MetaBank, N.A. is a United States bank with retail branches in Iowa and South Dakota. It offers traditional banking services designed to serve the needs of individual, agricultural, and business depositors and borrowers.
MetaBank issued
debit cards
A debit card, also known as a check card or bank card is a payment card that can be used in place of cash to make purchases. The term ''plastic card'' includes the above and as an identity document. These are similar to a credit card, but unl ...
of up to $600 sent to millions of Americans as part of the
second round
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds e ...
of
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
Economic Impact Payments in January 2021. MetaBank acts as the U.S. Treasury's "financial agent" for this purpose.
Locations and divisions
![Metabank Building Storm Lake IA 20120930 IMG 8832](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Metabank_Building_Storm_Lake_IA_20120930_IMG_8832.JPG)
MetaBank is headquartered in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...
. The retail banking division has locations in four areas: Central Iowa;
Storm Lake, Iowa
Storm Lake is a city in Buena Vista County, Iowa, United States. The population was 11,269 in the 2020 census, an increase from 10,076 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Buena Vista County. Storm Lake is home to Buena Vista University ...
;
Brookings, South Dakota
Brookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is South Dakota's List of cities in South Dakota, fourth largest city, with a population of 23,377 at the 2020 United States census, 20 ...
; and Sioux Falls. There are branch locations in the following cities:
*
Brookings, South Dakota
Brookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is South Dakota's List of cities in South Dakota, fourth largest city, with a population of 23,377 at the 2020 United States census, 20 ...
*
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...
*
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...
*
Storm Lake, Iowa
Storm Lake is a city in Buena Vista County, Iowa, United States. The population was 11,269 in the 2020 census, an increase from 10,076 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Buena Vista County. Storm Lake is home to Buena Vista University ...
*
Urbandale, Iowa
Urbandale is a city in Polk and Dallas counties, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city population was 45,580. It is part of the Des Moines–West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Urbandale was incorporated as ...
*
West Des Moines, Iowa
West Des Moines is a city in Polk County, Iowa, Polk, Dallas County, Iowa, Dallas, Warren County, Iowa, Warren, and Madison County, Iowa, Madison counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. A majority of the city is located in Polk County, a minority of ...
MetaBank is a Member of the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is one of two agencies that supply deposit insurance to depositors in American depository institutions, the other being the National Credit Union Administration, which regulates and insures cred ...
. MetaBank operates in several segments within the Banking and Payments industries: MetaBank, its traditional retail banking operation; Meta Payment Systems, its electronic payments division; AFS/IBEX, its insurance premium financing division; and Refund Advantage, EPS Financial and Specialty Consumer Services, its tax-related financial solutions divisions.
Meta Financial Group, Inc., is the
bank holding company
A bank holding company is a company that controls one or more banks, but does not necessarily engage in banking itself. The compound bancorp (''banc''/''bank'' + '' corp ration') is often used to refer to these companies as well.
United States ...
that owns MetaBank.
MetaBank Corporate Services and Meta Payment Systems division are headquartered in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...
The AFS/IBEX division is headquartered in
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...
, with an additional office in
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island, Newport ...
. Refund Advantage is headquartered in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. EPS is headquartered in
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...
. SCS is headquartered in
Hurst, Texas
Hurst is a city in the U.S. state of Texas located in the densely populated portion of northeastern Tarrant County and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. It is considered a Dallas and Fort Worth suburb and is part of the Mid-Ci ...
.
Meta Payment Systems (MPS) offers products in the following areas: prepaid cards, credit products, electronic funds transfer,
Automated teller machine
An automated teller machine (ATM) or cash machine (in British English) is an electronic telecommunications device that enables customers of financial institutions to perform financial transactions, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, fun ...
sponsorship and tax-related financial solutions.
AFS/IBEX provides short-term, collateralized financing to facilitate the purchase of insurance for commercial property, casualty and liability risk. Based in
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...
, AFS/IBEX originates loans through a network of independent insurance agencies.
Refund Advantage, based in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, provides tax refund-transfer software for Electronic Return Originators (EROs) and their customers. Their software is used in over 10,000 locations nationwide and processes over one million refund-transfers a year.
EPS Financial (EPS) provides refund settlement products, prepaid payroll card solutions and merchant services. EPS is headquartered in
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...
.
Specialty Consumer Services (SCS) provides consumer tax advance services through its proprietary underwriting model and loan management system. Based in
Hurst, Texas
Hurst is a city in the U.S. state of Texas located in the densely populated portion of northeastern Tarrant County and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. It is considered a Dallas and Fort Worth suburb and is part of the Mid-Ci ...
, SCS was a pioneer for no-fee refund advance products.
History
Founding
![Original Storm Lake Savings and Loan Association building](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Original_Storm_Lake_Savings_and_Loan_Association_building.jpg)
MetaBank was founded as Storm Lake Savings and Loan Association in 1954 by Stanley H. Haahr, who remained on the Board of Directors until 1990 and served as board chairman from 1981 to 1990. The bank purchased the Bradford Hotel property in Storm Lake at Fifth and Erie in 1970, and construction was completed on the bank's new headquarters in 1972. By 1993, the bank changed its name from First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Storm Lake to First Federal Savings Bank of the Midwest, a subsidiary of First Midwest Financial, Inc. On Sept. 20, 1993, 1.9 million shares of stock in First Midwest Financial, Inc., were issued at $10 per share and began trading on the
NASDAQ stock market
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
under the symbol “CASH.”
