How Thousands of Americans Fell Into Fintech's False Promises and Lost Access to Their Bank Accounts

When Natasha Craft opened her first Yotta bank account in 2021, she loved using it so much she told her friends to sign up.

The app made saving money fun and easy. Craft, a 25-year-old FedEx driver from Mishawaka, Indiana, was busy getting her financial life in order and planning a wedding. Craft had her paycheck deposited directly into a Yotta account and used the startup’s debit card to pay for all her expenses.

The app, which gamifies personal finance with weekly sweepstakes and other flashy features, even occasionally covered some of its transactions.

“There were times when I would go and buy something and I would get that purchase for free,” Craft told CNBC.