Relay Financial

Account approved, verified, then closed the moment funds arrived

Rating: 1 star I opened a Relay business account for my US LLC about a week ago. Relay approved the application and verified my business information at signup with no issues raised. Within days of my first meaningful deposit landing in the account, roughly $4,200, the account was closed by their compliance team. The closure email gave no specific reason, only generic language about documentation, the nature of the business, or transactions raising flags. When I asked which of the three it was, I was given no further detail and no opportunity to supply additional documentation. My funds are now held pending an investigation that Relay's own email says can take up to 45 days, after which a physical check is mailed and takes another 8 to 10 business days to arrive. That is potentially two months without access to operating capital, with no explanation and no appeal process offered. My company has been operating for over two years and has processed payments through Stripe and other US financial institutions during that time without a single issue. Whatever concern Relay had, it was apparently not visible during onboarding, when they had my documents and approved the account, but became disqualifying once money was in it. If you are considering Relay for your business, understand that approval at signup does not mean your account is safe, and that if they close it you may wait weeks with no access to your funds and no meaningful explanation. I would not recommend keeping operating capital here.

Relay is an awesome online banking solution!

Relay is an awesome online banking experience. We are a virtual company and needed a digital solution to banking. Relay has met all our needs! Their customer service are actual people! 5 stars ⭐️

Carl's service and patience were…

Carl's service and patience were top-notch; he resolved my issue in minutes. Thank you!

Great service…

It was a pleasure to speak with the customer service and work the agent as well. Very helpful and very easy to get through to your service center.Thank you.

Service was great

great service

A fast and efficient service

The service is fast and efficient. Support responses are generally quick and effective at resolving issues. The website and app are clear and easy to use.

Bad experiences with Relay

We were a very small company and used relay for 1.5 years and was happy with their services. Then we expanded our company and began using their invoicing. Without notification they froze our account for "review" since our revenue went up. It took them 3 days to release our account but we had several payments to venders returned because they froze our account. After we passed their audit, 30 days later they did it again with the same results. Then after 3 days after releasing our account and our funds, 3 days later they froze our invoicing and sent back 3 separate invoices. No communication, reasoning for the actions. If you are someone who sells small items on Facebook or at a flea market with very small transactions this may be a good financial institution (they are NOT a bank) but if you are a medium to large business stay away. If you plan to grow stay away from them.

Software Update, frustrating experience

For this review, there were three banks involved. Relay, Plaid (interface), and Arvest, our business account. Since Arvest updated their software and customer service software. Due to their update, their protocols changed and I could not transfer funds from one account to the other. I tried to reconnect the accounts however Relay could not recognize Arvest's banking information. Both banks recommended speaking with the support team to figure out the problem. I spent about 6 hours on the phone with both of their teams and when they provided their email addresses, I copied both teams on the email and asked they work together since I could not access my account for 6 days. When you have to make payroll and pay taxes, 6 days is a very long time. I even contacted Plaid for assistance but they are a 3rd party that interfaces between the two banks. Relay finally worked out a solution and adjusted something on their side and we went through the process of reconnecting the accounts. It was very frustrating and I was unable to resolve the problem without losing a great deal of time. Aside from this review of my experience, I really do like Relay and would normally recommend it to people. This one experience was pretty bad.

Great customer support

ACH Scam Alert

My business account was hacked and over $3,500 dollars stolen via ACH. No answers, or resolution. They tell you they are not a bank that they use a third party bank named Thread Bank, but can not help you resolve issues with Thread. The business customer experience is shameful. I'm embarrassed I selected this vendor for my business. Don't make the same mistake.

They helped me when i needed it most

I love the fast answer time but I do…

I love the fast answer time but I do wish I could have called so that I could have resolved it even sooner.

Request fulfilled

When I was able to reach someone via email, it made it easier than the chat. All I wanted was a change on how my name appeared but I kept getting info on legal name change. The agent who assisted me took care of my request easily and painlessly. My suggestion is to fix the chat, what I asked was to change how my name appeared, I did not get the answer to it, instead I got everything else that was not related.

Account Closed Without Any Explanation

I opened my Business account, completed all the required verification steps, and my account was successfully approved. For over three months, I didn’t even use the account or make a single transaction. Out of nowhere, my account was closed without any prior notice or explanation. I contacted customer support multiple times, but instead of providing a clear reason, I only received generic responses. I wasn’t asking them to reopen my account I simply wanted to know why it had been closed. I fully understand that banks have the right to close accounts for compliance or internal business reasons. However, customers deserve transparency, especially when the account has never been used and no transactions have ever taken place. This has been the worst banking experience of my professional career. I expected professionalism and transparency, but unfortunately, I received neither. I hope the bank improves the way it communicates with customers and starts providing clear explanations instead of closing accounts without any meaningful information.

Humans Help Humans The Most

The level of care and consideration with my frustration of their website steering me in circles was a fantastic experience! Even though I was annoyed that I couldn't simply delete a brand new account because it failed the registration check, the receptionist instantly heard my complaint and fix it without any hard feelings of my harsh words. That's the mark of a great company!

resolved issue quickly and efficiently

resolved issue quickly and efficiently. Easy to use and navigate. Great start to my first time trying to start and run a company.

Disappointing onboarding experience.

Recently attempted to open an account with Relay. As a business owner, I fully understand that fintechs and banks must adhere to strict AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance protocols. I have no issue following exact procedures to verify my business. What I do take issue with is how poorly this process was executed and how little my time was respected. From the start, the platform was plagued by technical glitches—the mobile app repeatedly failed to work properly, and the website continuously had issues recognizing trusted devices. More frustrating, however, was the administrative runaround. I provided every single official document requested and made multiple follow-up calls to ensure every compliance requirement was met. My business activities were stated clearly from day one. Yet, after making me jump through endless hoops, I was hit with a generic line stating my business "was not a good fit for a growing bank." If a business does not align with Relay’s risk appetite, that should be determined upfront—not after dragging a founder through an exhaustive paper chase. Why make people run around gathering paperwork for nothing? The only redeeming aspect of this experience was the customer support team. They were patient, helpful, and provided clear answers when I needed guidance. However, great support representatives cannot compensate for broken technology and a deeply flawed onboarding process that disrespects a business owner's time...

They are working hard to fix my issues

What made this a great experience was the fast and friendly service and approval.

What made this a great experience was the quick approval, a straightforward application process and the customer service agent I worked with. I did have trouble uploading my required documents, despite the fact they were uploaded as requested. The fields just weren't working, so I emailed them to the support team. The next day I called and the customer service agent, Tim was very friendly and helpful. He was able to verify my documents were received and that my application was in review. The next day, my account was approved. Very helpful as I needed an account to begin Medicaid enrollment. Because of Relay and this fast approval, I am able to focus on my business and get back to helping my patients with the healthcare they need.