{"id":352236,"date":"2014-09-03T06:00:46","date_gmt":"2014-09-03T12:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/?p=352236"},"modified":"2022-04-21T10:19:26","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T16:19:26","slug":"the-bank-of-google","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/","title":{"rendered":"The Bank of Google?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?\u00a0 Google already has a banking license (since 2007) in the Netherlands, but it\u2019s not the only payment system company having a bank license overseas but not in the U.S.\u00a0 Online giant PayPal has its banking license in Luxembourg.<\/p>\n

Google made its first venture into the payment world in 2006 with Google Checkout, a system designed to challenge PayPal, but failed to attract much support for the product: eBay, which had purchased PayPal outright four years before, banned Google Checkout almost immediately after it launched. Google Checkout was finally discontinued in November of 2013.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Google Wallet<\/h2>\n

The much-improved Google Wallet product was introduced in September 2011.\u00a0 Though first only available on the Sprint Nexus S 4G Android phone due to the required special Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, the app can be downloaded onto any smart phone today.\u00a0 NFC hardware consists of a tiny microchip with a radio antenna and is now embedded in most smart phones, including Apple products.\u00a0 Using your phone, you can \u201ctap and pay\u201d at any merchant with MasterCard PayPass or VISA payWave technology.\u00a0 \u201cTap and Pay\u201d merchant terminals also work with radio-frequency identifying (RFID) chipped credit and debit cards.<\/p>\n

I tested the Google Wallet app on my smart phone.\u00a0 You are required to have a Google account (of course), but signing up is pretty easy.\u00a0 Once you have a Google account, download the free app from iTunes or Google Play.\u00a0 Once installed on your phone, registering for Wallet requires your name, address and the last 4 numbers of your Social Security number. After successfully creating a Wallet account, you have a few ways to add money.\u00a0 Google Wallet allows a user to deposit money into the wallet from a bank account (free) or a debit or credit card (with a 2.9% charge).<\/p>\n

To link Google Wallet to my bank account, the app asked for my address, routing number and account number, as well as my banking online username and password.\u00a0 The \u201cinstant link to bank account\u201d is one way to connect your bank account and I assume Google is using my supplied credentials to attempt to log on to my bank\u2019s website (which they can determine via the routing number) to verify me.\u00a0 During repeated attempts, this feature timed out.\u00a0 I had to opt for bank account linking by the method of verifying small deposits Google made to my checking account.\u00a0 The deposits can take up to 3 days to show up.<\/p>\n

Apparently I\u2019ve previously paid Google for apps in the Play Store, or paid for some other items through the now defunct Google Checkout, as their system already had my credit card information pre-loaded in Wallet.\u00a0 That was a little unnerving.<\/p>\n

Though spectacularly underused (PayPal dominates the market), Google has continued to introduce enhancements to its Wallet product, two of their most recent moves beyond the smart phone realm. Google announced in May 2013 the ability of attaching payments from Google Wallet to any Gmail message.\u00a0 In addition, Google has introduced a physical Wallet debit card in November 2013.<\/p>\n

A button in the Gmail compose window will allow you to send money from Google Wallet.\u00a0 Money can be sent to people who don’t have a Gmail or Wallet account, though the recipient will need to sign up for Wallet to accept money. Once someone opens a Google Wallet account, they can deposit funds to a bank account or use it anywhere Wallet is accepted.<\/p>\n

The Google Wallet Card uses the MasterCard network and can be used to make purchases in stores like any debit transaction and can also withdraw funds at an ATM machine or bank.\u00a0 \u00a0If used as a debit card, a Wallet PIN must be entered.\u00a0 If used as a credit card, the zip code you entered as part of your address during sign up must be provided.\u00a0 The debit card has a limit of $5000 per 24 hours.\u00a0 PayPal also offers the option of issuing a debit card connected to your PayPal account.<\/p>\n

If Google is handling your money, doesn\u2019t it legally have to be treated like a bank?\u00a0 No.\u00a0 Like PayPal, Google Wallet is not required to be a licensed bank in order to operate in the U.S.\u00a0 Like banks, both of these payment systems keep funds on deposit, but there the similarity ends. Companies are only defined as banks in U.S. when they lend out depositor funds in order to collect interest.\u00a0 Neither Google nor PayPal do this currently, and there isn\u2019t much motivation to start lending. Banks are heavily regulated in the U.S. both at the state and national level, and the process to obtain a license is daunting.<\/p>\n

Google and PayPal move money in and out of user accounts through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network that processes electronic financial transactions in the U.S.\u00a0 Examples of ACH debit transactions include direct deposit, Point-of-Purchase (POP) with debit and ATM cards and e-checks.\u00a0 Though certain rules apply, a company does not have to be a bank in order to use the ACH network.<\/p>\n

How Safe is Google Wallet?<\/h2>\n

Wallet Access is protected through the entry of a PIN on your device, and your username and password online. \u00a0\u00a0When accessed from your phone, Wallet also requires the screen to be on.\u00a0 If you have to enter a PIN to get into your phone, that provides an additional layer of security.\u00a0 In addition, the PIN to access the app is stored in a separate part of the phone known as the NFC Secure Element.\u00a0 This information is separate from the operating system.<\/p>\n

The most impressive security measure taken by Google in 2012 is the removal of any credit card and debit card information from your device.\u00a0 When you pay, Google \u2014 like PayPal \u2014 actually pays the merchant itself, and then processes the transaction with your credit or debit card information stored on its secured servers.\u00a0 Whether or not you want to trust Google (that no doubt knows more about you already than you realize) with your financial information is up to you.<\/p>\n

A known technical vulnerability exists on Android devices that are \u201drooted\u201d (i.e., altered by do-it-yourself experimenters for one reason or another, akin to \u201cjailbroken\u201d Apple devices).\u00a0 On a rooted device, it is possible to access the NFC Secure Element and retrieve the Wallet PIN.\u00a0 It\u2019s important to remember that Android phones have no need to be rooted in order to perform normal functions.<\/p>\n

One further security concern: Google Wallet funds are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Since the Great Depression of the 1930s, most U.S. banks have offered FDIC insurance, which guarantees deposits up to $250,000 in the case of a bank default.<\/p>\n

Not ready yet to use Google Wallet?\u00a0 There are other competitors besides PayPal.\u00a0 Square Cash and Venmo seem to be rapidly gaining user acceptance as well.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?\u00a0 Google already has a banking license (since 2007) in the Netherlands, but it\u2019s not the only payment system company having a bank license overseas but not in the U.S.\u00a0 Online giant PayPal has its banking license in Luxembourg. Google made its first venture into […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[158],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Bank of Google? - CreditRepair.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Bank of Google?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CreditRepair.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-09-03T12:00:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-04-21T16:19:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3-600x200.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kristy Welsh\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"CreditRepair.com\",\"description\":\"We are the credit repair experts\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3.png\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":500},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/\",\"name\":\"The Bank of Google? - CreditRepair.com\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2014-09-03T12:00:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-04-21T16:19:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/9d17553fca137ac7dd52fdddee3e39d4\"},\"description\":\"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Bank of Google?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/9d17553fca137ac7dd52fdddee3e39d4\",\"name\":\"Kristy Welsh\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfa70ee711288ab00d6b5c0cf27ce8c7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfa70ee711288ab00d6b5c0cf27ce8c7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kristy Welsh\"},\"description\":\"So how is geeky Kristy Welsh (former rocket scientist and current software guru) also a credit expert? After being laid off from her career in Aerospace engineering, Welsh served a short stint as a mortgage professional in the early 90s. It was there she first learned how to fix people\u2019s credit in order to get her loans funded. When the Internet, recession and bankruptcy came knocking on her door all at about the same time, she learned web programming, database design and a lot more about credit and debt. As a hobby, and to fill a need in the credit knowledge deficit of the average person, Welsh founded CreditInfoCenter.com in 1997. From daily research and correspondence with the credit and debt challenged, Welsh turned the original 9-page site into a personal finance information powerhouse. In 2001, Welsh published Good Credit is Sexy, a tongue in cheek guide to restoring credit. The book is now in its 4th edition. In November 2013, Welsh retired from CreditInfoCenter.com and was subsequently approached by CreditRepair.com to continue her conversation with the American public regarding all things credit and debt.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/experts\/kristy-welsh\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Bank of Google? - CreditRepair.com","description":"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Bank of Google?","og_description":"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?","og_url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/","og_site_name":"CreditRepair.com","article_published_time":"2014-09-03T12:00:46+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-04-21T16:19:26+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3-600x200.png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kristy Welsh","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/","name":"CreditRepair.com","description":"We are the credit repair experts","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/bank-of-america-now-offering-borrowers-chip-and-pin-credit-cards-1-3.png","width":1500,"height":500},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/","name":"The Bank of Google? - CreditRepair.com","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2014-09-03T12:00:46+00:00","dateModified":"2022-04-21T16:19:26+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/9d17553fca137ac7dd52fdddee3e39d4"},"description":"Is Google poised to become a bank in the U.S.?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/the-bank-of-google\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Bank of Google?"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/9d17553fca137ac7dd52fdddee3e39d4","name":"Kristy Welsh","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfa70ee711288ab00d6b5c0cf27ce8c7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfa70ee711288ab00d6b5c0cf27ce8c7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kristy Welsh"},"description":"So how is geeky Kristy Welsh (former rocket scientist and current software guru) also a credit expert? After being laid off from her career in Aerospace engineering, Welsh served a short stint as a mortgage professional in the early 90s. It was there she first learned how to fix people\u2019s credit in order to get her loans funded. When the Internet, recession and bankruptcy came knocking on her door all at about the same time, she learned web programming, database design and a lot more about credit and debt. As a hobby, and to fill a need in the credit knowledge deficit of the average person, Welsh founded CreditInfoCenter.com in 1997. From daily research and correspondence with the credit and debt challenged, Welsh turned the original 9-page site into a personal finance information powerhouse. In 2001, Welsh published Good Credit is Sexy, a tongue in cheek guide to restoring credit. The book is now in its 4th edition. In November 2013, Welsh retired from CreditInfoCenter.com and was subsequently approached by CreditRepair.com to continue her conversation with the American public regarding all things credit and debt.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.creditrepair.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/experts\/kristy-welsh\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352236"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=352236"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352236\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":362228,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352236\/revisions\/362228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=352236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=352236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=352236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}