[3] It allows consumers and businesses to interact with their bank accounts, check balances, and make payments through different financial technology applications.

[6] The pair originally attempted to build consumer financial management products, including budgeting and bookkeeping software.

[9] Visa CEO Alfred Kelly described the acquisition bid as an "insurance policy" to neutralize a "threat to our important US debit business.

[17] The company added an instant payout feature based on the Real Time Payments (RTP) network to the Plaid Transfer product in April 2023.

[25] The company has faced controversy for scraping user data, impersonating bank login screens, and not properly disclosing the privacy risks associated with the service.

[27] In 2021, Plaid settled a $58 million class action lawsuit over claims that it passed on personal banking data to third party firms without user consent.

Each claims that Plaid used consumers’ banking login credentials to gather and distribute detailed financial data without prior consent.