HoyaSaxa

Have a portfolio? What have you done before?

Good luck with this. It is very useful. Email collection seems like a nice feature. Just remember how hard it is to get people to pull out there credit cards.

If this was the case then you wouldn't be FDIC insured. BankSimple very clearly states that: "Sure. For day to day banking, we envision no fees. There are some things, like international wire transfers, where we will directly pass our costs on to customers. For example, if our partners charge us $15 for an international transfer, we will charge you $15. We won’t use these fees as a source of revenue and will always be on the look out for lower cost partners."

So in actuality, they will charge you whatever the bank your money is currently in charges them.

I really do think there is a great opportunity for a better bank! However, I think BankSimple is making a big mistake by not becoming a real bank, and instead acting as a front end interface. BankSimple claims that all accounts will be FDIC insured "at launch." However, from what I am gathering, it will be impossible to keep these accounts FDIC insured in the long term especially since the company claims it will be transferring money around from bank to bank in order to acquire the best rates. Really? Banks are going to be open to opening a new account for every new customer (which is what would have to happen in order to be FDIC insured)? I am skeptical. Also, a big concern of mine is the claim they will move money between savings and checking automatically for you. Recent legislation prohibits more than 6 electronic transfers from the savings to checking accounts in a month. So if a computer is pushing your money around; you might be out of luck towards the end of the month when you need some extra cash, but all six of your transfers have already been used. Also, at the credit union I work at, we charge the normal returned ACH payment fee if you surpass these 6 charges ($25! yikes!!) and BankSimple states all fees will be passed onto the consumer. So in actuality, BankSimple is really just a nice mobile experience that moves money around the top few banks (which really aren't that great). You still incur the same fees. Just doesn't seem like a very good business structure to me.

However, I would invest in BankSimple because a big bank would pay big $$$ to acquire the technology the company is developing. Mobile is the future of banking and that is what BankSimple recognizes so perfectly. Look for a big acquisition in the next few years.

I currently work at an all student run credit union that has the same rules as any other bank in regards to ACH transactions so I think I can clarify some points here. Institutions are allowed up to 5 business days to accept or reject an ACH based debit or credit if it is between non-local banks. However, business days are really the days in which the Fed are open. So there are days when you could potentially have to wait up to 8 days for a transfer to be completed (ie 5 business days + weekend + holiday). If it is between local banks which is defined as being in the same Fed region, the rule is 3 business days.

These rules are very outdated and need to be updated. I think this is one of the most hindering rules in the current financial system. Back in the day, I could see the need for there to be different time allotments between local and non-local transactions, but today it is pretty much instantaneous. However, I don't see these regulations being changed in the near future and the reason is very simple. Big banks have more time to use this "float" money to make money, as well as to secure the money via overnight loans if they are short. Thankfully, most banks process ACH twice daily (morning and night), but not all. And some even delay transactions on purpose. Also if anyone is curious how much money it really costs a bank or credit union to do a ACH transfer, it is $0.000133 per transaction. So when your institution charges you $5 or $15 or even $25 to do a incoming or outgoing transfer, they are literally making bank.

Pretty cool. Might base my next color palette off of this.

The number one thing Tesla has to do if they want to become part of the mainstream is to get the United States Government to establish standards for car batteries. The downside to this is that it limits innovation. However, without the ability to swap batteries at "battery (gas) stations" electric cars will stay in the "early adapters" phase indefinitely. The alternative is to develop a cost effective battery that can last for a very long time (read: 500+ miles) which actually might be in the near future. On a side note, I wish Tesla sold gas hybrid cars because I love the design.

O how I love the central limit theorem

Any chance you are affiliated with Fiserv?

I will reiterate dumbphone 5's point that you should make it more clear what happens when a user clicks a "fake button." Also, I don't know if the value proposition is there in order to demand such a high price. I would suggest changing the pricing models. Since you can demand more money from sites that make more money, pegging price with the number of page views might be a more appropriate metric. Also, what is email collection?

I'm very surprised Linode was not more transparent with this problem. I use them for several of my sites and have always been very impressed by their customer service. We should have received some type of email to let us know this service has been down so long.

The Khan Academy is truly an amazing startup. However, I think it is important to note that it is actually a 501(c)3 nonprofit. I'm sure Sal Khan has been approached by many VC's, but thankfully he has not gone for turning the concept into a for profit company. The technology, especially the "coach" dashboard, is very impressive and is already being used by teachers in classrooms around the classroom and country.