Novo - Small Business Checking Reviews

Listen, this is to the founders/bank developers. I’ve read the good and bad reviews of Novo, this app is a great app. But to make it even better, us as this app customers could use features as such: setup the this app debit card to be able to get instant pay through cashapp, that is where a lot of people’s money come through. And for your customers that have money coming in and out, find a way where we can turn our cash in and get it the same day. Bitcoin converter, instead of reserves have the option to open a savings account, even if it’s through another bank partnered with this app. At the end of the day, we are all business owners or gig workers, the better Novo , the more money you will see come to Novo . I honestly use Brex more than this app, but I believe you guys could be great. If you can do just the basics of what I mentioned, and at the same time keep it secure for us and for y’all, it’s a win/win situation. I’m hoping to hear of an update soon. Whoever responds to this, if you care about Novo , and it’s users honestly you would show this to the founder. We can all succeed, once I brought even a portion of my business to Novo, we became partners. Let’s solidify it and make this app the best mobile business banking app there ever was!

I’ve been with this app for almost 2 years, and am really happy with them. They’re super responsive, have lots of integrations and are constantly improving. My only gripe is Novo . It’s fine but has one pretty big flaw that’s never been fixed. It doesn’t have a real time view of your account. You have to go into activity, change the time period and then it refreshes. If you don’t change the view (eg from 1 wk to 1 mo) before pulling down to refresh, it doesn’t show new data. And this is true even if Novo loads for the first time since restarting the phone. And sometimes, activity shows on the Home view but will never show in the Activity view (like it’s too new to show, but then why is it on the Home view?). The web app never has this issue. It’s not a deal breaker, but resulted in some issues with transfers where I thought something didn’t happen because it wouldn’t show, or thought my balance was one thing when it was another. No other banking app I use has this issue, so it feels like it needs addressing. And it happens on all mobile devices I’ve tested, so it’s not just my phone. Hopefully they get around to this issue, but I’m still a fan of this app.

The first time I had an issue with a deposit, I had a very hard time getting an answer as to why. It errored when I tried to deposit it, but when I corrected the error it said it had already been used. I couldn’t get an answer or help for far far to long (no, I don’t mean hours, days). I finally got it fixed and let it go. Now here so am again a few months later and I had put in 2 deposits back to back. The second one went in a week ago, but the first one just sits there pending for over 8 business days. It is a small sum of money, it isn’t on hold for money. First I sent an inquiry via the chat. I was asked for details and then I had no further response. They closed the case! Then I had to hunt down a phone number which wasn’t easy. I was told this was normal, but it’s not normal for other banks nor had it been for this app. She said it can take up to 5 business day. I said it’s been 7 business day, 10 regular! She said she would send them a message…no help that’s it. I sent another message to support, still no answer. I asked to cancel the deposit and I would take it elsewhere. I cannot believe anyone can trust someone who holds up your money and won’t even reply. You may go for a while without issue, but be warned that when you do have an issue, it’s awful.

So if you think you are banking YOU ARE NOT!
It’s a software company partnering with middlesex federal savings bank so it’s just a facade of the bank that doesn’t have or wants to do the techie stuff but gets to take all the benefits of chipping in is banking might..that’s all. If you have a real person banking problems forget it they are clueless. And when you dare to ask you will see how they question you as if you should know everything and they are obliging you with a support agent. It’s sad to see such a great interface with such a poor behind the scenes. My direct deposit failed and they had no clue why..this is not my first rodeo with such app developers trying to make it big in financial space with banking. Another app company that started as Simple did transaction frauds and sold the company to someone else and I was left with a missing $100 from them and never heard back Poof !! So I have decided to close this business account after mere one week of experience with them. It’s a shame !
I need to find a brick and mortar bank for serious banking because in a world of laws and accountability..I can’t allow to be taken rise of and be someone’s Beta tester. I need a bank connected with people problems not an App trying to be the next big thing.

