So, after thinking about what Emigrant Direct did with my money, I came to the conclusion that someone should make sure that the bank doesn't do this with anybody else's money. After all, how many people obsessively check their checking/savings/credit card/mutual fund accounts online? I'm pretty sure I am in the rare company of compulsively checking my finances online every week. It's quite possible that other people with Emigrant Direct savings account didn't notice unauthorized transfers.
Because Emigrant Direct was unwilling to listen to me, I contacted two agencies via letters -- New York Attorney General and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Emigrant Direct is a New York bank, and I figured Eliot Spitzer might be interested in taking a looksy. As it turns out, there is a Banking Department in New York. Spitzer's office kindly forwarded my inquiry to the Banking Department, which opened an investigation as of March 13, 2006.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency also contacted me and told me that this federal agency regulates national banks. Apparently, a national bank has either the word "National" or "N.A." in its official name. Because Emigrant Direct does not, it is not a national bank, and the OCC forwarded my complaint to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. As of March 21, 2006, the FDIC also opened an investigation.
Out of common courtesy, I copied the letter I sent to the OCC and sent the letter and supplemental materials (my correspondence with Emigrant, statement showing unauthorized transfer, and Vanguard's letter confirming it did not instruct any transfer) to the CEO of Emigrant Savings Bank (the parent company of Emigrant Direct). I have not heard from Howard Milstein, the CEO, or anyone else from Emigrant. I suppose they would rather chuck this all up to nothing if they could.
As much as I hate to admit it, money is important part of our lives. So when the institution we trust to keep our money safe runs afoul, even once, it raises too much concern to be ignored. I just hope that the investigations opened by the FDIC and New York Banking Department are thorough and rectify whatever problems Emigrant Direct has. I see lots of Emigrant Direct ads -- re: their newly raised interest rate and savings credit card. All of these are bound to attract new customers, and hopefully, they will not encounter same problems I have.
