* Terrible customer service * Cannot explain how their own systems work * Clearly make it difficult to transfer money to an outside account * Refuse to help in with urgent requests Their online funds transfer feature wasn't working so I went to a branch location to get help. They couldn't help me there. I learned how to handle the transaction on my own. Even then, their policies would not allow me to transfer more than 5k per month and 10k per year total. I needed to transfer more than that right away. Their policy states that they can make exceptions. I asked and they didn't make one for me. Why? Who knows. No explanation. Avoid this bank at all costs. like, run. read more

Avoid Esmeralda the teller manager. She is incompetent, rude and so so slow. She has too many times dropped the ball.

Sean was super helpful today in helping me sign and notarize my will. He provided safety net solutions and was patient. Thank you so much Sean! read more

My children opened savings accounts when they were minors at First Bank and Trust which was later acquired by Byline. Our expectations for savings accounts was that the money would be kept safe without having to check on it. However, that was not the after Byline took over. Byline implemented monthly fees. Some years went by before we noticed -- because our expectation was that money was being kept for us and FB&T did not have fees. By the time we found out one account was completely wiped out and another had a large portion of its money gone. We closed the account that still had some money. I asked for the balance which does not sound right. The manager came and checked into it and found there was more there. I am glad I asked, and did not assume that tellers are this bank would be able to provide me with an accurate account balance. I will say that when Byline bought FB&T we did get some mail that we did not read -- again our expectation was that the savings would be there. I assume they did provide notification of their fees, and I could have checked their website at any time. Shame on you Byline. You should have returned the money you took fees from my children. read more

This is a terrible company! Treats their employees like shit: they just told employees that when they go on vacation they have to self-quarantine for 14 days when they get back, and that THEY ARE NOT GETTING PAID FOR IT!!! They force you to stay home then will not pay you! How are you suppose to not get paid for two weeks because of their policy read more

This bank started charging me continuous overdraft fees everyday, until they ran up enough of a negative balance that made them arbitrarily close my account. Even though I made several payments and deposits during that time. I never agreed to overdraft fees and had direct deposit. My account was closed without any communication, so when my last direct deposit dissapeared with no account in my statement I felt something was off. I have tried to reach out to them but they have not responded back. Although they closed the account and zeroed out the balance on December 29 with no notice, they kept the ensuing direct deposit of $54. Since I had no account, and the account that I did have was at $0, I want my money back. read more

This is the worst bank in the entire country/nation/etc. They buy out other banks, then implement a terrible and cheap system which costs less. And I've had fraud charges happen 2x since they changed banks. Wouldn't be surprised if they were involved. It's holiday season and I have a bank transfer to paypal that has taken 7 days at this point. Before my bank was bought out the transfers usually took 2-3. And I'm not talking about a huge transfer, $150. Can you imagine waiting 7 days for money you need from the people who are holding your money? Choose any other bank and you win compared to this one. read more

When I moved to Evanston, I opened a safe deposit box at Evanston Bank & Trust just down the street from my new condo which is now a division of Byline Bank. I also opened a savings account so that they could debit for the annual fee. I have no particular occasion to go online for this account but when I did recently I found that they had started charging me a dormancy fee for the account $7.50/mo. When I called in they told me that they had sent me a letter about this but it was returned. Did they try to call me? No. Did they email me? No. Their policy apparently (not posted online) is that the account has to be used twice in a year or it becomes dormant. I feel that this bank lost its way when it was acquired by Byline. read more

Byline bank's customer service is exceptionally poor. I arrived with nearly $1200 in coins. They weighed nearly 60 pounds. The bank had just opened, there were three customers including me. They couldn't provide a cart to wheel in the coins. I carried them. When I had just about arrived at the teller, someone came running up.....when the job was nearly done! They were 'too busy' to help. The teller (who was considerably younger than I am) was not at all embarrassed. SHE placed the 60 pounds of coins on a rolling chair. Ok for the customer to carry them, but not her. Think twice before you do business with these folks. read more

it is true that Byline bought the original, wonderful First Bank of Evanston, but they still provide excellent services gracefully. They are one of the few banks in this area still offering vault boxes, and they still accept coins. They have always been conservative in their lending practices, a reason they did not suffer in 2008-10 or more recently with all the bank closures. Despite or because of their local origins, they offer everything one needs in an excellent bank. read more

