What Bank Is Cash App on Plaid?

Have you ever wondered what bank your Cash App account is linked to when you connect it to other financial apps using Plaid?

Many people use Cash App for peer-to-peer payments and don’t realize it’s linked to a real FDIC-insured bank account provided by Lincoln Savings Bank, Member FDIC.

Keep reading to learn more about the banking side of Cash App and how it works with Plaid.

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How Cash App Links to a Bank Account

When you sign up for Cash App, it automatically creates a free FDIC-insured bank account for you at Lincoln Savings Bank, Member FDIC.

This account is set up in the background purely for transactional purposes – you won’t get checks, a debit card, or other traditional banking services with it.

But having this Lincoln Savings Bank account enables Cash App to provide you with faster access to your funds, federal deposit insurance protection of up to $250,000 per depositor, and seamless integration with other financial apps through Plaid.

So while you may just think of Cash App as a handy peer-to-peer payment app, it’s also built on top of an actual bank account infrastructure.

The Lincoln Savings Bank relationship is key for enabling many of Cash App’s money transfer capabilities in a regulated environment.

Why Cash App Uses Plaid

Plaid provides the technology bridge between Cash App and thousands of other financial apps and services.

It allows you to securely link your Cash App account to other apps you use for budgeting, investing, lending, and more.

When you choose to connect your Cash App to another app through Plaid, you’ll be asked to enter your Cash App login credentials.

Plaid uses those credentials to access your Cash App account via the Plaid API and establish a read-only connection.

This lets the other app retrieve basic account info and transaction data from your Cash App account.

But your Lincoln Savings Bank username and password stay protected – Plaid passes the data through its servers so your actual Cash App login credentials are never shared with the third-party app.

How Plaid Protects Your Data

Plaid takes data protection very seriously as it serves as the bridge between your Cash App account and other apps.

Plaid uses industry best practices like encryption and multi-factor authentication to keep your data safe.

Some key security measures Plaid has in place include:

Encrypted connections using TLS 1.2 to transfer data.
Multi-factor authentication is required for critical actions.
Regular audits and penetration testing to identify potential vulnerabilities.
Isolated environments for each customer’s data.
Access controls prevent employees from accessing customer data without authorization.

Plaid must comply with all applicable data protection laws in the regions where it operates. It also maintains SOC 2 Type 2 certification – an independent audit showing it meets rigid data security standards.

The Benefits of Linking Cash App and Plaid

Linking your Cash App account through Plaid provides several useful benefits:

1: Streamlined sign-up for other apps – Rather than manually entering your financial details, Plaid lets you securely and quickly connect accounts.

2: Updated data – Plaid automatically syncs the latest transactions, balance, and other account data to the apps you’ve linked.

3: Money movement capabilities – Plaid enables other apps to move money from your Cash App account via ACH transfer.

4: Holistic financial views – By linking various accounts through Plaid, you can get a complete picture of your finances in one place.

For many people, Plaid is an essential tool that enables them to more easily manage finances in one place by linking accounts and data across multiple apps and services.

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Which Apps Can Connect to Cash App via Plaid?

Dozens of popular financial apps leverage Plaid to connect to accounts like your Cash App. Some examples include:

Budgeting apps like Mint, Personal Capital, and You Need a Budget (YNAB).
Investing in apps like Acorns, Robinhood, and Betterment.
Credit monitoring services like Credit Karma and IdentityForce.
Lending apps like Affirm and Even.
Digital wallets like PayPal, Venmo, and Coinbase.
Expense tracking apps like Expensify.
Financial planning services like eMoney Advisor.

The list goes on and on. Chances are your favorite finance-related app or service uses Plaid in some capacity as part of enabling a seamless user experience.

How to Link Your Cash App to Plaid

If you want to link your Cash App account to a Plaid-integrated app, the process is straightforward:

Open the app you want to link (e.g. Mint, Acorns, etc.).
Find the option to add an account and look for Cash App or Lincoln Savings Bank.
When prompted, enter your Lincoln Savings Bank Cash app username and password. This allows Plaid to establish a secure read-only link.
Review the account information and transactions Plaid pulled from your Cash App. Confirm everything looks correct.
If the data is accurate, authorize the link. This will let the app you’re linking access your Cash App account data going forward whenever you need it.

That’s all there is to it! The initial link process only takes a few minutes and enables a much smoother ongoing experience.

Disconnecting Cash App From Plaid

If you ever decide you want to disconnect your Cash App account from an app that’s using Plaid, you have options:

Close the connection directly within the third-party app’s account settings. Look for a “Disconnect account” or similar option.
Go to the Plaid management site at https://dashboard.plaid.com. Sign in with the account details you used to establish the link. You can view and remove any existing Plaid connections here.
Contact Cash App customer support and request they terminate any Plaid connections to your Cash App account.

Once a connection is terminated from any side, the linked app will no longer be able to access your Cash App account. But it’s a good idea to double-check that the connection status is fully removed everywhere for your peace of mind.

One Link Opens Many Doors

The Plaid integration helps make Cash App much more than just a peer-to-peer payments app.

By leveraging Plaid and the Lincoln Savings Bank relationship in the background, Cash App can offer you instant access to an FDIC-insured account plus seamless linkage to thousands of other useful financial apps and services.

So next time you need to decide which financial app to sign up for, don’t worry if they don’t support Cash App directly.

Just look for Plaid integration and you’ll be able to securely link your Cash App account in just minutes. It’s one connection that opens many doors when managing your finances.