Outlet Finance is kind of a scam. I say "kind of" because I don't have proof that they are a scam, but all signs point to this service being untrustworthy while they are using a service like BlockFi and Celsius Network to get over 9% interest on your money while only giving you 6% interest. That's why this post will explain How Outlet Finance works.
Outlet Finance markets themselves as a savings account "alternative." They are heavily suggesting that the service they provide is equivalent to a savings account. It is not. A Savings Account is FDIC insured and has more safeguards for your money while Outlet Finance leverages your money in cryptocurrency investments.
With limited history, no investors, no press, few employees, no guarantees, no financial licenses, using Outlet Finance is a huge risk while just being a middle man for services like BlockFi. Outlet Finance has insurance, but that's only if they get hacked. If Outlet Finance decides to just run off with all your money, your money will be completely gone.
| What They Offer | Outlet Finance offers 6% interest on your money as a "Savings Account" Alternative |
| What They Do | Outlet Finance leverages your money to make money on other existing cryptocurrency platforms like Celsius Network and BlockFi |
| Pros | 6% interest on your money |
| Cons | The company history and website are very thin which gives me little confidence in their service. Similar services offer 9% interest or more for your money. Outlet Finance is just functioning as a middle man a profiting off the difference. |
| Website | Outlet.Finance |
| Legal Stuff | The Terms and Service and Privacy Policy are incredibly thin. They refer to the terms from Celsius Network instead. |
| https://www.linkedin.com/company/outlet-finance/ | |
| Careers | Outlet Finance has 3 jobs posted but the listings have been up since September 2020. |
| CEO | There are 2 founders. Both have experience in tech but are not many years under their belt. |
| Employees | 4 (this includes the 2 founders) |
| Press | None |
| Investors | None |
| Partners | None |
| Money | USD via ACH transfer |
| Interest rate | 6% |
| Insurer | Fireblocks (crypto insurance service) |
| Age of service | October 31, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20191031204948/https://outlet.finance/ |
| Fine Print | Interest rates on Outlet can vary over time and are not guaranteed. Outlet is not a bank account, it is an alternative way to save and earn interest. Outlet is not insured by the FDIC. Funds deposited through Outlet are protected against smart contract risk through smart contract protection. Our smart contract protection covers the following: The protection will cover “unintended code usage” where someone, not necessarily the cover purchaser, has suffered a financial loss on the smart contract. While your funds are backed by smart contract protection, this is not a guarantee as the technology is still in it's infancy. This is not a risk free product. |
| Referral Bonus | $5 |
A Dangerous "Savings Account Alternative"
If you look at other Outlet Finance reviews, they really market it as a Savings Account. Even on the official Outlet website, it will say, "Savings Account Alternative." Those reviews promote their own referral links without mentioning how risky the service is. They also don't mention that you could be getting more value for your money by working directly with the same companies that Outlet Finance actually uses.
Although Outlet Finance says you will get a consistent 6% interest rate on your money, they actually say in the small terms that they rate may vary. There's no one keeping them honest about how they operate the business. The thing I don't like is that Outlet Finance makes it look like your money is in a safe investment. It is not.
How does Outlet Finance Promise "up to" 6% Interest?
Outlet Finance uses services like Celsius Network and BlockFi to invest your money. Both these two services promise over 8% interest on your money through cryptocurrency investments and loans. In fact, if you look at the terms and services of Outlet Finance, they just link their Terms to the page on Celsius Network.
That means, Outlet Finance is leveraging your money as the middle man and pocketing the difference. They just relabel their service as a "Savings Account" while really making it difficult to figure out where your money is going.
Is Outlet Finance Safe?
Outlet Finance does not look like a safe place to invest your money. The company is insured through Fireblocks in the event that their platform is hacked and your funds are stolen. But that doesn't include if your individual account is hacked, just the platform. There's also no insurance against someone at platform just running off with all your money and declaring bankruptcy.
