Consumer complaint received 2024-10-07
Product: Checking or savings account — Savings account
Issue: Closing an account — Can't close your account
Company: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA (ID)

I own a business with my brother. My brother and I had a business money market savings account we used as a way to gain interest on cash reserves. We had approximately {$200000.00} in the account. This account was with our long time bank where all of my other checking and savings accounts exist apart from my Marcus accounts. The rate of return in the account was dropped from 4.3 % to .4 %. A decision was made to move the money out of this account to a higher yielding account. 
I had an existing personal savings account with Marcus by Goldman Sachs, and it was paying a 4.4 % interest rate. My brother and I decided we would be better served to move the money to a Marcus savings account. I transferred money from my old business money market savings account to a new Marcus savings account, and closed the old money market account. This was a decision which would come to haunt me now for the last month.

I came to learn that Marcus is not supposed to take deposits from business accounts, and that Marcus has a desire to only transfer money back to the account which funded the new Marcus savings account. Had I know all of this at the time, I would have closed the old business money market account, switched the funds to a personal account, and then funded the new Marcus account from my personal account.

Since the money was deposited into Marcus on XX/XX/XXXX they have not allowed me any access to the funds. They reversed a transfer I initiated on XX/XX/XXXX, and when I asked why, they said it was because I was transferring to a different account than the one where the money had come from. I explained to them that account was closed as soon as I moved the money out of it. I then had a XXXX way phone call with my old bank, a Marcus representative, and myself. 

My banker verified that the accounts ( the old closed one and the new one trying to receive money from Marcus ), were mine, and that I had closed out the old funding account after the money was transferred. The Marcus rep. said this would always be an issue with their security, and that I should close the Marcus account, and try to reopen one again after I transfer money in from a personal account. I said ok, and asked that they send the money to another account I had linked, an existing personal account at my long time bank.

Marcus initiated the transfer that day and then stopped the transfer the next day. When I called to find out why the transfer was reversed, I was told it was because they needed to further verify my identity, and my account would be locked until I received from them an Affidavit of Identity, filled it out, had it notarized, and returned it to them. I did all of that approximately XXXX weeks ago. 

I tracked the affidavit to their address and called them the day after it was delivered. They said they reviewed it, and they then unlocked my account. I then asked about them completing the account closing wire transfer, and was told that since my funding account was closed they would have to mail me a check, USPS certified mail, to my house, and I would have to sign for it. I said that was fine and asked about the timeline for the check to be mailed so I could get a tracking number to make arrangements to be home that day to meet the mailman. I was told the check would be sent in XXXX to 3 days, and to call back to get the tracking number after a few days. This conversation was on a XXXX. 

I called back that XXXX  to get the tracking number and was told that the agent had given me wrong information, that the timeline was XXXX to 3 days to complete the account close out review, and then XXXX to 3 days for the check to be mailed. Since the process started on XXXX, and it was XXXX, I was told to call back on XXXX  to get the tracking number. 

When I called back on XXXX  to get the miles check tracking number, I was told that they could not mail me a check. I was told that the only way to get my money back was to have Marcus wire me the money to the account which funded the Marcus savings account. I explained to the representative that the funding account was closed, and that was why they were mailing me the check, per their own decision. The representative said I should call my external bank, inform them a wire transfer would be initiated in 1 to 3 days to the old closed account, an

d they were to intercept that wire transfer and redirect the funds to one of my active accounts. This seemed like a very poor plan to me, but it was the only option I was being presented from Marcus. Based on this information I initiated a 3 way call with my external bank and a Marcus representative detailing how this plan was going to work, and after a few hours on the phone, everyone was in agreement. 

I called Marcus back the next day to see if they could give me a better timeline with the 1 to 3 days on when they were going to do the transfer so I could let me external bank know as they were having to intercept the transfer to the old closed account and redirect it to another account. The Marcus representative I got that day told me a wire transfer hold had been placed on my account. 

When I asked why the hold was there I was sent to a supervisor. The supervisor told me that they could not wire the money because my funding account had been closed. 

I explained to them that this was know by everyone, which is why I had to do the transfer intercept, per their instructions, after they reversed course on mailing the check just the prior week. I was now being told again that a check was the only way for me to receive my funds. I have been advised to call back in during the new week to get information about a check being issued.. pray that you never get stuck in this cycle it is soul crushing. 
The frequency and ease to which the agents at Marcus make assurances and plans, and then immediately disregard them, or do the exact opposite, is astonishing. Marcus by Goldman Sachs is truly the worst business outfit I have ever dealt with in my life, and I still have no idea how I am getting my money back after trying to find out for the last month. 

Not having access to these funds is starting to cause serious financial issues on both a personal and business level, and the Marcus reps. I talk to seem to not mind that at all. They say they do, but then they do not actually do anything to help resolve the situation, and that truly just makes a bad experience into a horrible one. Be warned of using the services of this company.