On June 1st, I opened a high-yield savings account with Live Oak Bank. I connected it to other bank accounts I had and put money in it. On June 4th, I was unable to log in to my account. I found out they decided not to move forward with the account, even though I had already opened it. I even have several emails welcoming me to Live Oak Bank. They refused to tell me why and hung up on me every time I called. The most helpful person told me that my money, almost $200 (with plans to add more in the near future), was going back into my account after 60 days. I pushed back on that, and he called back to say it should be more like 5 days. I looked at my consumer report, and my score is 677. My credit score is between 795 and 810. I have no criminal background -- I have several credit cards, and own a condo and credit card. I've never defaulted on any payment in my life. There's no reason they should close my account, and to add insult to injury, not tell me why, or paths to escalate my complaint. Mashay H claimed she had no boss and refused to provide her full name. I'm not ruling out a lawsuit and I'm submitting complaints to every regulatory body within reach. read more

The good news is that I got interest every month. The bad is that it didn't equal the advertised yield. That is, I was expecting 4.1% according to their website, but I was getting 4.02. When i decided I wasn't comfortable with this bit of subterfuge, I was roped into a pretty unsatisfying interaction with the customer service agent. Finally I talked with a supervisor. I decided that closing the account was best, and it wasn't super easy or very transparent. I also found out that one can only remove $250,000 per MONTH from LOB, not $50k a day, or $100k a day, or any such thing. What if one has $500k in there it takes 60 days?? I was between a rock (not wanting to take 30+ days to get my money) and a hard place (dealing with the bureaucracy of customer service in the year 2025). Overall it was a mixed experience with LOB. read more

I am amazed by the prehistoric requirements of this bank to open a savings account. I spent the time to register and have micro deposits made to my account. Then after giving copious amounts of information I set up the account online. They advised I must call them to complete the process? So I called! I was advised they needed 4 specific items to confirm the account? 1) Drivers License 2) Utility Bill 3) Tax document 4) Passport or actual social security card Wow! I don't travel. I have not had a actual Social Security Card in some 45 years. Get this the phone CSR at my request spoke with a supervisor because I can't provide a passport or ss card. It was confirmed "NO EXCEPTIONS"!!! Absolutely the most ridiculous requirment I have ever been asked for. She advised that since they are primarily a online bank they must have a actual SS Card! MANAGEMENT TAKE NOTE...THIS IS THE MOST ANTIQUATED REQUIREMEMT I HAVE EVER HEARD OF! I have numerous accounts with 100% all online banks! NONE ASKED FOR A ACTUAL CARD!!!!!!!!!!! read more

Great bank if you like hidden fees. I know banks are notorious for charging you for random stuff. But i was getting charged for not using the account enough at 10 dollars a month. Wow, just wow. read more

Live Oak Bank is not willing to help you in any way if you are struggling to make payments. They will not defer payments to cut you any slack when times get tough. I do not recommend Live Oak Bank. I'm sorry I got a loan through them. I thought we were partnering together, but it's not a partnership, it's a one way street, with threats made against your personal finances. Not good live oak. read more

Totally upset with the inefficiencies of Live Oak Bank, which has made it impossible to access my two cd accounts. To do so, I need the bank to text me a six-digit security code, which they seem unable to do (They have successfully texted to my telephone number a 4 digit code to verify my identity, but no six-digit code to access my accounts). They claim that they can not issue a code by email, nor can they generate a code verbally.... they claim that codes are mechanically generated and that accounts are only accessible with a valid code. Since I cannot receive a six-digit code, I have no means to access my accounts, and Live Oak Bank seems to have NO fix, no BACKUP measure, or other means by which to get me a code. Totally unacceptable to claim that there is no way around this and effectively denying me access to my accounts and my money..... I must add that the representatives I have talked to told me to call my telephone carrier, Consumer Cellular, which I did, wasting yet several more hours trying to resolve the problem. Consumer Cellular says it is not a problem with their service, and noted, that text messages from Live Oak Bank with 4 digit codes are getting through with no problem!!!! Catch 22. I am amazed that Live Oak Bank seems to have NO backup to send codes by means other than text messages. Unbelievable!!!!! read more

