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30-SECOND SUMMARY: Many cash advance apps use Plaid to connect the app to your bank account – which involves providing Plaid with the username and password to your bank account! If you’re nervous about sharing your bank account login information, or use a bank that isn’t compatible with Plaid, it helps to know your options. Check out 3 cash advance apps that don’t use Plaid.
Cash advance apps have become a convenient solution for people navigating all sorts of challenges from inflation and the rising cost of living to unexpected bills.
Whether you’re looking to borrow $50 or $500, cash advance apps typically connect with your bank account to analyze your history and balance and to deliver safe and seamless transactions.
At the same time, your privacy and safety is important. You might not want to give an app access to all of your banking information.
That’s where fintech platforms like Plaid come in.
With Plaid acting as the middleman, apps are given limited access to your bank account details and are granted only the relevant info required to carry out functions you’ve authorized.
Read on to learn everything you need to know about Plaid, why you might want to avoid it, and what alternative cash advance app options are available.
What is Plaid?
Plaid is a payments platform that enables you to connect your financial accounts to other apps
It’s not an app you download, but a service that connects your bank accounts to many of the cash advance apps available today. With an estimated 25% of US adults having used their service, you might have come across Plaid without knowing it.
Once you’re prompted to provide information to authenticate your bank information, you’ll have a secure Plaid connection in place to transfer financial information you authorize.
This could be things like:
- Transaction history
- Transaction types
- Account balance
- Account holder information
Here’s an example of how Plaid works…
A cash advance app like Brigit will set eligibility requirements to access cash. Since Brigit doesn’t perform a credit check, it securely connects with your account via Plaid. This Plaid connection allows Brigit to privately analyze your account history and activity.
Plaid can look at your account history to see whether you’re receiving regular direct deposits or whether your balance has been consistently positive. By analyzing your account, you might end up being eligible for a higher borrowing limit.
In Brigit’s case, this will be between $50 to $100 for new users.
Plaid Features
| Seamless Integration Plaid seamlessly links your bank accounts to financial apps, making it easy for you to manage your money without manual data entry. | Real-time Updates Plaid keeps your financial information current with real-time updates on your transactions, account balances and activities. | Enhanced Security Plaid employs advanced encryption and authentication protocols to safeguard your financial data and protect your sensitive information. |
For most cash advance apps, it’s not feasible to connect with an outside banking institution directly (let alone thousands of them). Plaid’s network includes an existing infrastructure to connect with more than 10,000 financial institutions.
However, not all accounts are eligible and your financial institution may not support or allow the third-party connection. If your bank isn’t compatible with Plaid, you won’t be able to use some of the most popular apps. Hundreds of banks don’t work with Plaid, including some financial heavyweights like PNC and Fidelity.
If your bank doesn’t work with Plaid or you’d rather not give Plaid access to your account history or financial information, check out the top cash advance apps that don’t use Plaid.
Why would you want to avoid cash advance apps that use Plaid?
- Privacy Concerns
Plaid’s centralized nature involves accessing sensitive financial information from various accounts. If you prioritize keeping your financial information decentralized and under tighter control, Plaid’s data sharing might raise concerns.
- Data Security Considerations
While Plaid employs strong security measures to protect your data, you might be cautious about the potential risks that come with a centralized system.
The fear of data breaches or unauthorized access are valid if you prefer a more distributed approach to safeguarding your financial information.
- Dependency on Plaid Service
Cash advance apps that heavily rely on Plaid may pose a risk in the event of service interruptions or issues with the Plaid platform.
If Plaid experiences downtime or faces technical difficulties, it could impact the functionality of connected financial apps, potentially hindering your access to crucial cash advances when you need them most.
[NEWS] Plaids $58 million mistake explained
Due to a Class Action lawsuit, Plaid will pay $58 million in a settlement over allegations that it violated users’ privacy rights by scraping their data from third parties including Venmo, Robinhood and Coinbase.
