Mercury Business Banking
Startup / multi-user digital ops — $0 monthly fee, free USD wires & ACH, no cash deposits, 0% checking APY
Found Business Banking
$0 monthly fee + built-in taxes/bookkeeping for self-employed; APY only on paid plans or card-spend bonus
Costs & Fees
| Metric | Mercury Business Banking | Found Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | $0 on deposit accounts. Optional Plus ~$29.90–$35/mo; Pro $299/mo (software subscriptions, not DDA maintenance) | Found Free $0. Optional Plus $35/mo or $315/yr; Pro $80/mo or $720/yr. No balance waiver required. |
| Fee waiver | N/A — core banking is $0 unconditional; Plus/Pro are optional paid software tiers | N/A — Free tier has $0 maintenance; Plus/Pro are optional subscriptions |
| Transaction fees | No per-item fees on ordinary ACH, wires, checks. Unlimited USD ACH, domestic wires, USD intl wires (SHA), RTP (Column). | No excess-item or per-count fees on ACH, deposited checks, or electronic items. Unlimited standard ACH in/out. |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 overdraft fee; overdrafts not permitted — items may be rejected. Persistent negative ≥30 days may trigger closure. | No overdraft fees. Account not designed to overdraft; negative balance from merchant adjustments or ACH timing risks closure. |
| ATM fees | Mercury does not charge own ATM withdrawal fee (U.S.). Operator surcharge possible; business ATM rebate not confirmed on current help page. 3% FX on non-USD ATM cash. | Found does not add ATM fee. Operator surcharge possible. No surcharge rebate. No branded free network. |
| Wire/ACH | Incoming domestic: $0. Outgoing domestic: $0. Incoming intl: $0 from Mercury. Outgoing intl USD SHA: $0; USD OUR: $15; non-USD: 1% FX. ACH in/out: $0. Same-day ACH $0 if before 12pm PT and <$1M. | Incoming domestic: $0. Outgoing domestic: $15 (Free/Plus), $10 (Pro). Incoming intl USD: $0 (SWIFT LEADUS49). Outgoing intl: not disclosed/not offered. Standard ACH in/out: $0 unlimited. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | Mercury Business Banking | Found Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | 0.00% — non-interest-bearing (Column Exhibit 1, Aug 14, 2026) | Free: 0% ongoing. Yield is monthly Balance bonus labeled APY — variable, paid 1st of following month. |
| Savings APY | 0.00% APY on business savings (0.001% rate; Column Exhibit 1). Not a high-yield account. | N/A — Pockets are sub-accounts in same checking; same yield rules apply |
| FDIC coverage | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Choice or Column | FDIC pass-through via Lead Bank — $250,000 per depositor per ownership category |
Features & Access
| Metric | Mercury Business Banking | Found Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. Mastercard chip ATMs for cash withdrawal only — $1,000/card/business day, $3,000 company-wide. No cash deposits. | No branches. Any Mastercard ATM for withdrawal — Found $0, no rebate. ATM cash-out $550/day new, $1,550/day established. No ATM cash deposit. |
| Mobile app | Trustpilot 4.0 (~2,761 reviews); Google Play ~4.6 (~1.76k); App Store ~4.9 (CA listing) | iOS Found: Business Banking ~4.8 (~26k–34k ratings); Google Play ~4.7 (~16k–18.5k reviews) |
| Virtual cards | Included — physical + virtual debit with freeze, merchant lock, spend limits | Virtual + team cards with spend limits; lock/delete virtual cards |
| Opening deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Eligibility | U.S.-formed LLC, corp, partnership typical. EIN letter required. Trusts refused on business onboarding. International founders OK if U.S. entity and not in prohibited residence country. | Sole prop, single/multi-member LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, partnership. Nonprofits can use banking/invoicing (tax tools poor fit). Up to 4 additional beneficial owners plus primary. |
Pros & Cons
Mercury Business Banking
Pros
- $0 monthly, $0 min, $0 overdraft fee on deposit accounts
- $0 domestic wires, $0 USD intl wires (SHA), $0 ACH, $0 same-day ACH under $1M/12pm PT
- Sweep FDIC marketed up to $5M; RTP/FedNow-style rails $0 on Column accounts
- Strong multi-user, virtual cards, QBO/Xero/NetSuite feeds, bill pay, invoicing on free tier
- IO charge card 1.5% cashback, $0 annual fee (Patriot Bank; separate product)
Cons
- Business checking/savings APY 0.00% — yield requires Treasury ≥$250k (SIPC, not FDIC)
- No cash deposits at all; ATM cash-out capped $1k/card, $3k company
- Fintech + partner-bank stack; documented closure/freeze complaint pattern
- 3% card FX and 1% non-USD wire; Plus/Pro needed for advanced AP/AR automation
- Treasury wrap fee 0.15%–0.60%; Choice consent order and bank migration uncertainty
Found Business Banking
Pros
- $0 maintenance, $0 min balance, $0 overdraft fee, unlimited standard ACH (Jul 13, 2026 schedule)
- Native tax Pocket, estimates, write-offs, invoicing, and 1099 contractor tools on Free
- Pockets with dedicated account numbers; up to 5 businesses per login
- Incoming domestic + USD international wires at $0 from Found; SWIFT LEADUS49
- Optional 2.50% APY no cap on Pro; 1% card cash-back on Pro; strong app-store ratings
Cons
- Found is not a bank; pass-through FDIC $250,000 at Lead Bank only
- Cash ($2/deposit after 1 free/month) and mobile-check caps low for cash businesses
- Free APY is $0 or spend-gated bonus; Plus yield capped at $20k and can be eaten by subscription
- No surcharge-free ATM network; no ATM cash deposit
- Patterned freeze/hold complaints; outgoing FX wires, checkbooks, ICS, and W-2 payroll absent
Verdict
Mercury Business Banking
Mercury is a fintech front end with deposits at Choice Financial Group and Column N.A. (FDIC), optional sweep to $5M. Core checking and savings have $0 monthly fee, $0 minimums, $0 overdraft fee, and $0 USD ACH/wires/RTP (Column). Checking and savings APY are 0.00%. Yield is separate Mercury Treasury (Apex/SIPC, 0.15–0.60% wrap) unlocked at $250k. Cash deposits not offered. Differentiator is startup-grade ops: multi-user permissions, virtual cards, QBO/Xero/NetSuite, bill pay, invoicing on free tier. Weak on 0% checking, no cash, partner-bank risk, and closure complaints. Do not treat Treasury yield as checking APY or Mercury as an FDIC member.
Found Business Banking
Found is an online business checking platform from Indie Technologies with deposits at Lead Bank (FDIC Cert. 8283). Three tiers share same rails: Free ($0), Plus ($35/mo), Pro ($80/mo). Jul 13, 2026 schedule: $0 maintenance, $0 overdraft, unlimited free ACH. Costs on wires ($10–$15), mailed checks ($1, free Pro), Instant/Express payouts, cash ($2 after 1 free/month), dormancy ($10/12 mo). Yield: Free 0% or 2% card-spend bonus; Plus 1.50% on first $20k; Pro 2.50% no cap + 1% card cash-back. Differentiator is built-in tax Pocket, Schedule C books, invoicing, and contractor 1099s. Cash capped $2k/week and $4k/month at retail. $250k FDIC only. Strong app UX; freeze/support complaints are operational risk.