Google Pay Drops Plans for “Plex” Bank Accounts

A report from the Wall Street newspaper today reveals that Google has apparently abandoned plans for its “Plex” bank accounts that were announced with the updated Pay app last year.

“Plex” bank accounts were originally designed as a checking account that can be used in sync with Google Pay. The project was built in collaboration with Citigroup and Stanford Federal Credit Union, as well as several other banks and credit unions. The “Plex” accounts were initially to be launched in 2021.

These special bank accounts would have offered a physical card and focused on “financial well-being” and simplicity with no monthly fees or overdraft fees. Google has described Plex as a “primarily mobile bank account integrated with Google Pay”. The project was led by Caesar Sengupta, who left Google earlier this year. WSJ Sources say that Bill Ready, who took over the role, said Ready was “concerned that Plex might make other banks believe that Google was competing with them because it played a prominent role. in the creation of the product “.

Google and Citigroup both confirmed WSJ report. A Google spokesperson said the company would focus more on “providing digital empowerment to banks and other financial service providers rather than serving us as a provider of those services.” A Citigroup spokesperson further explained that more than 10,000 people joined the waitlist for Plex accounts each week and that the waitlist had gathered more than 400,000 people. Citigroup “will look for other ways to work with Google in the future.”

Apparently Google has not communicated its intention to abandon Plex, with BM Technologies Inc stating last Monday that Plex accounts will arrive soon and that “Google and BMTX are excited about this opportunity and are committed to this partnership.”

At this point, the waitlist for Plex bank accounts in Google Pay is still open. Google also left mentions of Plex up on its website. In August, it was reported that the new Google Pay app was growing slower than expected.

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