4th Largest Bank's Customers Panic After Waking Up to Missing Money, Negative Balances
On a day when America’s banking system was rocked by a federal takeover of Silicon Valley Bank, panic also gripped customers of Wells Fargo Bank as what was described as a technology malfunction led to widespread problems with customers’ accounts.
Customers had incorrect balances — often due to direct deposits that were not recorded — and missing transactions.
Wells Fargo spokesman Josh Dunn said customers’ money is still there, even though it does not appear to be, according to the Charlotte Observer.
Dunn did not give an estimate of the number of customers affected.
Wells Fargo was “working quickly on a resolution,” he said, and the bank promised to fix the problem by Saturday morning.
Wells Fargo tried to alert customers with a message greeting them as they logged in to check their accounts.
“If you see incorrect balances or missing transactions, this may be due to a technical issue and we apologize. Your accounts continue to be secure and we’re working quickly on a resolution,” the message said.
The website Bankrate lists Wells Fargo as the nation’s fourth-largest bank.
Anger and panic far outstripped any other emotion from those who shared their reaction on Twitter.
i do not like to feel massive panic immediately upon waking but wells fargo decided to give me that gift this morning
— Katy Barber (@katy__kakes) March 10, 2023
Wells Fargo is further proof to keep cash on hand for use. In the blink of an eye, a computer glitch or whatever, your funds are inaccessible.
— SD (@SDWilliby) March 10, 2023
@WellsFargo this issue was supposed be fixed this morning. Still don’t have my money back in my account that was there Wednesday. And now y’all send me an overdraft letter saying I got till midnight too pay? You need to pay me! You took my money wtf.
— Chris Timms (@t_timms) March 10, 2023
Thanks Wells Fargo for putting my my missing deposit back as “Pending.” It’s like you waiving in my face the amount you’ve stolen from me. FYI – Pending does not equal Available. I can’t pay bills with Pending funds.
— susan buhrman (@BusterAtx) March 10, 2023
“This is deeply troubling and what it does is it erodes confidence as an investor,” Dallas-area financial advisor Derrick Kinney said, according to WFAA-TV.
“Definitely looking into different banking,” Hannah Bruton of Burleson, told the Texas news outlet. said. “As of right now, we will probably be changing that up in the next month.”
She said that because deposits did not show up, the account she and her husband share was in the red when they woke up Friday morning.
“So, it’s frustrating when it almost just gets taken away from you and you can’t do anything about it,” Bruton said.
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