This is the first bank I have ever dealt with that demands copies of statements from the bank that is funding the account. Not only has no other bank ever asked this, but they also want a copy of a driver's license, utility bill, and actual social security card. In light of the cyber attacks that are occurring these days, providing all this info to a questionable entity is alarming. Even more concerning is the fact that providing a bank with your purchase history and transactions (what charities you donate to, what stores you shop at) from another institution sounds like a lot of data that this bank is trying to collect from is customers. It now makes sense why this bank is paying people $200 to give them $20,000 - the data they demand to have from you before you can get the $200 is worth much more than $200 when they try and sell it to others! This bank seems questionable at best and quite deceptive at worst. While I have nothing to hide, I do not see any legitimate reason other than an invasion of privacy for a bank to demand copies of your transactions that you have at another bank. I'd stay away from this bank and use other, more reliable and trustworthy banks! read more

Absolutely, the worst bank I've ever dealt with. They wasted so much of my time. In addition to all the problems in my first month, LiveOakBank automatically closed my account because I do a small amount of international business. They didn't like that I get an occasional wire transfer. You know, that standard thing that all banks handle. In addition to that, there's all kinds of "fun" surprises you'll learn once they have your money. Like, they restrict how and when you can move money around. They don't tell you this upfront. I only found out because I transferred some money from a LiveOak account to a Chase account. LiveOak manually canceled my transfer between the linked accounts because "they didn't want it to move there". To be clear, Chase was a verified and linked account within the Live Oak system, and LiveOak would let me transfer the money to a different bank account, just not the one I wanted it to go to. I was told by their customer service rep that "as our relationship gets established, I'll have more freedom to transfer my money between MY accounts". WTF???? Anyway, this bank is way more trouble than it's worth. Don't waste your time, or they'll waste yours. read more

Live Oak Bank is the best bank I've ever used. They are a dream come true compared to the many national chains out there. I've worked with Live Oak for years now and have never come across an issue that was not solved quickly. They treat me with respect and value my business. Their employees are kind and knowledgeable. I couldn't ask for anything more from a bank. read more

I do not understand all the negative reviews as I have been a customer with Live Oak Bank going on six years and have always had positive interactions with everyone I have come in contact with. Both online and in person. Today, my wife and I were there to make a deposit and had a wonderful experience. Regan answered all of our questions, she was professional, knowledgable, friendly and happy to help us. Thank you Regan and all the employees there at Live Oak Bank. You folks are awesome.. Charles C. Wilmington, N.C. read more

Should be named Live Hoax Bank. They accumulate deposits with high APY's and then screw customers in every way imaginable. LOB technology platform is an oxymoron and the bank's staff is completely ignorant of basic banking. It is incomprehensible that this organization was granted a banking charter and participates in the FDIC insurance program. This is a bank waiting to fail and unfortunately U.S. taxpayers will be fitting the bill. Do yourself a favor and bank with a competent institution with knowledgable staff unlike Live Oak Bank. read more

I had transfered money into live oak bank. It took them 5 business days to post it, but they showed I have credit. so, I made a payment on my credit card ( I think on day 5) right before my deposit was posted, and Live Oak declined my payment. That resulted in me having lots of issues with my business credit card. they were not increasing my credit limit because of the decline. Now whenever I make payment via Live Oak to my credit card, it takes several days for the money to post and free up my credit card. I have alot of business payments and this is damaging my ability to do business. I will change my bank as soon as I have time. read more

This bank is awesome when it comes to customer service and rates of return. We have always received five star excellent service. We were on the phone just this moring because we were having an issue with adding account information and Cass stayed on the phone with us almost an hour until everything was accepted and account was working perfectly. Not sure how this bank could get anything but five star reviews. read more

I freaken hate this bank. I received an SBA 7A loan from them for a business loan and its been a nightmare ever since. They were 2nd to my Wells Fargo SBA loan and had 2nds on couple of my rentals. When i went to go sell one of the rentals, Wells removed their lien so i could sell (after 3 years of on time pmts and in crease in equity, they saw fit to remove it) Live Oak - even as a 2nd lien, would not. Even with 3 years of perfect pmt history and increased valuations and equity, they straight refuse. This along with the mafia style "I need proof of insurance on everything" oversight, this bank stresses me out. Im trying to get another 7A loan so i can remove them from my life. read more

