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Relay Reviews

8.5

bestfor-icon Free Business Banking Accounts

lauren
Written by Lauren Le-Hair

About Relay | Read More

8.8

LS Score

7.5

Credibility

9

Support

9

Accessibility

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Opening Hours Opening Hours drop-down-btn
Mon – Fri 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST
Sat - Sun Closed
Contact Information Contact Information drop-down-btn
  • support@relayfi.com
  • (888) 205-9304
  • Headquarters: 60 Adelaide East, Suite 700, Toronto, ON M5C 3E4
Social Media Social Media drop-down-btn
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Relay Online Banking Review

Relay is a digital business banking platform that offers the ability to create up to 20 individual checking accounts, and 2 savings that integrates with accounting software like QuickBooks and Xero. This provides users with an easy-to-use tool for tracking their business finances. Relay’s features are designed to help businesses save time and money, making it a great option for start-ups and small businesses.

While many ‘free’ accounts have hidden costs, Relay offers a genuinely free business banking option. There are no monthly fees, minimum balance requirements, or overdraft fees, and up to 20 checking accounts with 50 physical or virtual debit cards.

Whilst these features are great for start-ups and smaller businesses, Relay may be held back by its lack of business banking options. Savings products are available with interest (up to 3% APY) on checking accounts. Additionally, free cash deposits can be made at all AllPoint+ ATMs located throughout the US, which makes Relay also suitable for cash-generative businesses.

Relay Online Banking Highlight

55,000+ AllPoint ATMs

ATM Network

None

Other Fees

Business Online Banking

No minimum

Min Deposit

1-3%

Min APY Business

Pros & Cons

drop-down-btn
  • con-icon Free business banking offering
  • con-icon Up to 20 checking accounts and 50 debit cards can be created under one login
  • con-icon Ability to set different permissions for for different members of your team
  • con-icon Full integration with accounting and payroll software is available
  • con-icon No paper checks
  • con-icon It can take up to a week for checks to settle

Account types

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  • Business Checking
  • Business Savings
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APY's

Savings Balance Range APY
Less than $50,000 1%
$50,000 – $250,000 1.5%
$250,000 – $1,000,000 2%
More than $1,000,000 3%

Note: The interest rates and annual percentage yield (APY) on your account are accurate as of 05/16/23.

Features Benefits & Rewards

  • Up to 20 free business checking accounts, up to 2 Business Savings accounts, and up to 50 debit cards are available.
  • Automated accounts payable and free wire transfers with Relay Pro (only $30 flat per month) and same-day ACH

Required Documents:

Beneficial Owners (All Business Types)

To open an account with Relay Business Online Banking, Beneficial Owners across all business types must provide the following documents:

  • Government-issued ID photo: A valid identification card with a photo is required.
  • Social Security Number (SSN) or Passport Number: U.S. citizens must provide their SSN, while non-U.S. citizens should provide their Passport Number.
  • Residential Address: The current residential address of the Beneficial Owner.
  • Position or Title: The position or title of the Beneficial Owner within the business.
  • Contact Information: Both personal and business contact numbers are required.
  • Email Address: A valid email address for correspondence.

LLCs, Corporations, and General Partnerships

For businesses that are LLCs, Corporations, or General Partnerships, the following additional documents are required:

  • Employer Identification Number (EIN): A valid EIN is mandatory.
  • Official U.S. Business Address and Phone Number: The registered business address and contact number.
  • Registered Legal Entity Name: The legal name under which the business is registered.
  • Business Industry: The industry in which the business operates.
  • Nature of Business Operations: A brief description of the business operations.
  • State of Business Incorporation: The state in which the business is incorporated.

Sole Proprietors

For Sole Proprietors, the following documents are required:

  • DBA (Doing Business As) Name: If applicable, the name under which the business operates.
  • Social Security Number (SSN): A valid SSN is required.
  • U.S. Business Address and Phone Number: The registered business address and contact number.
  • Business Industry: The industry in which the business operates.
  • Description of Business Operations: A brief description of the business operations.

Please ensure all required documents are complete and up-to-date to facilitate a smooth application process.

