A longtime M&T Bank customer was surprised to see their direct deposit funds delayed in their account without notice or explanation.
Shelby (@shelby.lynn.p) expressed in a TikTok which has over 1.1 million views that she found this odd as she has banked with M&T for years. She said there were no alterations in banking procedures from her end that could possibly cause a delay, so she decided to call her bank and ask about the issue.
Through various phone calls with both her employer and her bank, she said she was told that the issue vaguely had something to do with the Federal Reserve, but no further clarification on the matter was provided by a bank representative.
@shelby.lynn.p #mtbank #pncbank #bank #federalreserve #announcement #money #economy ♬ original sound – Shelby💜
Several viewers commented that they, too, had issues in receiving payments on time from their respective banks. The Daily Dot looked into the issue, and it seems that the problem may lie in a common acronym that pops up on Credit/Debit card statements.
One commenter stated they received a message that some of their deposits weren’t coming through to their account, saying that they were given a “vague reason” as to why. Shelby remarked in a follow-up clip that she wasn’t given any type of reasoning whatsoever as to why she wasn’t getting her money at first.
@shelby.lynn.p Replying to @kwajkalena #federalreserve #bank ♬ original sound – Shelby💜
She also divulged more information about the nature of her calls with the bank when she asked about it.
“At least you got some kind of notification because my bank didn’t bother to notify any of us,” she said in the clip. “Today was my pay day so I just happened to go on and see you know make sure my money came through…nothing. And it always comes through right around like 4am? 5 in the morning, something like that? Nothing. And I called the bank … didn’t hear nothing in forever, and that’s when they said it had something to do with the Federal Reserve.”
Shelby also questions which bank the other TikTok user did business with, commenting that the “Federal Reserve” issue she was told about only affected interstate banks.
Her issue isn’t an isolated incident, either, as there have been reports of numerous banking customers who’ve complained about not receiving their funds in a timely fashion. CNBC reported on the issue, writing that folks have been grappling with “deposit delays at big banks.”
The outlet penned that a series of “outages” were reported by consumers on the website Downdetector involving Truist, Bank of America, U.S. Bank, Chase, and Wells Fargo.
But what about the Federal Reserve? Is there an issue with the United States’ Central Banking system that is responsible for folks not getting their money on time? According to the Fed, all is well: “All Federal Reserve Financial Services are operating normally, according to a Federal Reserve statement released Friday,” CNBC wrote.
While the Fed is doing just fine, it claims, a private company, Electronic Payments Network, which works for Automated Clearing House (ACH) that’s been tasked with doling out the deposits for customers at various banks across the country, was experiencing “processing issue[s].”
Vice President of Public Affairs and communications at U.S. Bank told the outlet, “We’re aware of an industry-wide technical issue impacting some deposits for Nov. 3. Customer accounts remain secure, and balances will be updated when deposits are received.”
While it may be comforting to hear that the Federal Reserve is saying nothing is wrong with the country’s banking system, that may not be of solace to many folks who are waiting for their funds to arrive.
There are 61% of Americans purportedly living paycheck to paycheck, with 80% struggling with persistent debt as well, meaning that any delay of money they’ve earned heading into their bank accounts could be at the very least inconvenient.
Commenters who saw Shelby’s post expressed that they weren’t exactly confident in the state of banking in America, more than likely referencing several banks that have collapsed in recent years. “Banks are collapsing and people aren’t talking about it,” a user wrote,
However, another viewer stated that the issue was akin to what CNBC and other media outlets have reported: The issue wasn’t with the Fed or the bank itself, but rather the systems that are used to dole out the money into folks’ accounts.
“Hi, I work for a bank. It was the Clearing House,” one user claimed. “They had a technical issue and they are working to resolve it. Everyone should still get their pay.”
Some users noticed a bizarre double standard on behalf of banks. “So we get charged a late fee if we don’t pay bills on time. Is the federal reserve going to get charged for not paying people on time?” one user quipped.
One TikToker thought that all of the “it’s fine” talk from the Federal Reserve wasn’t exactly genuine, but that people’s banks are hurting for money.
“It means your bank is in active failure and has asked the FDIC to help,” the user wrote. “Advice: open a new account with a Credit Union (not a bank).”
The distrust of major financial institutions reverberated through the comments.
“Another video I seen was a woman that her bank lost her whole account with no record of it at all. so watch these banks. they up to something,” another said.
It seems the user may have been referring to a Wells Fargo customer who claimed the bank “deleted” her savings account.
The Daily Dot has reached out to M&T Bank via email and Shelby via TikTok comment for further information.