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City Partners with 10 Financial Institutions to Create Safe & Affordable Banking Account

April 30, 2010

The NYC Department of Consumer Affairs’ Office of Financial Empowerment (OFE) would like to partner with the New York Immigration Coalition to help New Yorkers transition from using high-cost fringe financial services to a safe and affordable banking account. Working with ten financial institutions, OFE has launched the NYC SafeStart Account – a safe and affordable account that hopes to make mainstream financial services accessible in all communities. The Citywide Financial Services Study commissioned by OFE estimates that more than 825,000 adult New Yorkers do not have bank accounts and rely on fringe financial services like check cashers to pay bills, cash payroll checks, buy money orders and conduct other financial transactions.

The NYC SafeStart Account is the first of its kind nationwide. Special features include:

No overdraft fees; No monthly fees, provided minimum balances are met ($25 or less depending on the financial institution); ATM Card (no debit card); U.S. Government issued photo identification is not required at 8 of the 10 financial institutions offering the NYC SafeStart Account.
Here are some ideas on ways your organization can help to spread the word about the NYC SafeStart Account.

Request OFE’s participation at a scheduled workshop for clients or staff Include a blurb in your weekly bulletin, newsletter or online communication (see below) Link to OFE’s Web site at nyc.gov/ofe.

Place information about NYC SafeStart on your Web site Use data and information from the recent study to create neighborhood specific presentations about the consequences of being unbanked. Data is now available at the Community District level, visit: nyc.gov/ofe
Participating financial institutions are: Amalgamated Bank, Bethex Federal Credit Union, Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union, Capital One Bank, Carver Federal Savings Bank, CheckSpring, Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union, M&T Bank, Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union and Union Settlement Federal Credit Union.

If you have any questions about any of these ideas or would like to develop other partnership opportunities, please do not hesitate to contact me directly at 212-487-4375 or (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Thank you for your support. We look forward to our continued partnership to bring assistance to New Yorkers in need.
Tired of paying fees at check cashers? Frustrated by your bank’s overdraft charges? Then sign up for the new NYC SafeStart Account, a safe banking account for all New Yorkers. As a NYC SafeStart Accountholder you’ll receive an ATM Card for easy access to your money, but unlike other accounts, you’ll never be charged overdraft fees. And there are no monthly fees, as long as you meet the minimum balance ($25 or less).

Call 311 to find a branch in your area to open a NYC SafeStart Account!

Participating financial institutions include Amalgamated Bank, Capital One Bank, Carver Bank, CheckSpring Bank, M&T Bank, Bethex Federal Credit Union, Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union, Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union, Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union, and Union Settlement Federal Credit Union.

For more information please contact: Seema Shah Outreach Associate Office of Financial Empowerment New York City Department of Consumer Affairs, 42 Broadway, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10004 212-487-4375 212-487-3184 (Fax), http://www.nyc.gov/ofe

SafeStart_Flyer_Final.pdf

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