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Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

root.co.za

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Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#271

Post by jacekm »

jacksnipe wrote: post #215

At first I was wondering what I could possibly use this for, but as I sat and thought about it, I realized the possibilities are enormous. I'd like to know if the following are possible: 1. Forcing me to stay on budget, unless there's an emergency (perhaps allow purchases over budget after the third attempt). 2. Automatically distribute paychecks or other income into different accounts (some to retirement, some to sa…

Hmm, 2 and 3 I already have in my non-programmable account. 4 I need to do manually (charging and discharging my virtual card that I got from the same bank), automation would surely be nice. Only the 1st point would be something new for me.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#272

Post by aeorgnoieang »

weego wrote: post #47
azeirah wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Analyse your spending habits to see where you can easily save some money is one example.

Isn't this one of those things where if you're conscientious enough to want to spend time sorting this out and building up an analysis you're probably already the kind of person that doesn't have completely wild and untracked spending habits?

I don't think so; I'm a counter-example for one. I've found that I just can't track my spending unaided and that I pretty much need to maintain my own books to stay on top of everything.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#273

Post by devrandomguy »

louwhopley wrote: post #54

Founder here :) Feel free to ask me any questions

Shoutout from Canada! There are 32M of us, 88% of whom have internet. Our banks are archaic and expensive, and as a people, we have a low tolerance for that. My current bank actually believes that the telephony system is secure, compared to email :/

Our banking laws are favorable to startups; I could start my own bank, if I wanted to, for little more than the cost of a business license. Many merchants run their own little micro-banks, partly because of the aforementioned problem. Please help :)

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#274

Post by Neliquat »

apostacy wrote: post #175
louwhopley wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey (founder of Root here), our platform gives you full API access to, for instance, do any of the things you do on the normal banking interface through code - like initiating a transfer to someone else, or building your own recurring payments system using a simple cron job :)

Apps that let you manage video game currency often give you so much more control than your bank's app gives you over your real money in your checking account! It's an imbalanced situation, and I think there's a lot of room to improve. Perhaps I can use your API to do something like that.

The banking game, gg no re.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#275

Post by run4yourlives2 »

kuschku wrote: post #233
run4yourlives2 wrote: post #206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thankfully, there is a good amount of space between money under mattresses and a government controlled economy. Your comment is a giant straw man. Canadian and EU systems are private ones and the government has little or no power to directly intervene, short of law enforcement. The idea that eliminating paper is some sort of boogeyman from Revelations is about as silly as the idea that holding on to your Glock allows…

Sadly, I think the solution in the US and some parts of the EU is even worse than the chinese one. Try buying Cuban cigars without cash anywhere. Your VISA or MasterCard will mysteriously fail to allow this purchase – because, due to the embargo, these companies just refuse to allow transactions containing the words "cuba", "iran", etc. VISA and MasterCard also have additional rules of their own, and if you have a so…

I'm Canadian, so not only can I buy Cuban cigars, I can buy them in a store down the street with my debit card. (A real debit card that connects directly to my account, not just a prepaid credit card.) Regardless though, making an illegal purchase isn't a very good reason to argue for cash; in fact you may have more luck changing the dumb laws if people are truly hurt by them.

The US definition of a "debit card" is massively different than the Canadian one. For us, our bank card is the debit card. The same one I use to take money out of my account at an ATM is the same one I can use to buy a $1 coffee.

Why some banks do charge outrageous fees, thanks to the free market there is a healthy market and many banks in Canada are now fully virtual or offer next to no fees.

Just because a system is poorly designed in one locale does not mean the idea itself is flawed, just that it should be implemented in an improved way.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#276

Post by lol768 »

sjtgraham wrote: post #168
lol768 wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Forgive me for the naive question, but how does this stack up in terms of the legality of what you're doing? I'm aware of some limited exceptions that would allow you to do this sort of reverse engineering for interoperability reasons in the EU. Also, isn't it going to be reasonably fragile? There's nothing stopping the banks (other than [in my experience] their general inability to make technical changes at a reason…

Thanks for the questions: The legal one was looked at by lawyers earlier this year. There were two points to consider: - copyright infringement via reverse engineering - "hacking" statutes, e.g. Computer Misuse Act 1990 They concluded that there are no concerns in terms of copyright infringement, we have devised many non-infringing techniques for reverse-engineering and use them wherever possible, not least because t…

Thanks for taking the time to answer all that in so much detail, the legal aspect in particular is really interesting. Users staying on old versions is also a good point, and something I didn't consider.