So far most of my interactions with customer service have been good. But they are still very slow and a long way off from having a good platform. For a virtual bank to limit your check deposit picture amount per month was a frustrating discovery when we tried to deposit more than 5 checks one month.

Their were a handful of nuances but what recently is the straw that broke the camels back was concerning the PPP in the Cares Act. They requested that you put in this app as the agent that helped you submit your form. What people may not understand about that is that they get a 1% kickback for that which is fine BUT the purpose of that kickback is for accountants to help businesses gather the information needed when they don’t charge the businesses for their services and hours that they spend on it. So this app is essentially saying that they helped you pull all the numbers together AND (believe it or not) they will have some liability attesting that the numbers you submit is correct (which is a lawsuit waiting to happen and just a plain old foolish thing to put their company at risk for just because they want that 1% off the top). It made me very uneasy of their ethics when I saw that.

The idea of running my more simplified checking with Novo seemed magical and the features were perfect so I went for it. The biggest problem with Novo is that it’s useless without the account which I was happy to open, but... It has been 40 days since I applied and runaround galore over email as others have mentioned here and elsewhere. They are asking for more and more documentation (already provided a brief description, IRS documents, state documents, licenses, certificate of organization, DUNS, my SSN, my drivers license, drivers license extension, EIN... what is this? A phishing scam or an online checking account?). Communications has been so unprofessional and delayed -it seems like someone is running this “bank” as a side hobby from their garage. Don’t be fooled by the “5 minute application”, it will take weeks if not months before you have an account. In the meantime I missed deadlines for COVID-19 business relief that needed an account and thankfully was able to open a two last minute account elsewhere.

An offensively colossal waste of time. I am seriously scared at the amount of info these shady guys have about me and my business now. Beware and stay away.

I recently opened a this app business bank account. It is easy to use and they don’t charge fees for transferring money to external accounts and the account doesn’t have a fee to have a business account, as with Bank of West, BofA, and other traditional banks.

It is great not to be charged fees by this app just because it is a business account and no BS fees like the brick and mortar banks. I’m glad I don’t have to go to the bank physically to handle issues, as in the past with several banks; my time is valuable. Questions are responded to quickly by a real person, not automated responses or voicemail Hell for thirty minutes of insanity.

I’m super happy and plan to utilize this app more in the future to move away from the traditional banking system which has not met my needs as a small business owner.

We started using this app to make payments of refunds. The user interface was great. Everything was going fine until I noticed odd transactions on the statements. The only way to speak with customer service is through Novo after a lengthy search for it in Novo . Customer service responded and told me they would investigate. I heard nothing back for weeks despite repeatedly asking for updates. A month in a half later I get a response claiming there was a display error, that their system printed duplicate checks, they could do nothing to resolve the problem and that all liability for the missing payments were now my responsibility. We inputted the data correctly in their system, we were not at fault for their error, we could not trust reconciliation based on their bogus reported numbers, and we are now responsible for solving the problem they created. I asked to speak with someone else to which I received no response. this app committed fraud against us and now I’m looking into reporting them to FED. No financial institution should be allowed to continue operating like them.

If you rely on mobile deposits, then currently, it’s best to stay away from this bank. The biggest flaw with this bank is their camera app for mobile deposit. It’s so crude and cheap that it doesn’t allow you to review the check image before deposit and it only gives you a couple seconds to take the picture. Therefore, if you don’t get a 100% clear image, your check will be rejected. They do not tell you if it’s been rejected, so it’s on you to check every deposit to make sure it’s been processed. This results in having to mail the check to the bank to have them deposit it for you. Currently it’s been 6 weeks that I’ve been dealing with this app customer support trying to fix this issue before telling me to mail it. It will be about another 2 weeks before it has been cleared and posted (assuming they can even deposit it at this point). A 2 month waiting period for a check to be cleared due to a faulty crude camera app is incredibly absurd. Save yourself.

