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Hands-on: New budgeting app is a drop-in replacement for Simple, and I love it
Simple may be dead, but DAS Budget copies its best budgeting features and works with nearly any bank
On the day of Simple’s scheduled migration to BBVA, a new and Simple-inspired budgeting app has emerged: DAS Budget. A Simple user himself, developer Anthony Alves first reacted to the news of the bank's shutdown much like I did: By trying out nearly every alternative bank he could. After being similarly disappointed, he decided to shift his focus, trying new budgeting tools instead of banks, but the overly complicated options left him (and all of us) unhappy. What he really wanted was Simple's user interface yanked out and plugged into any bank. So, that's exactly what he built, and I love it.
Earlier this year, we found out that the much-loved bank Simple would be shutting down, with customers transferred over to parent company BBVA. At the time, a precise date had not yet been set for this change, but today the company has sent out an email blast, notifying customers that they can anticipate the change to happen on May 8th. And if you were hoping there would be a softer transition, you're out of luck: both the Simple app and site will go dark on that date as well.
There’s no good replacement for Simple
Alternatives exist, but they're all lacking in one or more critical ways
Simple, one of the first and most popular Internet-only "neobanks," is being shut down by parent company BBVA US. As a result of the news, Simple users have taken to social media, Reddit megathreads, collaborative spreadsheets, and—of course—a Change.org petition to deal with the fallout. I've spent the last three weeks alongside them, scrambling for a replacement to share with you.
BBVA-owned Simple has announced that it is shutting down. The popular online-only bank offered features like a smart budgeting "goals" system and a very high savings interest rate — back when high interest rates were a thing. However, BBVA has decided it's time to sunset Simple, and more information regarding the transition to servicing by BBVA directly will be available soon.
Pixel 4 owners using Simple for their banking needs will soon have a much more convenient time checking their balance or transferring cash into savings "Goals." The latest beta release of the Simple app now supports the Android 10 biometrics API, signing you in with just a glance and a tap — almost as convenient as your fingerprint.
Some two years after saying it wasn't in the cards, Simple announced today that it has added support for Samsung Pay. If you own a Samsung phone or compatible watch, you can add your Simple card to the app and get paying contactless-ly.
If you're a Simple customer, then you probably already know that the company has been making major changes to its service as of late (and if you don't, you should probably start paying more attention to your bank). While the majority of that has been behind-the-scenes, today's app update is a very forward-facing change. Simple v2.0 is now available for both iOS and Android, which brings a complete revamp of the app to both platforms.
This is basically just another "big company buys smaller company" story, but if you're a Simple customer (or have been interested in checking out the service), then it's still worth paying attention to.
Simple's Mobile Banking App For Android Updated, Brings Goals, Card Management, New Navigation Drawer, And Much More
Simple's Mobile Banking App For Android Updated
I just want to get this out of the way up front: I love Simple. It's among one of the best new services I've used, and after careful consideration, it beat GoBank as my financial institution of choice. If you're a Simple customer also, great news: the app just got a lot better. Thanks to the bump up to v1.2.0.8, nearly all of the features of the website are now available in the app, including the following additions: