Citi — Local services in New York

I would give negative stars if I could. This is by far the scariest and worst banking experience I've ever had. The short version of my experience is that Citi completely blocked my access to my bank and credit card accounts with no warning and not in connection to any specific security event.

The long version of what I'm experiencing is included below...

2024-09-24 - I noticed that Citi had blocked my access to my bank and credit card account. I cannot access my bank account or credit card account via the mobile app or website and even the phone system will not tell me updated information, only what the last reported balance was when the block was put in place. I called the banking customer service number. They told me I had to wait for a letter to be mailed to me with a code that I had to provide to them. I tried to verify with my phone number but they said they couldn't verify it, which is suspicious because I confirmed it in my account previously and receive text alerts from Citi regularly.

2024-09-26 - I still did not receive the letter with the code and was still blocked from my account so I called back. They told me I had to wait for the code. I asked about driving to my local branch with my ID and passport to verify my identify. They said they would not unblock my account access even with those proofs of ID and that I had to wait for the letter to arrive in the mail. I asked if they could confirm my auto deposits and auto pays would function as normal and they refused to tell me anything because I didn't provide the code from the letter I hadn't received.

I called multiple times on this day expressing that I was worried I would not be able to pay my rent with my account blocked. They did not help me. They only told me to wait for the letter and twice, two different customer service reps hung up on me. I was not yelling or acting aggressively in any way. I did not swear once.

I also called the Credit Card department and they tried to grant me access to my Credit Card on their end, but the banking block overrides anything they could do for me. I emailed Citi's executive response team to request their help and was assigned a case number.

2024-09-27 - I still did not receive the letter and was now very worried about the state of my account, since I could not confirm my paycheck had been deposited. I was very concerned about being able to pay my rent. I called Citi and they again would only tell me to wait for the letter. I then called my local branch and they confirmed that they also wouldn't be able to help me either.

2024-09-30 - I still have not received this letter with the code and still cannot access my bank or credit...

So Disappointing. Opened a business account with zero sales was granted $6k in credit on my card. Several years later, with sales 6 figure, they never raised my credit until I asked, to a mere $8K. The bankers at this branch are amazing, but unable to help me, despite my business bank account also being at Citi, so they could easily see my cashflow, and also I have been paying off my card in full every two weeks, so they will stop rejecting my card as it reaches its limit. Whatever algorithm is used to raise credit limit, I believe was overruled because I am a women running a home based business. I have no concrete proof, but believe I have been discriminated against. Went to another bank, and was same day give a credit line of $27K, so that is a bit a proof, no? I find it shameful to be treated this way, right around the corner from Citi Corporate Headquarters. Citi should stop advertising that they support women owned businesses, because they certainly do not. Rather they have been suffocating my business during my busiest...

I’ve never experienced a more absurd application process than the one I faced when trying to open an account with Citibank. Not only do they check your information with credit bureaus (and require your credit reports to be unfrozen, or they’ll deny your application, claiming 'we couldn't verify it'), but they also demand additional address verification. After providing two separate utility bills, they rejected one because the merchant (Duke Energy) wasn’t on their ‘trusted’ list, and dismissed the other because my last name appeared before my first name—apparently, this couldn’t be verified by their back office. When they rejected my documents, they simply sent a new DocuSign link with no explanation, forcing me to spend hours on the phone to figure out what went wrong. When I requested an official explanation for this absurd rejection, I was told it wasn’t possible. And this is just to open a checking account. Think twice before proceeding with this bank—imagine how they might handle more complex issues, like...