In fact, that's what happened with Cred Finance. Exit scams are very common in the finance world and when I see a company of 4 people with a very thin working history, website, press, and no investors, I'm sure you could see why it looks risky.
Who works for Outlet Finance?
You could comfortably fit all the employees of Outlet Finance in one Prius. You would still have space for another person. As of November 2020, there are 4 employees at Outlet Finance and 2 of them are the founders.
Sure, you could call Outlet Finance a start-up as they are a small business trying to provide high interest savings to people...but there's no way I would trust a brand new unregulated company with my money. If they are an actual start-up, they have a long way to go in terms of establishing them as a dependable service in the financial space.
Outlet Finance has 4 Employees...2 of the are the founders
Interest Rates Are NOT Guaranteed
I'm writing this Outlet Finance review in November 2020 and the service has been available for less than a year. On their home page, they actually don't mention that interest rates are not guaranteed anywhere until you get to the super small fine print at the bottom of the page.
The rest of the home page just shows that 6% is 60x higher than getting an interest rate of 0.1%. Yes, that's math but there is so much contradictory information. You can find actual Savings accounts that give you 1% APY on average and some as high as 5% (with small thresholds) that are actually guaranteed by the FDIC as a Savings Account.
Outlet does not guarantee interest rates because they have no control on how the interest is being earned since they are just a middle man. Plus, there's no one keeping Outlet Finance Honest. If Outlet says the interest rate today is 3% then that's what they'll give you. They can literally say whatever they want because they are not being regulated.
Alternatives to Outlet Finance
Outlet Finance is a service that uses other services like BlockFi and Celsius Network to earn high interest on your money. And you know what, you actually don't need Outlet Finance. You can directly sign up for these services. It might seem strange because it's cryptocurrency, but that's exactly what Outlet Finance is doing.
I get Outlet Finance serves as a middle man for anyone that doesn't want to learn how to use digital currency. It's pretty easy and I can help with that. Just visit the r/FullValue and ask.
There are quite a few high-interest earning platforms that can provide about 10% in interest on your money right now. It's all still pretty new and I wouldn't invest any money that you are willing to lose. With that said, I've researched and used BlockFi and Nexo. Even though I trust both platforms, I wouldn't put more than 5% of my actual savings in there.
Why would anyone recommend Outlet Finance?
YouTube recommended a video review to me about Outlet Finance and after researching the company, I was very angry. How could someone recommend them as "The Best New Savings Account of 2020"? I'm still angry as I'm writing this. That's a jerk move to recommend as the best when you didn't research them.
That tells me that these YouTubers are selling out their viewers for that $5 referral bonus code. Maybe their even making more money from Outlet Finance affiliate links. I don't know, I wouldn't even let my money look at Outlet Finance. That's how much I don't trust them.
I honestly see no value that Outlet Finance is providing other than the opportunity for them to run off with your money. As a service, Outlet provides significantly less in terms of earning and safety in the crypto earning space. Now Outlet Finance doesn't tell you this directly, but in the fine details they mention they use BlockFi and Celsius Network, two services you can use directly for more interest and safety.
TLDR
Outlet Finance cannot be considered a savings account because they are not one. Outlet practically guarantees a SAFE 6% ROI but in the fine print tells you that it's not guaranteed and there is a lot of risk. Since Outlet is investing in crypto savings accounts, you might as well do that yourself. Instead of getting up to 6% with Outlet you could be getting 9.3% with BlockFi directly.
To sum up, Outlet Finance is an unregulated middle man for your money to invest in crypto that offers you a lower rate than what you would get with a real crypto interest earning platform like BlockFi, Nexo or Celsius Network.
Any time your dealing with money, you should be very careful. There are many scams and it's incredibly easy for someone just to take off with your money especially in the digital age.
Lastly, if you see anyone telling you to use Outlet Finance, they are a piece of sh*t. Okay, that's pretty harsh. Maybe they didn't do their due diligence.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://slycredit.com/outlet-finance-review/