Bank Novo Business Checking $40 Referral Bonus For Each Party ($132 Via Swagbucks)

Update 5/14/24: RevU on Swagbucks is showing 13,200 points for new Novo Business Checking. It does say sole props are excluded.

Update 4/4/24: It’s now down to $40/$40

Update 9/5/23: Reader Sunshine tells us the $100/$100 offer is back – the referrer gets $100 and the new business gets $100.

Update 1/22/23: Some accounts are being offered a $250 bonus when they spend $5,000+ on the debit card by March 15, 2023. Hat tip to reader sg77

Update 8/9/22: Those who got $40 referral bonus when they were supposed to get $100 are now seeing the extra $60 in their account.

Update 6/22/22: Referrals are down to $40/40 now

Update 6/20/22: Apparently the referral stacks with Swagbucks by first clicking the referral link (this will add the referral code automatically to the sign up page), then click on the Swagbucks link and the referral code will auto-populate. Swagbucks via Revenue Universe is currently offering 3,330 ($33.30) or slightly more with MyPoints RU.

Update 6/17/22: Referral bonus has increased to $100 for each party. Old referral codes will earn $100 going forward. (ht Sophia) DO NOT LEAVE REFERRALS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW. Find/share referrals in this linked post. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR REFERRAL A SECOND TIME THERE.

Offer at a glance

  • Maximum bonus amount: $100 referral bonus
  • Availability: Nationwide
  • Direct deposit required: None
  • Additional requirements: See below
  • Hard/soft pull: Soft pull
  • ChexSystems: Unknown
  • Credit card funding: Unknown
  • Monthly fees: None
  • Early account termination fee: Unknown
  • Household limit: None
  • Expiration date: 9/30/21

The Offer

No direct link to offer, requires a referral link. Find/share referrals in this linked post

  • Bank Novo (business checking) is offering a $100 referral bonus. New user must:
    • They must not have previously opened an Account;
    • They must use the Referring User’s Novo Unique Referral Link when applying for a new Account;
    • They must successfully open a new Account;
    • They must complete a qualified deposit(s) into their Novo account totaling $100.00 or more within 14 days of Account Opening date;
    • The qualifying deposit(s) must be made by any user authorized to transact on the Referred User’s Account; and
    • The Referred User must hold a balance of at least $100 in their Novo checking account on October 31, 2021.

The Fine Print

  • Full terms here
  • All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

Monthly Fees

This account has no monthly fees

Early Account Termination Fee

Not sure if there is any early account temrination fee or not.

Our Verdict

Apparently this account is interesting due to the perks offered, $3,000 in Google cloud credits seems interesting but don’t know too much about it. $30 is a pretty small bonus though, normally we don’t post bonuses unless they are $100+ but because of the Perks it could be interesting and Bank Novo hasn’t offered a bonus in the past. Find/share referrals in this linked post

Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
    William Charles
  • On May 14, 2024, 18:15
Tags: nationwide bank bonuses

View Comments (321)

    • It's 25 SBs for sole props. Been that much for a long time.

      It's currently 8800 SBs for LLCs, partnerships, and corporations. It was 13,200 SBs.

  • I just want to point out that Novo has very little security. I was just notified of an unauthorized "closeout withdrawal" for the little remaining funds in my account (~$30). My debit card was locked and it appears to have been an ACH transfer.

    I reiterated that to CS and asked them how I could be sure my account was safe but they're refusing to speak to me about the matter "until the investigation is over." I noticed from the beginning that there were no 2FA, MFA options, no way to tell what devices were logged in, etc., or at least not any that I could find. Be careful.

    • Was your account inactive for a long time? Maybe they closed it for inactivity; the withdrawal maybe means they're mailing you a check (I'm just guessing; I don't know if Novo does this).

      Someone said their Novo account was closed after 130 days of inactivity. Though, I had no activity for 348 days and my account wasn't closed. Maybe they close inactive accounts that have $0 balance (but that wouldn't apply to you).

      If it was a fraudulent withdrawal, if it made the balance $0 then maybe Novo automatically closed the account. But it seems strange that they would close it immediately upon hitting $0. I guess another possibility is that someone fraudulently sent Novo a message saying "Close my account and transfer the remaining balance to the following account ..."

