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kentonvHNSource author
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My startup, which raised $1.2M back in 2015, didn't have to pay any monthly fee -- at least until …

… My startup, which raised $1.2M back in 2015, didn't have to pay any monthly fee -- at least until the balance dropped below some threshold in the 5-digit range at which point they started charging $15/mo, I think. After that startup failed SVB courted me for a personal account. They actually came to me in person, took me out for coffee and stuff. I didn't even have much money at the time but they just seemed really interested in signing up startup founders (even failed ones). For comparison I tried talking to Chase Private Client at their Palo Alto branch, since my old 401k had gotten big enough to qualify for their minimum if I rolled it over to them. The banker there practically sneered at me, acted exasperated like I was wasting his time and he had much bigger clients to tend to. Also gave me a spiel about their high-fees wealth management in which he asked leading questions about my investments and then tried to make me feel stupid about my answers so that I'd decide to pay Chase to manage it instead. This was all obviously a marketing shtick and I found it incredibly insulting. …

Original discussionMy Startup Banking Story257 source comments · at import
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a5seoHN

I founded a startup. We raised $2.5M, not all at once. We banked at SVB. It sucked. Subpar online tools. $200/mo “analysis fee,” never once had a “relationship” with anyone. Maybe we were never big enough to be relevant. That’s fair. My advice: use a retail bank until you have a few million in revenue, then shop around. Make the SVB’s of the world earn your business. SVB in particular was so incredibly entitled. I’m glad they failed more spectacularly than my little startup.

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csomarHN

It's not relative to the bank but to the bank branch. I have an account with Chase and I made it clear that I'll be depositing $2K to keep the account on, and I would not be using it for day to day transactions. The branch manager was cool with that and we chatted for an hour or so about different stuff and he actually gave me some real advice. This is not about Chase, it's about the branch and the branch manager. I'm pretty sure another branch manager will be annoyed talking to a $2k client in deposits with no in/out flows and might not even consider them for an account. If you want to bank with a specific bank, shop for the branch.

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fatnoahHN

> The banker there practically sneered at me, acted exasperated like I was wasting his time and he had much bigger clients to tend to I had a partial version of this experience with Charles Schwab. (I've been a banking customer for many, many years and have been very happy with them). When I left my first startup after the many year run up to the 2008 crisis, I decided to roll my fairly substantial 401(k) balance to my tiny Schwab brokerage account. Waiting for the rollover check to arrive was nerve-wracking enough, so I decided to deposit it in person at my local branch in a major city rather than mail it to them and wait again. When I walked into the branch, the reception person looked me up and down and was warming up to tell me that no, they don't have public restrooms. Once I gave my account information, they became very friendly and once I plopped the check down on the counter for …

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