Plaid is a fintech company that facilitates communication between financial services apps and users’ banks and credit card providers.
In the case of FTX.US, its products allow users to authorize FTX.US customers to connect their bank accounts to the FTX app. This would then allow FTX.US to request payments which will be processed by the ACH network.
In a pinned Tweet on Nov. 12, Plaid announcement it suspended FTX’s access to Plaid products effective approximately 6:30 UTC on November 12, meaning “FTX can no longer retrieve any financial information through Plaid.”
Plaid suspended FTX’s access to Plaid products effective 11/11/22 at approximately 10:30 PM PT. FTX can no longer retrieve any financial information through Plaid.
To provide as much clarity as possible to end users, we have compiled the following FAQs. https://t.co/QbyNtXUH5r
— Plaid (@Plaid) November 13, 2022
In a previous Tweet, Plaid said the suspension was due to “regarding public reporting”, but noted that there is “currently no indication that Plaid has been used as a vehicle for fraudulent activity”.
On November 12, Twitter users started reports that FTX.US had attempted to access their accounts through Plaid. So far, reports only suggest that user data has been accessed, and no reports so far suggest that funds have been removed.
PSA: If you have a bank account linked to FTX US, change your bank account password and stop sharing data immediately.
Below is a screenshot of my bank account, which they tried to access 40 minutes ago pic.twitter.com/sdnaUFEzOW
— Mike McGuiness (@mikemcg0) November 12, 2022
Others warned others to immediately change their bank account passwords and revoke access rights to Plaid.
If Plaid/Stripe was connected to FTX, be sure to revoke access to your bank account immediately!
For Chase it’s under Security and Privacy and listed as “MX Technologies” at least for FTX US. pic.twitter.com/lwsuF4iPTQ
— Birch (@BitcoinBirch) November 12, 2022
In an FAQ, Plaid also suggested that some of these access requests could be part of Plaid’s automated financial information checks, which are performed on a regular schedule.
He also reiterated that since the suspension of access, FTX has not been able to retrieve any information from Plaid accounts.
The fintech provider that allows FTX.US users to link their bank accounts to the FTX app has suspended the US-based exchange’s access to its products, citing “public reports of” fraudulent activity .