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BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

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Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#131

Post by lhnn »

al3x wrote: post #64
lhnn wrote: post #47

I don't get what the confusion is. "Simple" (generic name, weak branding..) is a middle-man between banks and you. Why? -They have multiple backend banks, so I suppose that keeps you the customer from getting locked into one bank's crappy fee policy. -They can focus on customer satisfaction and UI rather than be bogged down by becoming a "real" bank. Any doubts about their trustworthiness because they're not a bank i…

Sorry that you think the name is "weak" and "generic", but I'm glad that you get what we're doing. "Simple" is definitely a generic term, but brands are built over time. Personally, I love our new logo (by our own @3n), and I think it'll resonate when you start seeing it on actual debit cards and such :)

It's easy to talk shit on the Internet...

Obviously, I support your business idea, and I look forward to it shaking banks up a bit. If the product is strong enough, a generic brand won't kill the business. I still believe

BankSimple was a better name (in my opinion), as it actually positioned you as a new player in a game to change the status quo. I can understand if there were potential legal issues with a non-bank calling itself a bank. If this is the reason a change was made, then I'm wasting my keystrokes.

Send me a beta invite!

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#132

Post by AznHisoka »

ynniv wrote: post #111
maaku wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"a lot like a prepaid card" doesn't answer the question. In what ways is it like a prepaid card? In what ways is it not? As the OP asked, where does the money actually go? It's a concern that you couldn't really answer the question.

I think that you are wrong that this is a concern. HN is not a financial forum, and you are asking for technical details that are irrelevant to the discussion. Simple's statement is that your money is in a third party bank, and Simple promises to be a prudent intermediary.

To defend the parent, I'm also concerned :)

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#133

Post by j_s »

powertower wrote: post #103

https://www.simple.com/ Seriously broken website, at least it is in IE8.

Perhaps not the kindest words, but it is true... hopefully someone who can fix it sees this in spite of the down-voters!

http://browserling.com/explorer/8.0/https%3A//simple.com

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#134

Post by delinka »

damoncali wrote: post #93
delinka wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assumption alert: the account at the partner bank is in your name. Your money must be in your name for it to get the FDIC's "$250,000 limit per depositor" insurance coverage. Having one big mattress with Simple's name on it would preclude your money being insured. Ergo, the account must be in your name.

I dont' think that's exactly true. There is such a thing as the CDARS program, which allows you to spread your money between accounts at multiple banks. Not sure what the limitations are on that, but I would be weary of assumptions on this. If the money were not in my name, that would be deal killer. EDIT: for clarity.

It's per depositor per bank. Not per depositor period. Spreading your money across accounts at a single bank would not get you additional protection. Spreading your money across banks is how you protect more of your money.

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#135

Post by [deleted] »

ynniv wrote: post #111
maaku wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"a lot like a prepaid card" doesn't answer the question. In what ways is it like a prepaid card? In what ways is it not? As the OP asked, where does the money actually go? It's a concern that you couldn't really answer the question.

I think that you are wrong that this is a concern. HN is not a financial forum, and you are asking for technical details that are irrelevant to the discussion. Simple's statement is that your money is in a third party bank, and Simple promises to be a prudent intermediary.

[deleted]

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#136

Post by samstave »

ynniv wrote: post #111
maaku wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"a lot like a prepaid card" doesn't answer the question. In what ways is it like a prepaid card? In what ways is it not? As the OP asked, where does the money actually go? It's a concern that you couldn't really answer the question.

I think that you are wrong that this is a concern. HN is not a financial forum, and you are asking for technical details that are irrelevant to the discussion. Simple's statement is that your money is in a third party bank, and Simple promises to be a prudent intermediary.

This is ridiculous:

HN is not a financial forum, thus he should be precluded from asking about the details of this startup, who, is trying to brand themselves as a simple banking system based on their technical prowess. Further, you state he is asking technical questions which are irrelevant... how can TECHNICAL questions be irrelevant on HN - especially after you claim he shouldn't be asking financial-forum-esque questions here.

What then should he be asking.

Personally, you appear to me to be attempting to stifle perfectly relevant questions on HN and trying way to hard to filter commentary rather than add to the discussion.

Frankly, I am quite wary of Simple - especially when they state things such as "we are a lot like a prepaid card" -- you know why? Prepaid cards are largely targeted at low income/bad credit users and they pay a premium fee for such use and are bilked as a result.

I don't want to think that just because al3x and Simple are posting to HN they should automatically receive my trust.

ESPECIALLY given the inherent and complete corruption we know to exist at all levels of banking (if you have not been paying attention this last few years) Simple better make damn sure they set themselves apart.

It looks like their business model is "oooh shiny! and we are not a BANK!"

That doesn't cut it.

If they are simply an abstraction to the known egregious practices of other institutions, then simple needs to be very clear what advantage its customers gain from this model.

So far - I see not much gained.

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#137

Post by [deleted] »

al3x wrote: post #32
cynicalkane wrote: post #3

I thought BankSimple was a great brand, because it tells you what it is and fits well with the current zeitgeist. What is "BankSimple?" A way to bank that's simple. Sounds interesting! Everyone hates how complicated banking is, right? Let's go to the website to find out more. What is "Simple?" Who knows. A website that has something to do with banking--or so I'm told--with yet another web 2.0 one-word "brand", a real…

The "Bank" in "BankSimple" was problematic for us. We're technically not a bank. We also don't want to be associated with the way people have approached banking, particularly in the US. Sorry you're not crazy about the new name, but we're happy with it. It gives us a lot of room to grow.

[deleted]

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#139

Post by al3x »

wmf wrote: post #59
buro9 wrote: post #16

I'm not sure I understand the proposition now. Who is the relationship with? As in... who has my money? I read it as them hiding that from you for simplicity... you get this one interface and customer service which is wonderful, but to achieve this they are the proxy to your bank? So... do they set up the bank accounts, or do you? Do you have the ability to go straight to your bank, or does Simple preclude that abili…

This is a good example of why "we're not a bank" is more confusing than comforting. IMO Simple should just gloss over that part. Edit: I would liken it to startups that are built on top of some cloud; I don't need to know that because ultimately I hold the startup responsible for their reliability/security, not their underlying provider.

Noted.

Re: BankSimple invites first customers; rebrands itself as Simple

#140

Post by al3x »

ohyes wrote: post #124
wmf wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a good example of why "we're not a bank" is more confusing than comforting. IMO Simple should just gloss over that part. Edit: I would liken it to startups that are built on top of some cloud; I don't need to know that because ultimately I hold the startup responsible for their reliability/security, not their underlying provider.

I'd go with 'scary.' I put my money in a bank because there is an assurance that I'll be able to get it out later and that it is safe there.

If you bank with us, you're money resides in an FDIC-insured bank account. You have the account and routing numbers and can transfer funds in or out at any time. We try to make banking anything but "scary" :)
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