Payday & Small-Dollar Lenders · Fintech (cash advance / subscription) · Regulatory action + Private litigation
FloatMe (FloatMe Corp.)
Headline
FloatMe and its two co-founders agreed in January 2024 to pay $3 million to settle FTC charges that it lured users with 'free money' promises, touted an advance-limit 'algorithm' that did not exist…
Not independently verified. Verification status: Unverified - heuristic first draft. Publish state: draft unverified.
FloatMe and its two co-founders agreed in January 2024 to pay $3 million to settle FTC charges that it lured users with 'free money' promises, touted an advance-limit 'algorithm' that did not exist (a supervisor allegedly called the claim 'a lie'), blocked cancellation, and discriminated against people on public assistance - one of the few FTC cash-advance orders with an Equal Credit Opportunity Act count and a mandated fair-lending program (settlement, not a liability finding). FloatMe still charges $6.99/month plus instant-delivery fees up to $10, and an MLA/TILA class action against it survived dismissal and is on appeal to the First Circuit.
- Severity
- Evidence tierUnassigned
- Claims confirmed
- Last verified2026-10-16
Primary source. ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-acts-stop-floatmes-deceptive-free-money-promises-discriminatory-cash-advance-practices-baseless — Unverified - heuristic first draft.
Terms
Arbitration
Yes - Terms §24 (rev. Sept. 1, 2026): binding individual arbitration, class-action and jury-trial waiver, small-claims carve-out; Texas governing law (subject to non-waivable home-state protections).
Data sharing
GLBA notice in privacy policy (July 9, 2026): FloatMe shares personal information for joint marketing with other financial companies and the user CANNOT limit it; the policy names its 'joint marketing partners' as 'loan finance companies and lead generators'. Terms say linked-account data may be used 'to offer you other FloatMe or third-party products and services'. No affiliate sharing; no nonaffiliate marketing sharing. The policy contains no CCPA 'sale/share' analysis in the sections reviewed. Bank data comes via a third-party aggregator; FloatMe says it does not store bank credentials. No breach located this pass.
Fees and billing
FTC alleged: $1.99/month membership advertised with 'up to $50' instant advances, but only $20 available at signup and a $4 fee for instant access (otherwise up to 3 days); fake algorithm claims; dark-pattern cancellation; public-assistance income ignored while subscription fees continued. Current terms (rev. Sept. 1, 2026): membership $6.99/month; Instant Float Fee from $1 ($10 Float) to $10 ($200 Float), Indiana capped at greater of 5% or $5; free standard ACH; cancellation only in-app or by email - deleting the app or unlinking the bank does NOT cancel.
Contacts
Privacy contact. support@floatme.io (privacy policy); membercare@floatme.com / support@floatme.com (terms)
Legal notice. Not verified this pass. FloatMe Corp. (NMLS #2596392) is a Texas-licensed Regulated Lender and its Terms choose Texas law; use the Texas Secretary of State / OCCC licensee record for the registered agent.
Mailing address. Not recorded.
Evidence
No claims have been itemized for this row yet.
Sources
| Source | Claim | Tier | Status | Quote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTC press release (primary) · 2024-01-24 ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-acts-stop-floatmes-deceptive-free-money-promises-discriminatory-cash-advance-practices-baseless | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “FloatMe lured consumers in with false promises of free money advances” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| Company terms (primary) · 2026-09-01 www.floatme.com/terms | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “Membership costs $6.99/month” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| Company privacy policy (primary) · 2026-07-09 www.floatme.com/privacy-policy | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “Our joint marketing partners include loan finance companies and lead generators.” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| Advocacy-group litigation tracker (secondary) · 2026-09-29 www.responsiblelending.org/research-publication/payday-loan-app-litigation-tracker | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “Motion to Dismiss denied; Appealed to 1st Circuit” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| Law firm analysis (secondary) · 2026-01-05 www.dwt.com/blogs/financial-services-law-advisor/2026/01/cfpb-revisits-2020-opinion-earned-wage-access | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “formally withdraws the CFPB's 2024 proposed interpretive rule” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| Law firm client alert (secondary) · 2025-06-10 www.mcguirewoods.com/client-resources/alerts/2025/6/connecticut-and-louisiana-poised-to-enact-earned-wage-access-legislation-marking-significant-policy-shift-among-states/ | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “SB 1396 caps the total finance charge for EWA at $4 per advance or $30 per month” Quote basis: not recorded. |
Source vault
Link status: Candidate - not yet fetched
| Document | Last fetch | |
|---|---|---|
| Privacy policy https://www.floatme.com/privacy-policy | Not fetched yet | NOT CONFIRMED |
| Terms of service https://www.floatme.com/terms | Not fetched yet | NOT CONFIRMED |
| Website https://www.floatme.com | Not fetched yet | — |
| Primary source https://ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/01/ftc-acts-stop-floatmes-deceptive-free-money-promises-discriminatory-cash-advance-practices-baseless Verification: Unverified - heuristic first draft | Not fetched yet | — |
Enforcement
| Action | Amount | Link |
|---|---|---|
| FTC v. FloatMe Corp., Joshua Sanchez, and Ryan Cleary Federal Trade Commission, 2024 FTC v. FloatMe Corp. (W.D. Tex.; stipulated order entered Jan. 23, 2024) (civil action number not verified this pass). | $3M | proposed |
Links are proposed matches, not yet reviewed.
State statute
Headquarters on file: TX. Provisions of TDPSA on file:
| Provision | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Sensitive Data — Opt-In Consent Required Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.001(31); § 541.101(b)(4) | hard | source |
| Applicability — SBA Size-Based, No Numerical Consumer Threshold Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.002 | threshold | source |
| Right to Access Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.051(b)(1) | hard | source |
| Right to Correction Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.051(b)(2) | hard | source |
| Right to Deletion Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.051(b)(3) | hard | source |
| Right to Data Portability Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.051(b)(4) | hard | source |
| Right to Opt Out of Sale, Targeted Advertising, and Profiling Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.051(b)(5) | hard | source |
| Right to Appeal Denied Request Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.053 | hard | source |
| Privacy Notice Requirements Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.102(a) | hard | source |
| Specific Notice Required for Sale of Sensitive Personal Data Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.102(b)-(c) | hard | source |
| Processor Contract Requirements Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 541.104 | hard | source |
| Enforcement — AG Only; 30-Day Cure; No Private Right of Action Tex. Bus. & Com. Code §§ 541.151-541.156 | hard | source |