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Business

Apple customers struggle to get money out of Goldman Sachs-operated savings accounts

By
Shannon Thaler
Published June 1, 2023, 4:05 p.m. ET

Apple launched a high-yield savings account with an APY of 4.15% in partnership with Goldman Sachs in April, but one month later some account holders are struggling to move their money out of the account.

Georgia resident Nathan Thacker told The Wall Street Journal that he has been trying to transfer $1,700 form his Apple account to JPMorgan Chase since May 15.

Each time he tried to contact Goldman’s customer service department, Thacker said he was told to give it a few days.

The money finally hit his Chase account on Thursday, but only after The Journal contacted Goldman about Thacker and other customers’ faulty experiences trying to transfer their money out of the Apple savings account, the publication reported.

In some other money transfer-related cases, the funds seemingly disappeared, and didn’t show up in customers’ Apple account nor the account they were trying to transfer the money to.

The credit card gives customers up to 3% back on their purchases via an award dubbed Daily Cash, which is automatically deposited into the savings account, which is also serviced by the Wall Street investment giant.

Apple Card users who opened an Apple Savings account have reportedly been having issues transferring funds out the account, with some customers' money completely disappearing for up to seven business days.
Apple Card users who opened an Apple Savings account have reportedly been having issues transferring funds out the account, with some customers’ money completely disappearing for up to seven business days. REUTERS

Customers deposited $1 billion in the first four days after the feature debuted on April 17.

At the end of launch week, about 240,000 accounts had been opened.

The Apple APY rate is higher than the 3.9% Goldman offers for an online savings account at its digital consumer bank, Marcus.

But an Apple Community thread — a forum where Apple customers help each other with troubleshooting — shows several users having trouble taking money out of the new savings accounts.

A user began the thread in late April with a post that says: “Apple Savings won’t allow me to withdraw? I tried to withdraw some funds from my Apple Savings and I can’t?”

As of June 1, 231 people had clicked the “me too” button under the query.

Another customer by the name of Reuben replied with an anecdote of “an absolutely ridiculous experience where Apple Savings wouldn’t let me withdraw to one of the bank accounts on file as it wasn’t the account the funds originally came from … despite the fact that I pay the Apple Card from the same account.”

“I’m at 7 business days and counting on money I withdrew from Apple Savings into another external savings account (mind you also with Goldman Sachs),” another disgruntled customer replied.

Apple Savings accounts were launched in mid-April with a very attractive APY of 4.15% -- more than 10 times the national average, according to the FDIC.
Apple Savings accounts were launched in mid-April with a very attractive APY of 4.15% — more than 10 times the national average, according to the FDIC. Apple

Yet another replied, adding that an Apple Savings representative “told me if the withdrawal is not successful by the 6th or 7th business day it will reverse and put the money back into your Apple Savings account. I’m hoping this is true and will wait another couple days.”

Goldman didn’t comment on specific customers, but instead blamed the suspicious activity on “a delayed transfer due to processes in place designed to help protect their accounts,” according to an email statement sent to The Post.

The bank added that it “takes our obligation to protect our customers’ deposits very seriously,” and made sure to note the savings account’s otherwise-positive feedback.

“The customer response to the new savings account for Apple Card users has been excellent and beyond our expectations,” Goldman said in its statement, adding that “the vast majority of customers see no delays in transferring their funds.”

Experts in the anti-money-laundering (AML) field told The Journal that brand-new accounts like Apple’s savings account can set off AML alarms, or other security concerns, that call for review.

Goldman Sachs issues all Apple Card credit cards, and services all Apple Savings accounts.
Goldman Sachs issues all Apple Card credit cards, and services all Apple Savings accounts. Reuters

Other alarms can be set off when customers try to transfer large sums of money out of a newly opened account, the AML professionals said, according to the outlet.

The Apple savings account was released in partnership with Goldman on April 17, according to a press release on the iPhone maker’s website.

The big appeal for consumers is the savings accounts’ APY of 4.15%, more than 10 times the national average, according to the FDIC.

The high-yield savings account, though, is only available to preexisting users of Apple’s credit card, Apple Card, the first consumer credit card issued by Goldman.