Impossible to open an account. They want all your personal info and business info, and argue with you about it. They have no clue what a business account is read more

I applied for an account for my small business. the online process was smooth . I received the small deposits and verified all the info. I though I was good to go, however they required a great deal of personal info about me. I was able to provide all the info except a copy of my SS card (I don't have a copy) . in lieu of that they said I could send a personal tax return. I sent it but they then asked for the SS card again. I went to SS admin to request one, and I learned on the SS website that banks are able to verify identity on the government site. I let Live Oak bank know that they could do this but they held out that after all that I would still need a copy of my SS card. I asked to terminate the account . Had I know the Card would be needed i would have waited to apply. read more

Tedious to set up account and not always good customer service.

Filled out their online application then got an email requiring more documentation: social security card, driver's license, corporate tax return and some thing called a sf90. Apparently this is the irs form that a company uses to request a EIN from the irs. We incorporated over 13 years ago. I have no idea where that form is. After all it is not needed once the EIN is received. No one has ever asked for it. Not even the SBA. Gave up trying to open account. Something is fishy with this bank. read more

Their website says it takes 2 business days to get an answer. LOL! I applied for a business account on April 10. The application process is a disaster. My application got stuck processing, so I waited about 3 weeks for the "tech team" to "unlock" it. After answering countless back and forth emails to provide increasingly *personal* and unnecessary information to my business account, it is now 2 full months after my application start date, and I STILL have not heard anything back in over a week. No traction is made unless I follow up and ask them first. I would say this is a major red flag and indication of what is to happen in the future with them. Avoid! read more

I decided to open an online savings account to help me save a little more towards Grad School. Opened up my account at Live Oak with no issues, made a deposit from my checking account, no problems. Attempting to access my account online, however, was a NIGHTMARE! Required verification via email or text message every time, even though the site assured me they were going to verify my device. Downloaded the app and couldn't verify because every time I switched screens to retrieve the code they sent, the app reset and had to log me in again! Then, I notice my account is $0. My funds were deposited on the 16th of this month. It's now the 23rd. Well past the mandatory4 day waiting period. I call them up and after arguing with the woman who wanted to verify my account via email or text (I was on my cell phone and not at home... so how was I supposed to receive these notifications???) after I had spelled my name, given my DOB, last 4, address. Finally, I got the CSR to tell me when my deposit would be available- the 26th! Asked why ten days and she had no real answer. I asked why the FAQ stated 4 days and I was waiting 10 days, she had no answer. Supposedly I will be getting a call from a supervisor. The excessive amount of verification leads me to believe they have had issues with others accessing accounts in the past. The entire experience feels shady to me. I will be pulling my money, closing the account, and going with Ally bank, who I should have gone with in the first place. read more

I was having trouble with a PPP loan during the covid19 pandemic. I had applied to two large banks and had been given the run around. I called Live Oak and Thomas Rutherdord took care of every thing. I'm very grateful for the wonderful service. He was straight up amazing. I hope to be able to use Live Oak for banking services in the future. read more

Often if things sound to good to be true, they are. Live Oak appears to be a good bank with great savings rates. My experience is that may be true if you do not need to put money in or take money out of the account. May work for small amounts but it is very difficult to transfer or retrieve larger sums of money. They have long hold times that were not initially disclosed. Also, I received different answers to the same question multiple times when I called customer service. They generally answer calls quickly and you actually talk to a live person which is great but getting incorrect information multiple times is very frustrating. Save time and frustration and go with a different bank. read more

Five star service from Seth Vander Woude and Melinda Faulk. They made the PPP program and subsequently funding uncomplicated. Tina and I are very grateful to Live Oak Bank. Great service and have set an impressive example for other banks. read more

Spent several hours, including 1 hr with a representative, trying to open online savings. The server kept returning unreadable errors and numbers impossible to fix. Several different browsers. I have multiple online banking accounts and am retired from banking so can only say this one prevents out-of-state deposits. read more

Don't use this bank. Opened a savings account online and deposited funds thru electronic funding ACH. The funds wasn't available until 5 business days later, according to the representative that's the bank rule. A simple question phone call took an hour. They are not customer friendly at all. So I pulled my funds and closed the account a week after it was opened. For me I cannot stand this long a hold period, and that in conjuction with bad customer service was a deal breaker for me. I would provide a negative star rating if there is such a thing. read more

