Citi to eliminate overdraft fees by this summer

Financial services company CitiBank has announced its plans to eliminate overdraft fees among other fees by Summer 2022. 

In a statement on Thursday, Citi said that overdraft fees along with returned item fees, and overdraft protection fees will be gone by the end of the summer, becoming one of five top U.S. banks to completely eliminate these fees throughout the years. 

Citibank is also offering two services, Safety Check and Checking Plus, to help cover negative balance transactions including the Access Account Package, a checkless account package with low or avoidable monthly charges that provides customers with a simple, transparent way to manage their finances. 

The company said it will also offer the Common Sense Protection Measures, where the bank will not authorize ATM or point-of-sale debit transactions in cases when funds are not available, and Low Balance Alerts where customers can enroll through their mobile devices or online.

“This latest enhancement is a significant step for Citi as a leader in the banking industry offering the most consumer-friendly overdraft practices,” CitiBank CEO Gonzalo Luchetti said in a statement. 

 “We are continuously looking for ways to utilize our industry-leading capabilities to make the financial system easier and more equitable for communities who have little or no financial buffer.”

Citibank’s announcement follows several other major banks, Ally Bank, PNC, Santander, and Capital One,  who have significantly rolled back on overdraft fees last year.

Bank of America announced last month that it will be cutting overdraft fees for customers and will eliminate charges for bounced checks.