Relay Financial review: I cannot recommend relay for business banking.

I cannot recommend Relay for business banking.

My initial issue involved an unauthorized withdrawal from a newly assigned Relay virtual debit card that had never been exposed to any merchant or third party outside of the Relay network. The money left my account and was later put back.

Relay downplayed the incident, describing it as a “card testing event,” and said they would replace the card. That was not acceptable. A newly assigned virtual card that had never been used or exposed outside the Relay network can only be targeted from within the Relay network, or it shows compromise somewhere within their network.

This was not my only serious concern with Relay.

In a separate incident, Relay interfered with a legitimate $708 business purchase. Upon inquiry, I was given shifting explanations that did not make sense. I was told the transaction was already authorized, then that it was on a temporary hold, then that I neglected to enter an email or text verification code even though no code was sent, then that it was related to duplicate-charge prevention, then that it involved a PIN issue even though no PIN was ever issued. This was all on the same phone call, with the same support person.

That support experience was unbelievable. Instead of giving direct, competent answers, Relay left me with the impression that its own support team did not understand what had happened or was unwilling to explain it.
Relay did not provide the level of transparency, accountability, or incident-specific explanation I expect from a business banking platform handling operating funds and virtual cards.

A business banking platform depends on clear accountability when something abnormal happens. In my experience, Relay failed that test.

I moved my business banking away from Relay. Based on my experience, I would not trust Relay with my business accounts, virtual cards, or operating funds.