
You know CFG, I don't care what criteria you're looking for, but lying about it as "unable to verify identity" is a low blow and a blatant violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
"Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for credit, insurance, or employment - or to take another adverse action against you - must tell you, and must give you the name, address, and phone number of the agency that provided the information."
And thanks no thanks for your 5 inquiries.
This is a very small bank with no easy way to get your money out. When I first opened this account a long time ago, I was told that I could request them to wire money out, but the fact is that they do not answer their phone, so that it is no longer possible. Worse, their ACH limits are very low.
Phone calls goes to voice mail with message that ‘THIS BOX IS FULL’.
How can a Bank conduct business this way.
Online application is error prone.
Save yourself the frustrations and look elsewhere.
Just go to their https://www.cfg.bank/personal-banking/personal-deposit-rates/ page, click the High Yield Money Market "Apply for Account" button, and look at their extraordinary long questionnaire which includes the dollar amounts and numbers of all kind of transactions you might plan to do, addresses of places which might briefly visited up to 30 years ago, etc, etc. A great thing is that they might push general saving rates higher. ??
Filled out their online account application today for a CD with joint owner and POD. It was very easy and went through without any glitches. It asks what bank you want to ACH money from and at the end it says that they will send me an e-mail within 1-3 days with my new account # after I've verified test transactions. So I'll have to wait and see if it all goes through ok but it certainly went smooth up to this point. UPDATE: I finally got someone on the phone late this afternoon. I have not received an e-mail nor the trial deposits in my linked acct yet. The man I spoke to said they are absolutely swamped so he didn't have any idea what a "normal" wait period is anymore. All he could do is look under my ss# to see if an acct was opened, which it wasn't so he can only assume it's still in the queue for processing. I'll check with them again Monday, it is what it is.
Edit: posted August 08, 2022.
CFG accepted my application & verified my external funding account & then pulled 1k from my external funding account on Aug 02, 2022 to fund/open new HYMM account.
Last I heard from CFG was CFG trial deposits info/explain "open new accounts" process email on July 31, 2022.
I've left messages.
I've sent emails.
Edit: posted August 10, 2022
I received Welcome Package
Thanks to NDonegan
CFG advertises (on their web site) that the yield on their High Yield MMA, of .80%, is for 'new money' only. Of course, that restriction is picked up and repeated here on DepositAccounts.com.
Since I am an existing holder of their High Yield MMA, I called today to find out the ins and outs of how this "new money" differentiation works. In response to my first question, I was told by the customer service rep (CSR) that "all customers receive the same rate." In fact, my online baking account shows that the current yield on my account is the .80%. I have not added any money since this new rate was initiated.
I did not bother to ask the CSR why they were advertising the rate in this fashion, as I assumed the answer to that was above his pay grade.
I don't know how to rate this bank as a result. I'm giving it 4 stars because I like the rate and that I was/am receiving it without jumping through hoops, although one might view this as a one star outfit for their misleading approach.
Their application system cost me hours of frustration and without any success. As with others " dont bother"
Went through opening twice. No security questions asked. Then they say if they weren't asked it means we can't open the account despite application completing, credit score above 830, impeccable history. In my opinion, they feed you bullshit because they don't want to take new clients or filter you by how much money you say you want to bring in.