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Why do I need to connect my bank account to invest?
Why do I need to connect my bank account to invest?

Here's why you'll have to connect your bank account instead of using a credit card or other form of payment for investing.

Isabel Strobing avatar
Written by Isabel Strobing
Updated over a week ago

To invest on MainVest, you need to connect a bank account so that businesses are able to provide you with financial returns.

There are two ways you can connect your bank account:

  1. Log in online (Recommended): To start investing right away, you can connect your bank account with the credentials you use for the online portal of your bank. We use Plaid to securely connect your account.

  2. Confirm micro-deposit amounts: Alternatively, if you provide your bank account and routing numbers (as printed on your paper checks), we will send two small deposits to your account within 2-3 days. Once you receive them, you will need to enter the exact amounts in your Account Settings page on MainVest. You will not be able to invest until you have confirmed the amounts of the micro-deposits.

  3. Send a picture of a voided check: If you don't wish to wait 2-3 days to link your account, you can send us a picture of a voided check and we'll be able to link your account same-day. Learn more here.

MainVest does not accept credit card as a form of payment for a number of reasons:

  1. To protect our investors, we do not believe that investors should invest money that they do not have. Investors should not increase their debt in order to invest.

  2. Because potential returns do not begin until a business starts generating revenue, the credit card charge will accrue interest rates for many months, defeating the purpose of a return on investment.

  3. Credit cards are apt to change over time, whereas bank accounts are typically more stable. This makes repayments much easier and more secure, as they will take place quarterly over a number of years.

  4. Similarly, other forms of payment like Venmo and Paypal are also apt to fluctuate in usage over time, making the processing of repayments difficult. We also prefer to minimize the number of outside vendors in processing these repayments to reduce security risks.

MainVest uses military-grade encryption to protect your bank account information. We take our user data and information extremely seriously and make every effort to make investing and repayments as seamless as possible.

To manage which bank accounts are connected to your MainVest account, log in and visit your Account Settings. 

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