Consumer complaint received 2024-03-06
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Managing an account — Deposits and withdrawals
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION (NJ)

Hello, I am the owner of a small business and I've been banking with Capital One since XXXX. I own an XXXX XXXX  XXXX XXXX  that is my sole source of income and I started this business while I was in XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX Once the business started making regular money, I set up a new XXXX, a business checking account and a savings account with Capital One as well as a XXXX  business credit card. I later applied for a XXXX loan in XXXX when XXXX had announced a window for small business applicants because I thought my business was a good candidate and I really needed the loan for my business ' survival. ( Application number : XXXX ). I get a call from an investigator named XXXX at Capital One who says he's supposed to help in the process but he then drags my application out for weeks ( and ultimately months ) with no communication and no contact number to get him on the phone for an update. At one point he calls me and tells me that he thinks I'm lying and he doesn't think I have a valid business prior to XX/XX/XXXX. I'm shocked to be called a liar and I tell him that my business underwent a name change between XXXX and XXXX and I sent him multiple invoice documents to show that I had a qualifying business for a XXXX loan and I had just sent the application under the newest business name since that's the name on my bank account. He then did not respond to any of my emails or outreach following me providing clear evidence of my business qualifying. ( I've attached some of those emails and documents in this complaint ). XXXX responses over months of me emailing him, not a single acknowledgment of my supporting follow up documents so my loan application is completely stalled. I set up the business checking account in the first place with my business documents so I don't understand why I'm being treated like I don't have a valid and active business. XXXX was fishing for reasons to deny me the loan and I'm not sure he ever even looked at my documents that I sent over to him proving I have a valid business. He delayed my application process by about XXXX months! So now during the wait, I can't even go to another institution to apply for the loan because I don't want to have XXXX active applications because I don't want to be flagged for fraud. ( I mentioned earlier that I was in XXXX XXXX XXXX because a fraud flag could be an issue in me applying for XXXX XXXX  so I wouldn't even take a parking violation risk. ) Well, after the application deadline when the funds are already depleted and I've given up on any hopes of receiving a XXXX loan, XXXX finally gives me an update that he decided to flag my account and deny my application and permanently terminate my banking relationship with Capital One. I'm livid at this point and I file a formal complaint with Capital One for suspected race discrimination ( because XXXX knew what I looked like from my profile picture on my emails to him sending my documents ). I did not receive adequate information about the status of my loan during a period in which I could've gone to another banking institution with my business documents. Later that summer or early Fall, I call Capital One 's credit card division about an issue and they call the business checking team and they tell the agent that my account is closed. That agent gets upset and says that's a mistake and the business checking employee then verifies that they misspoke and there is no issue with the account and that it has not been closed. I continue to use the account from summer of XXXX ( when XXXX initially says he was closing the account ) until XX/XX/XXXX of XXXX when suddenly I notice that I do not have access to my funds to pay my Capital One business credit card. I call thinking there's fraud on the account and I'm told that my account was closed in XXXX of XXXX pending investigation and I can not have any other information nor access my funds. They basically threaten me over the phone by telling me the funds may never be released if the investigator makes a determination not to release my funds and that I won't receive any further information or explanation, nor can I contact the investigator. I ask for the investigator 's name because I have no clue what this is about and to my surprise, it's XXXX. Now I'm extremely distraught because I was told my account was never closed and it was an error and now I'm told that my account has been closed for XXXX years and they don't know why I was even able to use it that whole time. Now I'm accruing interest on a credit card that I can not pay and I have ceased business operations because I have no money. So for XXXX months now, I've been going back and forth with Capital One as they claim XXXX is still " investigating '' and I can't get any further information. I go to a physical branch and they tell me there's no hold on the account and the funds can be released but they get an error message in trying to get the check sent out. They tell me to call back because they said it would definitely be resolved over the phone. I call and then I'm told it can't be over the phone and I have to just go to the branch with my ID and business documents. I do that and now I'm told once again that my account is " under investigation '', even though I'd already been told twice now that it was cleared and there was no hold for the close out check. I desperately need help because I'm getting nowhere. I was told today by my local Congresswoman 's office that this treatment of my loan and my account is against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau guidelines for creditors so now I'm looking for assistance as soon as possible. Last week an " investigation '' that I never knew about ended on my business savings account ( which had {$0.00} in it ) and it was released but the hold remains on the account that has all my funds in it. This has cost me so much money and I don't have access to the only assets I have. I can't buy groceries, I can't travel to help my brother who just had a XXXX, I can't run ads for business operations to earn more money. I feel so wronged by this whole situation. I never received a dollar in XXXX funds and now years later, I'm having my account shut down and my funds frozen with no clarity from Capital One. This is not right. I go on XXXX and I see other small businesses have experienced similar nightmares with Capital One freezing their assets with no explanation and claiming some XXXX issue but in my case, I never received any federal funding or assistance. Not a XXXX. Even the branch I'm speaking to now is really upset and confused about this situation and suggesting I talk to a lawyer because of how bizarre this all is. My local Congresswoman 's office has agreed to help work with CFPB once I submit this complaint to you guys. This is giving me literal panic attacks. And there have been severe damages caused as a direct result of what I highly suspect is misconduct on Capital One 's part. Please, please help me.