CHICAGO (WLS) — Some individuals who encountered issues with frozen funds preventing access to their money through a high-yield savings app are now finding resolution.
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One local man says he got most of his money back. But another local man says he’s still out thousands.
Meanwhile, the bank at the center of this financial mystery recently issued an update.
“A week later I got a check in the mail,” Brendan Murphy said.
Murphy, a resident of Lindenhurst, is among those who are receiving their funds back after facing difficulties with nearly $2,800 deposited in the Yotta high-yield savings app. The app operated through Evolve Bank and Trust, which is supported by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Despite experiencing frozen funds, Murphy reports that he has now obtained checks totaling close to a full refund.
“I’m really happy I got almost all my money. I’m definitely luckier than a lot of people,” Murphy said.
Murphy is talking about people like Konstantin Tarnorutskiy of Vernon Hills.
“After a week passed with no withdrawal, then two weeks without any progress, I attempted to withdraw all my funds as a precaution. However, all my withdrawal transactions ended up being canceled,” Tarnorutskiy recounted.
Tarnorutskiy says his balance of more than $7,400 disappeared, and he still hasn’t received a dime.
“The money doesn’t exist. It’s not held at Evolve. They’re saying the money doesn’t exist,” Tarnorutskiy said.
Both men are some of the 85,000 customers who Yotta says were locked out of their accounts in May of 2024.
It’s all tied to the collapse of Synapse Brokerage.
That’s the middleman that the Yotta app and Evolve bank relied on to manage user funds.
In a recent update, Evolve Bank claims there were alarming discrepancies: saying Synapse was sending one statement to Evolve and a different one to end users. Evolve says Synapse ledgers were inaccurate.
Synapse, its bankruptcy attorney and its bankruptcy trustee have not responded to requests for comment.
Former Illinois resident Zack Jacobs lost $100,000.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s like losing a house,” he said.
Jacobs says he recently got 99 percent of his money back from Evolve.
He created the website www.fightforourfunds.org, which brought together thousands of people who have had tens of millions of dollars frozen.
Evolve says it continues to work with Synapse and other partner banks to locate the missing funds and that it’s using transaction data from the Federal Reserve.
In a lawsuit, Yotta is pointing the blame at Evolve.
Evolve filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, blaming Synapse.
Those affected can file a complaint with the FDIC and Federal Reserve.
Banking complaints in this case can also be filed with the Arkansas State Bank Department.
Visit www.usa.gov/bank-credit-complaints for more information.
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