    • I think it depends more on each person's experience as in your case, someone might have gotten both your routing number and account number and also the account balance and the ACH would have been successful if they pull it. In my case, the first time I tried to make a check deposit to the account because their system would not approve the ACH Deposit after a few days, it required me to hold my ID to do a photo verification and it even captured my exact location on the map. There might not be 2FA, MFA options but it requires both email and SMS/Text Message verification to login unless the cookies is already there and the previous login was for the same account. If another account was accessed from the same device before, it will require both the SMS and email verification.

    • Weird. That sounds more like they are letting you go. Criminals don't typically aim to zero accounts, draw attention, and only come out with $30. GL!

      • You were right, they closed my account. They said my "business falls outside the scope of Novo's risk tolerance." Incredibly weird. The only thing I can think of is there were days where I sent like 3 employee payments (to myself) out right in a row, but they were small amounts.

        I definitely used the account with less caution than I would my Chase biz account, but nothing that seems to make this make sense. I considered seeing what would happen if I tried to open another one with my EIN this time. :) Pretty sure a risk close is a permanent bye bye, though.

        • Same thing happened to me. I opened an account and put the $100 in for the referral. I was keeping it in there for the 30 days as per the referral terms but they shut me down a couple days before it was to pay out for the reason you received. I also had referred myself and they shut that one down a couple days before payout as well. The only thing I did on the first account was made a payment to one of my accounts for a “DD.” Other than that I did nothing but deposit the $100 and let it sit while waiting on the referral payout.

          • So weird. I was able to last long enough to get the referral bonus but Novo was so useful and convenient, I'm still bummed.

        • I wonder can one still qualify for the bonus after waiting after closing the account. I still have a Novo account I have maybe $5.00 in that I haven't touched in 2 years.

          • There are comments further down that suggest you can refer yourself to get the bonus (as in open two accounts). I'm not sure what the details are on that or whether the terms have changed since they originally stated you "must not have previously opened an account." Might be something to look into.

        • Ouch. Well, good luck with that. I have seen in rare cases sending $1.00 payments cause banks to wonder what the heck is going on. Like they think you are testing the waters for fraud.

      • My account was still open and operable until I called the fraud department. Now, it still appears open but I can't link accounts for transfers (only payees). You would think they would've mentioned they were closing the account when I disputed the transaction? Idk what's going on but we'll see what happens. Glad there wasn't much in there!

        It does seem, now that you mention it, to be something more along those lines. I've never had an account closed on me before but I wouldn't have expected them to withdraw the money to some unknown destination in the process? Who knows.

  • Opened this account with my LLC + EIN, I also added a referral code for the $40 as well, and SB credited me in ~2 days.

  • Bummer I missed this, just opened an account the other day with only the referral link.

  • RevU is showing 13,200 points for new Novo Business Checking, up from 4,400. Sadly, the terms say Sole Proprietorships are ineligible for the bonus. Not sure if they enforce this.

  • @2 @6 Title should be updated to reflect $40, or Expired. AFAIK, everyone is at $40 for each party now, but no change in the links.

  • I wanted to let people know that Novo allows self-referral…so hop on over to the linked referral page…click a link [edited] and then after you open your first account you can refer yourself using a 2nd email address and get both sides of the bonus (makes this worth $120…if you stack with SB, RevU or MyPoints you can add to it)

    • Wow, Novo payroll is already dead after less than a year. I just received the email below saying it will shut down 9/30/2024.

      Hi mothman69,

      Michael Rangel here, CEO & Founder of Novo. 

      I am writing to inform you about an important change to our payroll product. After careful consideration, we have decided to discontinue Novo Payroll, effective September 30th, 2024.

      This decision was not made lightly. At Novo, our vision is clear: to be the financial sidekick for your small business, allowing you to focus on what you love. This means providing best-in-class products and services to support your business needs. When something falls short of that standard, we must re-evaluate and improve.
       
