Goldman Sachs Checking Progresses Toward Reality

The Goldman Sachs checking account will soon be a reality, an official for the banking giant said Thursday (April 21).

Goldman is expanding internal testing for the no-fee, interest-bearing account to its entire 20,000-person workforce in the U.S., Stephanie Cohen, Goldman’s global co-head of consumer and wealth management, told CNBC.

Read more: With Digital Checking, Goldman’s Marcus Looks to Create 153-Year-Old Neobank

“This week we extended exclusive beta access to all of our U.S. employees,” Cohen said. “As beta participants, they have the opportunity to be the first to explore the new product, test select features and share feedback with us. … This beta is only the beginning of what we hope will soon become the primary checking account for tens of millions of customers.”

The CNBC report notes that Goldman’s attempt to offer checking accounts is one of the more substantial moves it has made to compete with major retail banking players like Wells Fargo and Bank of America.

Goldman first announced the account more than two years ago, although its release has been pushed back. The bank first offered savings and personal loans under the Marcus brand in 2016 before adding the Apple Card along with personal finance and investments through a smartphone app.

The bank is set to release the account to the public sometime this year, CFO Denis Coleman told analysts this month.

Goldman declined to say what interest rate it will offer on its checking account, but a source with knowledge of the matter said the rates likely be competitive with other online offers.

Last year, the bank launched Marcus Invest to facilitate automated stock buys, with the digital platform automatically investing in stocks and bonds based on predetermined criteria.

Learn more: Goldman Launches Marcus Invest To Target Retail Investor

Cohen said at the time that Marcus Invest and Marcus Checking provide a digital app-based banking experience and allow Goldman to “be someone’s primary banking relationship.”