Relay Business Checking
Startup / Profit First multi-account checking — $0 Starter, up to 20 checking buckets, QBO/Xero sync; no APY on checking
Meow Business Banking
Treasury + high coverage + free wires for startups/funds; not a cash or branch bank
Costs & Fees
| Metric | Relay Business Checking | Meow Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | Starter $0; Grow $30; Scale $90 limited-time (list $120). Paid plans billed from designated checking account. | Marketed $0. CRB published fee schedule: no fees currently imposed (reserves right to add with notice). |
| Fee waiver | No balance waivers — Grow/Scale are subscriptions, not waivable by balance | N/A — no published maintenance fee to waive |
| Transaction fees | No per-item checking cap published. Unlimited standard ACH and digital items. Same-day ACH extra: $1 Starter / $0.50 Grow / included Scale. | No published excess-item grid. Marketed unlimited free wires/ACH/checks. ToS: discretionary daily/weekly/monthly payment limits. |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 overdraft fees; transactions that would overdraw decline. Optional backup account internal pull (not a priced OD product). | CRB DAA contemplates NSF/overdraft per fee schedule; current schedule lists no fees imposed. Amounts not disclosed. |
| ATM fees | Allpoint in-network $0 Relay fee. Out-of-network owner surcharge not rebated. Allpoint+ cash deposit $1,000/txn; cash withdrawal $400/txn. | Not disclosed — no ATM network advertised |
| Wire/ACH | Incoming domestic: $5 (Aug 2026 official table). Outgoing domestic: $8 Starter / $5 Grow / $5 Scale. Incoming intl: typically $0. Outgoing intl Local Network $5/$3/$1.50; SWIFT $25/$22/$20. Standard ACH in/out: $0. | Incoming/outgoing domestic wires marketed $0. Incoming/outgoing international wire bank fee marketed $0 (FX separate via Airwallex 0.16%–1.00% margin). ACH marketed $0. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | Relay Business Checking | Meow Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | None — non-interest-bearing checking | |
| Savings APY | Plan-tiered on up to 2 savings accounts: Starter 1.11%, Grow 1.75%, Scale 3.00% APY (as of 2026-05-01). Variable; savings cannot originate ACH/wires. | |
| FDIC coverage | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Thread Bank — combined across all Relay sub-accounts | Standard FDIC $250,000 SMDIA per depositor per ownership category at partner bank |
Features & Access
| Metric | Relay Business Checking | Meow Business Banking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. Allpoint network (32k–55k+ cited). Cash deposit at Allpoint+ only ($1k/txn). Green Dot retail. | None. Partner banks not offered as walk-in network. No ATM network or cash rails. |
| Mobile app | iOS ~4.8; Android ~4.5 (~3.5k / ~1.1k reviews per 2026 aggregators) | No first-party mobile app by design (blog May 2026). Web dashboard + API + MCP. |
| Virtual cards | Included — physical + virtual Visa debit with freeze, limits, spend policies | Included — unlimited virtual/physical, merchant lock, category limits, API |
| Opening deposit | $0 | $0 marketed for core checking |
| Eligibility | U.S.-registered sole prop, LLC, C-corp, S-corp, partnership, nonprofit. Not supported: personal, escrow, trusts, Series LLCs, 401(k)s. | Business entities; commercial use only; no consumers. Startups, funds, real estate, crypto-native marketed. Nonprofit/SPV not enumerated. |
Pros & Cons
Relay Business Checking
Pros
- Starter $0 with no minimum balance, $0 OD fees, and no per-item checking cap
- Up to 20 checking accounts (50 on Scale) with auto-transfer rules — rare on free tier
- Native QuickBooks Online and Xero feeds on all plans including Starter
- Outbound domestic wires $8/$5/$5 — below typical big-bank $15–$30
- IntraFi sweep to $3M; Scale savings 3.00% APY; unlimited users and virtual debit cards
Cons
- Checking earns 0% APY — savings yield is plan-gated and mid-pack at Starter/Grow
- Mobile check funds can take up to 7 business days
- Cash deposits via Allpoint+/Green Dot only — retailer fee up to $4.95, low caps
- Official Aug 2026 table lists $5 incoming domestic wires (conflicts with free-inbound marketing)
- BaaS structure (Thread Bank); sub-accounts do not multiply $250k FDIC; weekday-only support
Meow Business Banking
Pros
- Marketed $0 monthly, domestic/international wires, ACH, and checks (CRB schedule currently $0)
- IntraFi sweep advertised up to $125M–$200M at partner banks
- Treasury stack: T-bills at 1 bp/month marketing; Commercial Paper 3.56%–3.80% net (09/02/2026)
- Multi-entity dashboard, payment approvals, public API + MCP, USDC/USDT rails
- Virtual/physical cards with controls; 2.5% rewards on Anthropic/OpenAI spend
Cons
- Meow is not a bank; partner banks have rotated (FirstBank/OMB/Third Coast/CRB/Grasshopper)
- Checking APY tiered and partner-specific (Grasshopper 0.50%/3.02%); CRB may be 0% + rewards; not CP headline rate
- No cash, no branches, no official mobile app
- No complete public fee PDF; insurance max and eligibility language conflict across pages
- Thin reviews (Trustpilot 3.6/16); closures and holds in complaint set
Verdict
Relay Business Checking
Relay Business Checking is an online SMB platform from Relay Financial Technologies with deposits at Thread Bank, Member FDIC, and IntraFi sweep to $3M. Checking is non-interest-bearing across Starter ($0), Grow ($30), and Scale ($90–$120) plans; savings APY is 1.11%/1.75%/3.00% as of May 1, 2026. Differentiator is operational: up to 20–50 checking buckets with auto-allocation, unlimited users, virtual Visa debits, and native QBO/Xero on Starter. Official Aug 11, 2026 fees: incoming domestic wire $5, outgoing $8/$5/$5, same-day ACH $1/$0.50/included. Weak on cash deposits, check holds (7 days), 0% checking, and BaaS partner-bank structure. Strong for Profit First digital SMBs; weak for cash retail and same-day check users.
Meow Business Banking
Meow Technologies is a fintech with checking at Cross River and Grasshopper. Marketed $0 monthly/wires/ACH/checks; CRB schedule currently $0 but incomplete public fee book. Grasshopper checking APY 0.50% to $100k and 3.02% above — not Commercial Paper 3.56–3.80%. IntraFi up to $125M–$200M advertised. No cash, no mobile app. API, stablecoins, and treasury are differentiators; partner rotation and disclosure gaps require diligence.