I want to give this app 5 stars soo bad because I like every thing that they offer and the built in features that it has, especially the Shopify connection. However, when logging into Novo , it often freezes on the load screen and I have to force close Novo several times before it starts working. Yes, I can view my account online just fine but it’s 2021, who uses the web when you’re supposed to have a streamlined app? Also, they said that the this app bank connects to PayPal, unfortunately I have not been able to get my accounts linked by either using my account numbers or a debit card. This is very important to me as a large portion of my sales are processed through PayPal and as of now, I have no way of transferring those funds to this app. I came here from Azlo business bank, and let’s just say if they didn’t close, I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Everything about Azlo worked and integrated flawlessly...

I signed up for this app because I thought they would not charge overdraft fees. As a startup money is tight and I wanted that security just in case. But I was wrong. They took forever sending a debit card. The card is useless. It won’t connect with any wallets like Cash App , ApplyPay, or even Stripe for instant transfers. There is literally no way to use this debit card to deposit money. So I was forced to use the only two options to transfer funds into the account which are ACH from a linked account that takes 2-3 days or deposit a check that takes 5-7 days. Recently a paid a contractor via ACH but also made a deposit ACH at the same time. And of course. The debit came out first. Because the deposit had not been credited by this app it was returned and I got charged a $27 fee! What is the point of this when I could just bank with Chase. Azlo was so much better. this app needs to offer something better than traditional banks or what actually is the point!?!?

When I first opened this account everything was great. However, since the most recent update when I attempt to login from any device I get a bot response telling me there was suspicious login attempted. I’m. It sure where the glitch is ; after countless bot responses asking if certain suggestion solves the problem and no customer service number I’m done. I have reported you to any and every agency possible. Once I am able to get into my account and make necessary changes I will be closing it. The fact that businesses that is handling other business finances w/no means of speaking to a live human is terrifying. I have learned a hard lesson. I’m new to the business world, so I will take this one on the chin and move on. Thanks for wasting my time ; but also teaching me a valuable lesson. I have successfully opened a bank account that provides access to live humans via phone and chat; crazy I know but most institutions still provide that service.

I was amazed by all the banking solutions this app has to offer, there are amazing features that instantly got my attention, and made all the daily business operations and needs much easier. I loved the idea of not worrying about the papers and docs and having everything in one place, in my this app app. Any entrepreneur would consider that a huge competitive advantage. The simple, smooth and easy to understand onboarding process is another thing that really stands out with this app. On top of that, the customer service will provide all the best answers in no time exactly when you need them the most. It’s just a brilliant experience!

Do yourself and more importantly your business a favor and make all your banking needs easily solved. The future of business banking is this app.

As a solopreneur with mediocre credit, banking has always been a hassle for me. With this app, I was able to apply super easily online with no credit check, and was verified the next morning. My company is a non-cash business, so this app is great because it gives me all the functionality I need without any of the frills I don’t. Paying my vendors and receiving payments from my customers is painless, free, and easy using ACH transfers and mobile deposits directly from my iPhone, and on the off chance I do need some cash they don’t charge me any debit card fees. Would love to see them release a credit card, but other than that no complaints.

TERRIBLE BANK. When you need them the most they will hide! I had a fraudulent transaction on my account. You would think I could just go in Novo turn my card off or better yet call them and they would refund the transaction and send me a new card. NOPE! Instead I realize there’s no option to turn off my card. I call the fraud department and they can’t help me because I don’t have an open case. Despite me calling to OPEN a case. I then call the number on the back of the card she says you have to email us all the info or just try calling the merchant to reverse the transaction. Why are we communicating through a chat this is pathetic. You call this a professional banking experience? Any other bank would have handled this instantaneously. I’m transferring all my money to my external bank account that I can trust. After this dispute I will no longer be banking with your wannabe bank again.

Extremely buggy. Information is flat-out not displayed properly on Novo or on desktop. My account often takes several days to update spending properly, so I’m not able to keep up with my own account. Obviously, the bonus features are nice, but why have these features in the first place when you can’t get basic banking services to work properly?