Best of luck with the future of Teller, you're doing something that I personally think consumer banks should've been offering for years and it's great to see someone filling that gap. I'm hoping Monzo and others end up pushing "legacy" banks into opening up API access but I guess the realist in me finds this unlikely.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#277

Post by kuschku »

run4yourlives2 wrote: post #275
kuschku wrote: post #233

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sadly, I think the solution in the US and some parts of the EU is even worse than the chinese one. Try buying Cuban cigars without cash anywhere. Your VISA or MasterCard will mysteriously fail to allow this purchase – because, due to the embargo, these companies just refuse to allow transactions containing the words "cuba", "iran", etc. VISA and MasterCard also have additional rules of their own, and if you have a so…

I'm Canadian, so not only can I buy Cuban cigars, I can buy them in a store down the street with my debit card. (A real debit card that connects directly to my account, not just a prepaid credit card.) Regardless though, making an illegal purchase isn't a very good reason to argue for cash; in fact you may have more luck changing the dumb laws if people are truly hurt by them. The US definition of a "debit card" is m…

> in fact you may have more luck changing the dumb laws if people are truly hurt by them.

But that’s the point.

Cuban Cigars are legal in Germany.

You can legally buy them.

But every payment processor that’s located in the US can not process such a transaction.

Relying on foreign companies for most basic needs means you lose a lot of sovereignty.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#278

Post by run4yourlives2 »

tomcam wrote: post #218
run4yourlives2 wrote: post #206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thankfully, there is a good amount of space between money under mattresses and a government controlled economy. Your comment is a giant straw man. Canadian and EU systems are private ones and the government has little or no power to directly intervene, short of law enforcement. The idea that eliminating paper is some sort of boogeyman from Revelations is about as silly as the idea that holding on to your Glock allows…

Were there any facts in your answer? Where did the parent mention Revelations?

I'm not sure what you are looking for. OP linked a cashless society to being the cause of government control. This is false. Government can exert control already in a cash-based society to a sufficient degree. It's more a style of the government in question than the tech used.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#279

Post by run4yourlives2 »

kuschku wrote: post #277
run4yourlives2 wrote: post #275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm Canadian, so not only can I buy Cuban cigars, I can buy them in a store down the street with my debit card. (A real debit card that connects directly to my account, not just a prepaid credit card.) Regardless though, making an illegal purchase isn't a very good reason to argue for cash; in fact you may have more luck changing the dumb laws if people are truly hurt by them. The US definition of a "debit card" is m…

> in fact you may have more luck changing the dumb laws if people are truly hurt by them. But that’s the point. Cuban Cigars are legal in Germany. You can legally buy them. But every payment processor that’s located in the US can not process such a transaction. Relying on foreign companies for most basic needs means you lose a lot of sovereignty.

Given that I've personally bought Cuban cigars with my Amex card last Christmas as gifts, I'm pretty sure your assertion is false.

It's more likely the case that an American credit card holder cannot buy them, even when he is in Germany, because he's subject to American laws, as I would be if I took a box into the US and started selling them.

Re: Root – Programmable bank account for software developers

#280

Post by [deleted] »

louwhopley wrote: post #208
RangerScience wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1) Is there any way to get the itemized receipt as part of the event information? (I don't even know if that's sent by the credit card widgets...) 2) What are your plans for supporting other languages? ( cough Ruby cough ) 3) How would I make a script integrate with a 3rd service?

Hi RangerScience, the APIs are based on REST, so any language that can handle https are supported. We're also working on libraries for a bunch of popular languages :)

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