History
The #GetBanked initiative began at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to inform consumers about how to open a bank account online and to facilitate the safe and timely distribution of economic impact payments through direct deposit.
In early April 2021, the FDIC launched a public awareness campaign in two metropolitan areas, Atlanta and Houston, to provide information to consumers about the benefits of developing a relationship with a bank and encourage them to visit FDIC.gov/GetBanked to learn more. As part of this pilot, FDIC ran streaming audio, digital display, mobile video ads, and streaming television ads in English and Spanish between early April and early July, 2021.
Subsequently in 2022, FDIC launched a second pilot of the #GetBanked public awareness campaign in three metropolitan areas, Dallas, Detroit, and Los Angeles. The ads ran during tax season and encouraged people to visit FDIC.gov/GetBanked to open a bank account before filing as the fastest way to receive a tax refund is to e-file while using Direct Deposit.
The FDIC’s efforts to expand access to affordable accounts dates back more than a decade. In 2010, the agency began to help identify transaction and savings accounts that were transparent, affordable, sustainable, and insured by the FDIC (i.e., Model Safe Accounts). Inspired by the FDIC’s Model Safe Account, the Cities for Financial Empowerment (CFE) Fund established the Bank On National Account Standards, which certifies accounts that have low and transparent costs and no overdraft fees and are fully functional.
As of December 2022, the CFE Fund has certified more than 300 accounts nationwide. Financial institutions with Bank On certified accounts currently comprise more than 60 percent of the national deposit market share and are available in over half the branches in the nation. The FDIC has supported the CFE Fund’s Bank On program by providing technical assistance and encouraging collaborations between the CFE Fund, financial institutions, and community-based organizations that work together to expand account access, including the close to 100 Bank On coalitions.
These and other collaborative efforts have helped reach people new to the banking system.
Join the movement, share FDIC’s #GetBanked materials with the hope of reaching more unbanked and underbanked households so they may learn more about the benefits of a banking relationship.