The lawsuit alleged Plaid unlawfully collected “more financial data than was needed” when consumers used mobile apps to send and receive money from their bank accounts. Plaid was also accused of creating log-in pages that mimicked a user’s own bank account but fed personal information directly to Plaid instead.
As part of the settlement, Plaid agreed to implement significant business practice changes designed to remediate alleged privacy violations, improve user control over private login information and financial data, and safeguard user privacy going forward.
3 cash advance apps that don’t use Plaid
#1 – Dave
Dave makes it easy and affordable to get up to $500 in just five minutes alongside a number of features to help you build your credit and unlock extra income.2
Dave’s ExtraCash advance might help you skip sky-high overdraft fees and costs just $1 per month in membership fees (plus an express fee that starts at just $3 if you need your money right away).
According to Dave’s privacy policy, Dave uses Plaid or an alternative platform – Galileo – to transfer information between the platform and your financial institution.
Need $500? Check out Dave for yourself 👈
#2 – B9
B9 allows you to access up to $500 of your earned wages at a time with no credit check, interest or late fees. According to the B9 privacy policy, users can connect to the B9 cash advance app through Argyle Systems instead of Plaid, but only if their employer uses Argyle to manage employee data. Otherwise, you’ll need to use Plaid to connect and receive your advance payment.
Advances up to $500 with no credit check >>> Explore B9 👈
#3 – Daily Pay
DailyPay doesn’t mention Plaid in its privacy policy. It does indicate that you may choose to create or supplement your account by using a third-party website or service. However, this doesn’t appear to be necessary if you use DailyPay’s online registration form and provide an email address, mailing address, mobile phone number, date of birth, proof of identity documentation and a password.
| 🤓 Overdraft Apps Tip: Plaid connects with a variety of banks including Wells Fargo, Bank of America and U.S. Bank. However, not all traditional banking apps are compatible with Plaid. PNC bank began blocking third-party data aggregators, including Plaid, after filing a trademark infringement lawsuit. Check with your bank to find out if it is Plaid-supported. |
Looking for more ways to borrow money? Check out our most popular guides:
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- The “Fill Your Gas Tank on an Empty Bank Account” Hack 💎
WAIT! Why borrow quick cash when you can earn it?!
Cash advance apps can be a great tool for getting a little extra cash when you need it, but you’ll need to repay it – plus fees – wihtin a week or two. Did you know there’s an easy way to earn extra cash that’s yours to keep?
KashKick is a wildly popular service that lets you earn money for playing games, completing surveys, signing up for trial offers and more. (You’ll even earn cash for just completing your profile!) You can earn cash today and withdraw your earnings through PayPal once you’ve reached $10. You can earn over $100/month with KashKick – and you don’t need to spend a dime or take out your credit card to do it.
There are dozens of high-paying offers available on KashKick, and if you’re into playing new games on your phone, you can earn some serious cash for doing what you love. Though offers change regularly, there are currently1 more than three dozen offers available where you can earn cash – sometimes over $100 – just by downloading and playing popular games like Coin Master, Monoply Go, Bingo Blitz, and more. These games are all free to download, and no in-app purchases are required to earn with KashKick.
Get paid to play on your phone >>> Check out KashKick
- As of February 13, 2024. Offers may change and may not be available to all users. Eligibity requirements apply. See KashKick's Terms of Service for full details.
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Based on internal data as of March 30, 2023, for users who had connected an external bank account and transferred an advance to their Dave Spending Account. ExtraCash™ is a DDA account with overdraft utility, advances are subject to eligibility requirements and identity verification. Taking an ExtraCash™ advance will make your account balance negative. Express delivery fees apply to instant transfers. As of January 2024, the average approval amount for disbursed advances is $160 in the trailing six months. See the Dave ExtraCash™ Deposit Agreement and Disclosures for more details. Dave is not a bank. Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC, provides all banking services and issues the Dave Debit Card, pursuant to a license from Mastercard®.