I run an online business and it takes several days after money is sent from a customer before I ever see it in my account. Even something like a simple PayPal transfer can take up to five days before it reaches my account (even with PayPal’s instant transfer). My previous bank would update spending and receiving money almost instantly, but this app is frustratingly slow, causing me to contemplate closing my account. I wouldn’t recommend signing up until they get basic banking functions corrected.

I guess this bank is fine if you have no issues, but as soon as you do, it’s impossible to get help. I’ve been trying to get hold of a payment from a UK customer that mysteriously “got lost” in transit since October of last year. The customer has worked diligently with me to figure out where the money got stuck, so all that this app needs to do is follow the trail I have given them... but they won’t. I’ve probably talked to five different people at this point. Nobody follows up. I leave a voicemail and then get a survey to review a customer representative who never even called me. At this point, I call, get an automated message that no support agents are available, and that’s it. I’m really at the end of my rope. I rely on these payments, especially in the middle of a pandemic. At this point, I want to change banks, but I don’t feel like I can until I get this payment sorted. Really upsetting.

I’ve had a lot of bad experiences when it comes to banking in general.
I’ve always felt like I was unimportant to banks and anytime I had an issue it’s always been a hassle to resolve.

Giving a try to this app completely changed my banking experience. After talking with their Customer Success team when I had to change my address they really made me feel like they cared about my experience and even though it was for such a small thing they were extremely polite and helpful.

Also, they are releasing a bunch of integrations like Xero which I am currently using for my accounting. This is gonna make my life so much easier as I’m the one doing the accounting for my business.

Now it’s obviously an early stage banks as Novo is constantly coming up with new updates but it does not bother me. I’ve been able to do everything I needed and I’m looking forward to having access to their new web app that should come soon.

I spent over six weeks just waiting for my debit card. They finally admitted that their card issuer had made a mistake and never sent an entire batch. When I asked for a new one to be expedited I was told they couldn’t do that because there were too many. When I pressed them finally someone agreed (meanwhile you can ONLY email them). Then they recanted and said, no actually we can’t. Sorry. Then someone finally did. It’s been almost two months and I just got my card. I activated it and tried to use it and NOPE. It doesn’t work. I’m now waiting for someone to “re-set” it on the back end (whatever that means).
In the meantime, all my business accounts are behind, payments have had to be made out of my personal bank accounts, and accounting is going to be a nightmare.
If this doesn’t get solved today I’m out.

I requested a refund on an online purchase order that was never mailed to me by an online store. LINZI in customer service responded back to me saying there was nothing they could do and that I would have to get in contact with the store owner to get a refund. Fine. No problem. Days later next thing I know my CARD is all of a sudden being DECLINED at the Gas Station and basically everywhere. I contacted this app again to find out what’s going on. MADELINE responds back telling me that my Card “was REPORTED STOLEN and they have mailed me a New one”. I NEVER ONCE SAID OR REPORTED THAT MY CARD WAS STOLEN!!! They can see that in the Message History with LINZI!!! Now NO ONE has responded back to my messages asking WHY or WHATS GOING ON??? This is INSANE!!! I literally have NO ACCESS TO MY MONEY and Customer Service is ignoring the FACT that THEY MESSED UP!!! AVOID this app and stick to a place that actually LISTENS to their Customers!!!!!

The idea behind this bank is solid, they don’t charge you fees, they even reimburse you for atm fees charged by the atm itself and they don’t charge their own.
But this bank is the most frustrating bank in the world to deal with. Everything is very difficult. A wire is too complex for the other party to figure out, a disputed transaction is a headache, their customer service department is tiny. I think I’ve spoken to every one of their employees already. It takes forever for anything to happen in this bank.
Your balance is never accurate. It takes about a day, sometimes longer for transactions to reflect in your account balance.
Novo is pretty user friendly but I wish they would improve the quality of the actual service.