I went to the local branch to get info on a CD the representative Joe seemed helpful enough until the end when I extended a handshake and he totally dismissed me. Very rude taking my money elsewhere. It's unfortunate, I totally understand covid has made things weird but, when I realized he didn't want to shake my hand I even offered a fist bump this is a business don't make your potential customer feel unwanted. It was cringe worthy! read more

I have dealt with Live Oak for two years. The staff is local and was always very nice. Always a sweet Southern gal to talk to. Good savings rates. Never a problem, but now they have stared a policy where you must have a cell phone or they will not do business with you. I think this is very short sighted and ageist to boot. You lost a good and loyal customer over this policy. Should not even be legal. read more

I really like how before the maturity date, you can schedule to close out the account! This is a great feature of Live Oak Bank, and I've had zero negative experiences personally with earning interest on the CDs I've opened at Live Oak Bank! read more

I use this bank strictly for a savings account which is 23x the national average for interest. I have scheduled transfers weekly from my main bank account into my Live Oak savings, and I never miss it. This is not a bank to use for daily transactions because of the funds transfer time. Don't put all of your eggs in one basket! This is a great bank if you are trying to build a savings account and if you do need to withdraw money, expect a 3 business day delay. As long as you know that--you are good to go! read more

I like the interest rate on the savings account. Not crazy about the wait time to transfer funds. Still have not been able to link my fidelity 401K to make a deposit into my IRA. Don't understand the wait time. read more

I ditched my brick and mortar bank of 28 years because of the awful service and fees. I have been using Live Oak Bank for about 6 months and I can tell you that the customer service of this bank is 100% positive. They pick up the phone within seconds and are extremely polite and helpful. So glad to ditch the old school bank with fees so high you end up paying them instead of saving money. I would totally recommend this bank as a small business owner. read more

Live Oak Bank offered very personal service when it started in the rental building in 2008 but of late with their large facilities,itsofficers and directors have become egotistical and personal service is now almost gone. By the end of this summer we plan to take our rather large personal account and pursue other avenues that tend to be more customer friendly. As the size and number of facilities has grown,our interest rates have decreased a like amount. If not for a staff member that has been with your bank since the beginning, our rating would be a one star. The Hendley Family read more

I initiated a transfer from bank "A" to Live Oak Bank in order to fund a CD with LOB. My funds will not be available to me for 10 days! That is unacceptable. I spoke with two people at LOB and neither could provide a satisfactory explanation about why a transfer required any number of days to prove the funds were available. I could understand if I came in with a personal check that they need to make sure there is money to back it but a transfer from one bank to another is not in the same arena of concern. My funds should be available immediately. I asked if my funds were available to them immediately for their use to pay salary, fund loans, etc. and of course it was. So they can use my money immediately but I cannot. I will be closing my account with them and encourage others to do the same. read more

The campus is awesome and Wilmington needs more. Actually why doesn't this online bank just move from this location and do what they do best, push their clients to only use their online services. I tried to open a CD at this location and had a large cashiers check ready to deposit, but the girl told me that they couldn't do that for me. She then told me that she would walk me thru the online process to apply for a CD, but that was off-putting. Two other things in addition: I would have used them for my business if they could have passed the first round. I didn't give up on the CD application. Well until I realized they were asking for my username and password of my current bank so I could transfer funds to theirs. I even called and asked if that was the only option they had. Surely so that was it. I really hope that's not where banks are going because that's a joke. read more

Don't use this bank. Had a 6 month CD rollover and requested the new term of 12 month at a higher rate. "Sure we can do that." Asked if it would be a new account number, and if they would email or snail me the new CD. "No need, its the same account." Turns out they rolled over to the same 6 month CD at 0.9% APR and I had no email or mailed proof of the error. When it matured, I informed them of the error, and was asked: "Do you know the person's name you spoke to when the CD rolled over?" Lesson learned - never again - outta here. If there were zero stars this would be it. JJ read more