Opening an Account With Relay

After hearing about Relay’s free business banking for small businesses, we decided to apply to test how easy the onboarding process is. We headed to the Business Banking tab and hit “Let’s bank” to get started.

We were greeted with a simple opening form and entered our personal information, including our name, phone number and, date of birth.

relay step 1 get started
Step 1

Relay Home Page

relay step 2 personal details
Step 2

Create Your Account

relay step 3 more personal details
Step 3

Personal Details

After creating our account, we had to start the process by entering details about our business, including the type of business, business name, industry, how many employees we have, and the business website. We then had to describe the business operations and give the incorporation date.

The application process has a progress bar that shows how far through the application you are. What we also found helpful was we were told at this stage what documents we would need later in the process, which included:

  • Employer Identification Number
  • Information about all owners with 25%+ ownership
  • Government-issued ID (or passport for international citizens)
  • A selfie

After entering the business details, we had to complete information about the business address, followed by inputting our personal details. After entering this information, we had to verify the data outlined in the bullet points above.

Then, we were asked by Relay to take a selfie for authorization purposes. This was a simple process where we had to take a selfie of ourselves. This took less than a minute to verify our identity.

Also, this completed our application process. We heard back from Relay in 1 business day with the good news that we had been approved to open a business banking account.

Overall, the account opening process with Relay was quick with minimal information and easy to complete with an intuitive website and clear guidance.

State Availability

- Available in all states

lauren
Written by Lauren Le-Hair linkedin-icon

As an experienced content writer, Lauren's passion for the finance sector is only exceeded by her love of writing. With years of experience writing for financial websites, she has honed her expertise and developed a deep understanding of the industry. Lauren specializes in delivering top-quality, specialized content with an expert tone of voice and a unique flair, leveraging her extensive knowledge and expertise. In addition, she holds a First Class Bachelor's degree from Staffordshire University.

faq-icon

FAQ’s

Is Relay a bank?

No, Relay is a fintech company and not a bank. Relay has partnered with Evolve Bank & Trust to offer business banking services. Ultimately, this ensures that the services provided by Relay are FDIC-ensured. *Relay is a financial technology company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services and FDIC insurance are provided through Thread Bank and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC. The Relay Visa® Debit Card is issued by Thread Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa® debit cards are accepted.

How many checking accounts can I have with Relay?

Your business can open up to 20 different checking accounts with Relay.

Do Relay offer savings accounts?

No, Relay only offers checking account services, and the checking accounts are not interest-bearing.

Customer Support

You can reach the Relay customer support team via phone or email. Relay is also pretty active on social media websites like Facebook and Twitter, effectively opening up another channel of communication.

We decided to call the Relay helpline to enquire about the documents required to sign up for the service. The call was answered immediately by a knowledgeable customer service agent who clearly knew the Relay product inside out. We were so impressed with the interaction that we asked several further questions about checking account types which were answered equally as well.

We would recommend contacting Relay customer service by phone if you have any questions. There is also a detailed Help Center that should be able to answer most common queries. Full details of how to contact customer support are shown in the table below.

Privacy & Security

While Relay is a relatively new company, it partners with a long-established bank, indicating that Relay is likely to have robust and current privacy policies. This is further enforced when reviewing the “Privacy Policy” section on Relay’s website. The comprehensive policy covers all the expected areas in detail, such as the collection and use of personal data, storage of data, disclosure of information to third parties, and how to access your financial records.

In addition to the comprehensive Privacy Policy online, our review team found no adverse reports noted online regarding Relay’s treatment of personal data.

In Conclusion

Relay appears to offer excellent business online banking services if you are a small company that doesn’t transact in cash. The seamless links with QuickBooks and Xero should please your accountant, and the money management tools and dashboards are clear and easy to use. Coupled with the fact this the business banking facilities are free, it is easy to see Relay making its mark and growing quickly in the coming years.

Brand Disclaimer

*Relay is a financial technology company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services and FDIC insurance are provided through Thread Bank and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.The Relay Visa® Debit Card is issued by Thread Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa® debit cards are accepted.