      Transition Support:

      • Alternative Payroll Solution: If you’re still looking for a solution for your payroll needs, we recommend transitioning to Gusto. Gusto is the #1 rated HR platform that builds for small businesses in mind, seamlessly integrating with Novo. If you’re a new customer, Novo has partnered with Gusto to offer you six months of complimentary access to Gusto's payroll and HR services! Best of all, Gusto has a dedicated team ready to onboard Novo customers with ease.
      • Customer Support: Our support team is available to assist you with any questions or concerns during this transition. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us at support@novo.co.

      Claim 6 Months Free

      By clicking the link above to claim this offer, you consent to Novo sharing your contact details with Gusto so that they can assist with your transition process. To review the offer details independently, access through Novo Perks on your Apps page.

      We understand that changes to how you run your business can be challenging, and we are here to support you every step of the way. Our goal is to minimize any disruption to your business operations and ensure a smooth transition to an alternative payroll service.
       
      Thank you for your understanding. We look forward to providing future best-in-class services so you can run your business with confidence.
       
      With gratitude,
       
      Michael Rangel
      Founder & CEO, Novo

      • Apparently us Sole Prop losers with just "Payment" ability did not get this email.

        One nice thing about Novo Payments, I can send ACH money to P2... without being a joint account. (Wise is ok with this too)

        • Yep, I use Novo to blast out and pull back money from P1/P2 accounts for balance requirements and then use Wise for P1/P2 DD requirements.

          Not a day goes by where I don't miss Brex. It was truly a rare all-in-one for transfers, DDs, and linking craploads of accounts.

      • Yes that would be nice, but I won't likely use this feature due to the high price. It's much more economical to use Chase Business ACH for $2.50 or Wise for $0.39.

        • Seen a couple of recent DP's that sending money from the Wise balance are going over as real-time payments or Instant transfers... specifically when sending to Upgrade and Wells Fargo. Luckily WF has tons of free options, and Upgrade has Fidelity or other options too. I'm thinking it's only an EWS bank issue, but we will see.

        • Is there currently any use for Novo, or what are you using it for? I was considering closing the account in hopes of churning it down the road.

          • I use it mainly as a transfer hub when I need to move money around. It allows me to link most of my accounts and P2's accounts via Plaid. Most banks balk if the name on the account you're trying to link doesn't match. Pushes to other accounts always arrive on the second business day. It satisfies DD requirements for quite a few banks as well.

          • Thanks for this information. I'm wondering if it might be a problem using Novo to pull funds out of accounts with a different name, such as for P2?

          • It works most of the time for me linking P1 and P2 accounts. Sometimes it doesn't work if the account is fairly new.

          • Which banks has it satisfied? I'm considering opening for this, but not if Chase Business ACH is sufficient.

          • Fairwinds CU, Capital One, BMO, US Alliance CU, US Bank, Ally... Chase Biz may work too for those, but Novo is free, and since the don't pull Chex or EWS, no harm in getting it.

          • Oops... I looked at my Novo setup and saw it listed as a payment... and forgot it didn't work. @guest_1722691

            IIRC, it did not work at Educational Systems FCU.... so it's far from foolproof.

  • Novo is once again under paying the referral bonus in the amount of $40 not $100. Does anyone have the screenshot for the referred user showing a $100 bonus? I am the referred user, not the referring user.

      • @guest_1801135 The referrer can see the amount from the Novo login, but it doesn't show up as part of the application. AFAIK, the bonus level is $40 for everyone. You can stack with portals such as Swagbucks/Mypoints by using the referrer's code.

        • Think SB/Mypoints can be stacked simultaneously with a refers link? Or I suppose one or the other (unless you rechurn later with a new application).

          • Yes, it can be stacked by going through the portal. You find the offer in the portal and then you enter the referrer's code in the appropriate block in the application process. @guest_1801135

          • And to confirm by what I mean, thats with one application churning both swagbucks and mypoints together at the same time plus the refer - so its effectively 3 bonuses with one account application.

            If this is what you mean - I never realized multiple portals can be stacked on the same application. Thought they had to be done independently.

            How do these portals (mypoints/swagbucks) track completition?

          • LoL... no, I highly doubt you can stack all three at once. That's not a churn. That's a stack.

            A churn would be to come back later and apply again... with a different portal and different referrer. I have no clue if that is possible. I saw someone spamming the page about self-referral plots, so it might work. @guest_1801135

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