Jan 26th, 2018 How can I describe the account setup process with Live Oak bank? In one word... ridiculous! I provided all the information they requested to open a $20k CD last Friday. By the following Thursday I still hadn't heard back from them (in complete contravention of their claimed 2 day response for opening new accounts). So I sent them an email asking what the status was. Later that day I received an email stating they were still reviewing my application and that they still needed some additional paperwork. Now, I'm a 70 year old, white male, own my own $500k home, 18 acres of land, no mortgage, and I'm retired (used to be a Regional Sales Manager for a Fortune 250 company). Oh yeh, did I mention I have an 822 credit score? What I don't have is bills. The electric bill is in my wife's name (she kept her maiden name because she owns her own company). We don't have a large electric bill cause we have solar. We don't have gas, we use oil. And we don't have a water bill since we have our own well. So, what's the problem? According to Live Oak bank, my Social Security number, house address, bank references and 20 minutes of filling in their application weren't enough. They needed an electric bill in MY name to prove that was my home address! Really? The alternative, according to their 'lack of customer service' department, was to provide them with my IRS tax statement! What!? You want my most personal info to prove the house is mine? In this day and age you can't figure out how to find out if this is my address? I even offered to provide a copy of my passport. What about a copy of my credit report? Nope. Not acceptable. Electric bill in MY name or my taxes. That's it! So, let's see. That means that any men who have their wives names on the utility bills won't be able to open an account. Or, god forbid, you have a well instead of city water! But you can ALWAYS provide them with your tax return! Nope. Not happening. So, frustrated, I contacted Synchrony Bank, filled in their easy (and quick) CD application on-line and had the account ready to go within hours... and they are currently paying 2% on 12 month CD's. So now Synchrony Bank has my $20k, not Live Oak. Congrats Synchrony Bank! Major fail Live Oak. read more

I opened a second CD online with Live Oak Bank and found it to be one of the most user friendly experiences EVER! I could access my brick and mortar bank and have the funds transferred within 24-48 hours. I was able to change my interest dispersal and set a beneficiary online. There was a lot of security checking but when sending an email with a security code, it arrived immediately. The employees I have spoken with are very professional, proactive and friendly. read more

I am really shocked to read these negative reviews. I have multiple CDs, both personal and business, and haven't had any problems. Anything I have needed help with has been answered through a very timely email response or phone call due to an email. I am talking a 1 - 2 hour response time. Every issue I have ever had, and there have not been many, has been resolved within the same day. I have requested rollovers on CDs and they were rolled over at the higher rates...however, I did document my call with a follow-up email. I have been so pleased with this bank that I have recommended several other people to them, and they have had good results as well. read more

I've been had! Signed up for an account with Live Oak Bank with banners on nearly every page promising 1.75% interest, but it seems by the time I clicked submit to fund the account, it had dropped nearly half a percent. Despite more banners showing what you'd get than with any bank I've ever seen, it never came close to the promised amount. Numerous emails to them were completely ignored. Eventually, I called and was told "Well it was a variable rate account" and "We answer emails everyday as part of our jobs". I expressed my disappointment and was told I'd need to talk to another customer service rep before they could close it. I reminded Jennifer that I'd requested in email some time ago to close the account, and was eventually told they'd accept that in lieu of the added interview, but would not send me any confirmation of the account closure. Why do I have the feeling this will continue to be a nightmare? If you sign up with them, be prepared for whiplash and a nose bleed due to falling interest rates! read more

The Walmart of the Consumer Banking World! Recently had a CD mature, made a personal visit to the bank to renew with instructions to split the CD and extend one maturity date. The "Customer Success Manager" confirmed my instructions in writing and promised he would be sure all would be completed the same day. Having spent my lifetime in the Banking/Mortgage Banking industry, I knew it was standard operating procedure to be completed in a day. The transaction to renew a CD into 2 separate CD's took an entire week to complete! Really? Adding to this, the "Customer Success Manager" informed me he could not complete the renewal himself as promised in our face to face meeting, but I would have to sign in and do it myself, you know, like Walmart's self-checkout! The total outstanding balances for the entire week fluctuated from the initial balance to substantially less to substantially more.... Really? Will the NC Banking Commissioner consider the number of apologies I received from the "Customer Success Manager" and an AVP from the institution as acceptable to not further investigate? read more