Milli Bank, an online-only banking platform of First National Bank of Omaha, ceased operations Nov. 15. The bank didn’t cite a specific reason.
“And just like that, it’s time to say farewell. As we prepare to close our digital doors, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to our loyal customers and exceptional team members for their unwavering support,” Milli Bank said in a LinkedIn post last month.
The digital bank offered a high-yield savings account with no fees or minimum balance and a spending account aimed at helping customers achieve their financial goals, according to the bank. However, Milli could only be operated through its mobile application.
“Milli was developed to provide FNBO with an opportunity to test and innovate within the digital banking space, including experimenting with customer-centric digital features,” a spokesperson for FNBO told Banking Dive via email.
Some Milli Bank customers were notified of the digital lender closing in September, according to The U.S. Sun.
FNBO’s online bank, FNBO Direct, launched in 2006. FNBO Direct offers high-yield online savings accounts and online money market accounts, the spokesperson added.
Milli’s checking account did not offer interest but provided physical and virtual debit cards that could be used at its network of 55,000 ATMs.
“Our decision to discontinue further investment into Milli will allow us to direct our innovation resources toward other areas of our business that we look forward to growing and strengthening to best serve our customers,” the FNBO spokesperson said.
FNBO did not respond to further questions regarding what led to the closure of Milli and FNBO’s digital banking plans.
Milli’s “Jars” feature within its savings account helped customers create savings buckets for different goals like college tuition or buying a house. But one of the drawbacks of Milli was that it offered very few products, according to a Business Insider review.
Milli, FNBO Direct, and First National Bank of Omaha were the same FDIC-insured banks with an aggregated deposit insurance limit of $250,000. However, according to a deposit agreement document, Milli deposits did not count toward minimum balance requirements for other bank products.
FNBO is a subsidiary of First National of Nebraska, a multi-state holding company and one of the largest privately held banks in the U.S., according to its website. Established in 1857, FNBO has about $30 billion in assets and about 5,000 employees across 120 locations and eight states.
