Report: Google Wants to Be Your Bank

A new report claims that tech giant Google may begin offering personal checking accounts to users next year in partnership with Citigroup.

Reuters reports that a person familiar with Google’s plans claims that the tech giant could be offering personal checking accounts from sometime next year in partnership with Citigroup and a small credit union at Stanford University. The project is reportedly called “Cache” and comes shortly after Apple and Facebook moved into the financial industry this year.

Facebook plans to launch its Libra cryptocurrency soon and has faced skepticism from regulators who worry about the currency being used for illegal activities. Apple recently launched the Apple Card credit card in partnership with Goldman Sachs, which has faced its own controversy with claims that the companies are discriminating against women when assigning credit limits.

Caesar Sengupta, general manager and vice-president of payments at Google, told the Wall Street Journal in an interview: “Our approach is going to be to partner deeply with banks and the financial system.” Sengupta added: “It may be the slightly longer path, but it’s more sustainable.”

Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), who is on the Senate panel that oversees banking, was asked about his opinion on the possible move by Google. Warner stated that he is a “tech guy” but added: “I think there ought to be very strict scrutiny.”

Facebook launched its unified payment service Facebook Pay this week which allows users to make payments across platforms without exiting the Facebook app. Google Pay has been popular in countries such as India for some with over 67 million monthly users.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or email him at lnolan@breitbart.com