They will not break larger bills for non customers, something even most stores will do. When I went in there were no other customers in the bank, and they wouldn't break $80 into 5's. This would take one minute or less to do. We were thinking about opening an account for our older daughter here, but now will look elsewhere. read more

Sadly Byline is not supporting the Evanston performing arts community as did First Bank which it gobbled up. Byline apparently cannot afford to spend $400 to maintain First's sponsorship of the Evanston 2nd Act Players. How sad to see such a lack of caring. We will be moving all our accounts elsewhere. Byline advertises it is local but that apparently does not include Evanston. read more

Byline Bank - Banks & Credit Unions Near Me - Evanston, Illinois

Old School ATMs machine , that do NOT notify you that your deposit will be placed the next day . I really needed the money and none of the tellers were able to help even though the bank was empty and they were all doing nothing . Very disappointed at service, inconvenience, and management. read more

This review is NOT about this location. It's about the entire bank. I was a First Bank and Trust customer for 20 years The conversion of the FB&T branches to the new owner, Byline Bank in early 2019 has been ABOMINABLE. I was on hold to some call center for well over 30 minutes. I couldn't activate my new debit card online. When I finally got someone they informed me that I didn't have to activate it despite the fact that all information connected to the activation (both on line and mailing literature) indicated otherwise. Now a month later I tried to phone transfer money from my small business account to my personal account. I found that the two accounts had been unlinked. When I called the customer service center (now a 10 minute wait) I was informed I needed to contact the Evanston branch where I originally opened the accounts. The agent transferred me to the Emerson street branch which informed me that I needed to contact the Church Street branch. When I called that branch they informed me that I needed to talk to the customer service center to set up the link. I once again called that number which said I needed to talk to the Church street branch. Controlling my temper I asked for the name of the branch manager and that person's phone number. So-called 'Customer Service Center transfered me to the branch . As I waited on hold the receptionist informed me that the manager wasn't available but would have my call returned. Meanwhile she said that the ability to link the accounts was no longer possible but she could do a transfer for me. The transfer was made and I am still waiting for the manager to contact me. It's been over 45 minutes. I think the "BY-LiNE" for this horrendously run business should be changed from: "The bank that works hard for you " to: "The bank that hardly works for you" read more

I have to concur with Peter K. I too have been a customer of First Bank and Trust, hands down the BEST bank that ever was. Mergers and acquisitions never work well, but the one with Byline is a textbook example of 'not working'. Poor technology, poor communication, poor service, no follow up. I still do not have replacement credit and debit cards for my accounts despite receiving multiple letters in the post for three months saying that I should expect the cards and that my FB&T cards would no longer work. Now I have non-working cards and no replacements after 3.5 months. I fear that my next struggle in transferring money will be similar to the story I have read above. We'll see. But only one more misstep will mean my moving banks. Sorry to see the legacy of the FB&T founders so abysmally damaged in such short order. read more

I'm sorry to report that if you have been spoiled by the excellent customer service of First Bank & Trust of Evanston (FBT), you will be frequently disappointed and occasionally enraged by the service provided by its acquiring bank, Byline Bank. Problems with the transition so far: 1) unlike the cards from FBT, regular Byline ATM cards do not work in Europe (expensively determined, long-distance, with a 20 minute call from Vienna to the US), 2) no one knows how to stop a regularly scheduled transfer between Byline bank accounts using using the new Byline online banking page, and 3) international wire transfers with Byline have turned into a multi-step, two-day, much more expensive process than at FBT. Byline generally handles these issues by asking you to call help numbers where you are shunted from person to person, none of whom really knows how to answer your questions, or occasionally, even understands the problem. I'm now searching for a new home for our many family and business accounts. read more