Chime offers early access to paychecks, negative account balances without overdraft fees,[2] high-yield savings accounts, peer-to-peer payment services,[5] and an interest-free secured credit card.[8] It does not charge monthly service fees or overdraft fees, or require minimum balances. Most of its revenue comes from interchange fees on debit card transactions.[9] On June 12, 2025, Chime became public via an initial public offering.
Chime is not a bank.[10] It is able to offer its services via its relationships with banks; customer funds are routed to a chartered bank. FDIC insurance is available to users via the partnered banks, not directly through Chime, so customers may not be protected against some failures.[11][12][13] In 2021 and 2022, Chime was criticized for closing customer accounts without notice and not returning funds in a timely manner.[14][15] In 2024, it was fined for poor handling of customer complaints and agreed to upgrade its customer service.[16]
History
Chime was founded by Chris Britt (CEO) and Ryan King (CTO) in 2012[17] in San Francisco, California, as an alternative to traditional banking to serve less affluent communities and people living paycheck to paycheck.[18][3] The company launched on April 15, 2014, on the Dr. Phil Show.[19] As of 2021, Chime had raised $2.3 billion in private funding. In 2022, it was named one of Fortune's Best Places to Work.[3][20][21]
On October 16, 2019, Chime experienced a service outage leaving users without access to their deposits. The issue was resolved the next day.[22]
In January 2020, Chime announced a partnership with the Dallas Mavericks as their jersey sponsor as a part of a multi-year deal.[23] Chime had 8 million account holders in February 2020.[24]
In April 2020, in response to the financial strain of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chime announced a pilot program to provide users who e-filed tax returns with the IRS a $1,200 advance on the Economic Stimulus Payment via SpotMe, Chime's fee-free overdraft product.[25] Chime later announced the successful processing of over $375 million in stimulus payments one week before the scheduled government disbursement date.[26]
In September 2021, Chime leased 192,000 square feet of office space across six floors in a San Francisco building owned by Hines.[27] According to a report by Forbes, Chime had planned to hold an initial public offering (IPO) in March 2022. The company delayed its IPO, however, in February 2022.[28] Chime laid off 160 positions, equalling 12% of its workforce, in November 2022.[29]
As of May2024[update], the company, which operated under a hybrid work model, reported having 1,300 employees and 7 million customers.[3] At the time, it was processing $8 billion worth of transactions monthly. Chime's revenue in 2023 was approximately $1.3 billion. The company's customers are largely made up of young Americans with incomes ranging from $35,000 to $65,000 annually.[3]
In August 2021, Chime Financial raised $750 million in a series G funding round, led by investor Sequoia Capital Global Equities,[30] giving the company a valuation of about $25 billion.[30]
Chime issued publicly traded stock on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker symbol “CHYM” in June, 2025. Chime went public on June 12 after raising $864 million in its IPO, valuing the company at $11.6 billion.[32][33][34]
In September 2025, the company introduced the Chime Card, a no-annual-fee secured credit card with 1.5% cash back in rotating categories.[35][36]
As of October2025[update], Chime has an 'A+' rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), with 8,000 customer complaints during the previous 3 years.[37]
Operations
Chime has no physical branches and does not charge monthly or overdraft fees, nor does it require an opening deposit or minimum balance to open a free checking account.[38] Bank accounts provided by Chime's partners are FDIC insured up to the standard maximum of $250,000, but FDIC bank insurance on Chime accounts does not directly protect Chime's customers.[11][12] Accounts are only available to individuals; all money received must be in the name of the individual account owner. Customers cannot appeal to banking regulators to retrieve their deposits, which may not be returned in a timely fashion.[14]
Chime offers various fee-free banking products, including checking accounts with no minimum balance, an automated savings feature, high-yield savings accounts, peer-to-peer payments,[5] and an early paycheck feature.[39]
In September 2019, Chime launched SpotMe, a fee-free overdraft service that allows customers to overdraw their accounts by up to $100 without incurring a fee; once the overdraft limit is reached, purchases will be declined but no fees charged.[6]
In June 2020, Chime and Stride Bank launched Credit Builder, a credit card designed to help consumers build their credit history.[40] Chime was the most downloaded digital banking app in the U.S. during the first half of 2021, according to Apptopia.[41]
In 2024, Chime launched MyPay, an earned wage access (EWA) product that allows users to access up to $500 of wages before payday. MyPay has no mandatory fees or interest and does not require a credit check.[42]
In January 2025, Chime began offering federal and state tax filing services on its app.[43] In September 2025, the company introduced the Chime Card, a no-fee secured credit card with 1.5% cash back in rotating categories. The Chime Card does not require a credit check for approval and has no late fees or interest.[35][36]
Chime can close user accounts without notice. iI is not required to give customers a reason for the cancellation. Chime's partner banks have a duty under "know your customer" rules to guard against money laundering or other suspicious activity, including by closing down suspicious accounts.[14][15]
In July 2021, ProPublica published an article detailing Chime's record of closing customer accounts without notice or explanation, sometimes refusing to return customer deposits.[15] Chime has said the closures were an accidental byproduct of fraud prevention.[15]
In November 2022, Chime's practice of closing customer accounts without notice or explanation was again reported. As of November 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau had received 3,500 complaints about Chime since 2020. Customers with closed accounts sometimes had difficulty retrieving their deposits in a timely fashion. Since Chime customers are not customers of any bank, their recourse is often limited.[14][44]
In 2024, the CFPB assessed a $3.25 million penalty plus at least $1.3 million in redress to customers for not returning deposits from closed accounts in a timely manner. Until 2021 Chime's customer service agreement said deposits would be issued by check within 14 days. Thousands of customers waited 90 days or longer. The settlement gives at least $150 in redress to any customer who had a $10 balance after 14 days from account closure. The $3.25 million penalty was paid to the CFPB victims relief fund. Chime blamed the problem on a "configuration error" in 2020 and 2021.[47][48]
Handling customer complaints
In 2024 Chime entered into a consent order with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) and paid a $2.5 million penalty to resolve an investigation into the company's customer service. The DFPI found that customer complaints were not being handled fairly, accurately, and in a timely manner in compliance with the California Consumer Financial Protection law.[16] Chime agreed to provide 24-hour, 7-day customer service support with sufficient training and staffing to be in compliance, and to report on its compliance to DFPI for two years.[16]
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US$1.3 billion [3] (2023)