I like the UI a lot. Very pretty, clean, modern. In fact, that’s what made me want to sign up in the first place. I love good design. UI/UX design is what I do for a living.

But while the design caught my initial attention, there just isn’t anything beyond the design that sets them apart, especially when considering this as a place to hold my money. There isn’t anything bad here, just nothing really great.

Customer support is nice and the chat function is cool, but that isn’t enough reason to decide to store my business finances here.

There may be differences that make it better than the alternatives, I just don’t really see them promoted nor have I ran into anything on Novo that stands out to me.

Using phrases like “smarter banking” is just a way to market in this case and doesn’t provide any solution to where there is a problem in the space of business banking.

I would like to use them, and will keep the account open for a little while just to see where it goes, but honestly there is no reason to use this over competitors.

I like you this app, I just don’t quite love you.
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Yet. 😃

Honestly, it’s pretty hard to get excited about anything remotely related to finance... but this app has quite successfully got me more interested in my business finances than I was previously. First off, no denying that the ui/ux is seamless... it plain looks and feels cool.

Couple of negative points:
1) slightly limited functionality. The core product is good, but at this stage that is basically all that is on offer. From what I have seen though there are some new features being included over time.
2) sign up process is easier than an traditional bank, but not 100% seamless. For my account I needed to provide some more specific documents which I was emailed for. Not the end of the world, but would be nicer to have an all inclusive process that didn’t involve direct outreach for my documentation.

Long story short, I can see myself continuing to use this app, and it does make managing my business finances easier in my day to day.

I recently joined this app and it has been nothing but convenient! The application process was a breeze and my account was quickly opened. Being able to handle my small business finances from the comfort of home through my phone has been great! Their app is also user friendly to the point where they make banking fun! I’ve even reached out for questions and this app has always responded so friendly and quickly! This is a great banking app and I have recommended this app to the companies I mentor and other entrepreneurs!

*If you still see this review posted, they have yet to fix the issues*

1- The mobile check deposit feature doesn’t work at all. The first one works great, then it’s downhill from there. I have tried multiple checks, multiple different lighting situations, multiple backgrounds, multiple devices, multiple internet connections... still doesn’t work.

2- I have tried to use the debit card to pay for a $20 purchase (Twilio) but it declined and returned the reason “Bank refused this transaction”.

3- I finally got the card to work at a different store. The funds came out of my account... but my transaction history doesn’t show the charge anywhere. This is highly concerning as it means I am unable to see where my card is being used.

4- It’s not possible to add the this app debit card to your Apple Wallet. Their two verification methods do not work. The first is “via app” but the screen goes blank. The second is “call this app” but when you click the button it rings and rings and rings....... it never stops.

I had high hopes but this app has been nothing but a letdown so far. ☹️ At this point, I would NOT recommend this app to any business owner.

Great experience for such a youthful app that hasn't generated a lot of user feedback yet! 🙂A check made out to my business was deposited within less than 24 hours and the funds were instantly available. Sending money to Payees does take longer than I expected, but this is a new account. I really just wanted to start by paying myself. In the future, using the card to pay myself should instantly transfer funds. I'll update my review as I learn more.

I applied for my business account at 1 o’clock in the afternoon on Thursday. By close of business on Friday at 6 PM central standard time, I still did not have an open bank account. When I asked what was taking so long, they replied that it usually takes one to two business days to open an account. They also said they show my account to be approved and someone would be in touch with me shortly as they have expedited the process for me, but guess what, I still have no bank account and I was able to go across the street and open a business account, totally free, within 30 minutes. If you were located in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, I recommend Legacy Texas Bank as they have a totally free small business checking account. Otherwise, I would seek another provider.

I have been banking with this app for almost a year now. We do overseas transactions and will be doing high volume transactions. What I can say is that these guys get startups. When I need someone they are on the ball. Because of their size you have a personal relationship rather than a faceless automated system. We also have a sense of being part of the this app startup community.