The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced on Tuesday that it is suing Capital One for misleading consumers about interest rates on their savings accounts and \u201ccheating\u201d them out of over $2 billion in interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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In a statement, the agency alleged that Capital One misled owners of its “360 Savings” accounts by bundling them with a newer and higher-yield savings account option \u2014 “360 Performance Savings.” The bank allegedly failed to inform 360 Savings account holders about the new option and marketed both products similarly to make customers believe they were identical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, according to CFPB, the interest rates on the two options differed significantly. Capital One increased the interest rate for 360 Performance Savings from 0.4% in April 2022 to 4.35% in January 2024, while it lowered and then froze the rate for 360 Savings at 0.3% from late 2019 through mid-2024, the agency stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the relatively low interest rate, the 360 account was advertised as a high-yield savings account. The bureau said that Capital One sought to keep 360 Savings users unaware of the higher-yield option by replacing all mentions of this account with the similarly named 360 Performance Savings option on its website, excluding account holders from marketing campaigns promoting the higher-yield account, and prohibiting employees from informing account holders about the 360 Performance Savings option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCFPB is suing Capital One for cheating families out of billions on their savings accounts,\u201d CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a press release. \u201cBanks should not bait people with promises they do not intend to keep.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In its statement, Capital One rejected the allegations, stating that it transparently marketed its 360 Performance Savings account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are deeply disappointed that CFPB is continuing its recent pattern of filing lawsuits at the last minute before a change in administration. We categorically disagree with their claims and will vigorously defend ourselves in court,\u201d the company\u2019s statement read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bank added that the 360 Performance Savings product is \u201cwidely advertised, including on national television, with the simplest and most transparent terms in the industry.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":4908,"template":"","acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n