Acquisitions
In 1994, Brookings Federal Bank, a federal savings bank in
Brookings, South Dakota
Brookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is South Dakota's List of cities in South Dakota, fourth largest city, with a population of 23,377 at the 2020 United States census, 20 ...
, was acquired and operated as the Brookings Federal Bank Division of First Federal Savings Bank of the Midwest. In 1996, Iowa Savings Bank in
Des Moines
Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...
was purchased and operated as the Iowa Savings Bank Division of First Federal Savings Bank of the Midwest.
In January 2018, Metabank acquired
Crestmark Bank.
In March 2020, Metabank announced the sale of its community bank division to Central Bank, a state-chartered bank headquartered in Storm Lake, Iowa.
Expansion
![MetaBank Corporate Services headquarters in Sioux Falls](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/MetaBank_Corporate_Services_headquarters_in_Sioux_Falls.jpg)
First Federal opened the doors to its first
Sioux Falls
Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up t ...
office – a temporary facility – on Sept. 6, 2000. In 2004, the Meta Payment Systems (MPS) division was established in Sioux Falls. The next year, in 2005, all bank divisions under First Federal changed their names to MetaBank, inhabiting four market areas: Central Iowa; Northwest Iowa; Brookings; and Sioux Falls.
In 2009, MetaBank introduced a new retail product line and the MPS division became a leading issuer of rebate and
gift card
A gift card also known as gift certificate in North America, or gift voucher or gift token in the UK is a prepaid stored-value money card, usually issued by a retailer or bank, to be used as an alternative to cash for purchases within a parti ...
s in the United States and worldwide and one of the top issuers of
Visa
Visa most commonly refers to:
*Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company
** Visa Debit card issued by the above company
** Visa Electron, a debit card
** Visa Plus, an interbank network
*Travel visa, a document that allows ...
,
MasterCard and
Discover
Discover may refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Discover'' (album), a Cactus Jack album
* ''Discover'' (magazine), an American science magazine
Businesses and brands
* DISCover, the ''Digital Interactive Systems Corporation''
* Di ...
prepaid cards.
In 2014, MetaBank announced the acquisition of AFS/IBEX Financial Services Inc., an insurance premium financing company based in
Dallas, Texas
Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...
.
MetaBank announced the acquisition of Refund Advantage, a tax refund-transfer software company based in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, in 2015.
In 2016, MetaBank announced two acquisitions: EPS Financial in November and Specialty Consumer Services (SCS) in December. EPS provides tax-related financial transaction solutions. They are headquartered in
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...
SCS provides consumer tax advance services through its underwriting and loan management system. SCS is based in
Hurst, Texas
Hurst is a city in the U.S. state of Texas located in the densely populated portion of northeastern Tarrant County and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. It is considered a Dallas and Fort Worth suburb and is part of the Mid-Ci ...
.
Corporate governance
James S. Haahr became President and Chief Executive Officer of Meta Financial Group, Inc., in 1993. J. Tyler Haahr took over the position of President and CEO in 2005. In 2011, James Haahr resigned as Chairman, and J. Tyler Haahr became Chairman and CEO. James and Tyler Haahr are the son and grandson of founder Stanley Haahr.
Brad Hanson has served as President of the Meta Payment Systems division since its inception in 2004. He was appointed President of Meta Financial Group and MetaBank in 2013.
Glen Herrick joined MetaBank in 2013 and serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Meta Financial Group and MetaBank.
Sale of trademark and rebranding
In December 2021, Meta Financial Group sold its "Meta" trademark to
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
's parent company (now called
Meta Platforms
Meta Platforms, Inc., (file no. 3835815) trade name, doing business as Meta and formerly named Facebook, Inc., and TheFacebook, Inc., is an American multinational technology conglomerate based in Menlo Park, California. The company owns Facebo ...
) for $60 million. The agreement required Meta Financial Group to phase out the trademark within one year. In March 2022, the financial services company announced it would change its brand to Pathward.
Awards and honors
MetaBank was included among the
Sandler O’Neill and Partners "Bank and Thrift Sm-All Stars – Class of 2012", which ranked the top 25 performing small-cap banks in the country. MetaBank was also named fifth in the nation among top-performing, mid-size banks by the ''American Banking Association Journal'' in 2013. MetaBank ranked among the top 25 among the nation's community banks and thrifts, according to
''American Banker'' magazine, in 2013 and was named to the Top 200 Community Banks and Thrifts list again in 2014. MetaBank was named one of the top performing banks with assets of $1B to $10B by ''American Banker'' in 2015. AFS/IBEX division was selected by the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT) to be its exclusive premium finance company of choice in 2015. In 2016, Bank Director Magazine named MetaBank the number one top growth bank of 7,000 banks nationwide. MetaBank received an investment grade rating by Kroll Bond Rating Agency in 2016. EPS was named "Business of the Year (25–100 employees) by Lehigh Valley Business in 2016.
Meta Payment Systems division cofounder and MetaBank President Brad Hanson received a 2009 Industry Achievement Award from Paybefore in 2009. MetaBank's Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer John Hagy was named among the Top 10 Payments Lawyers by Paybefore in 2015.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Metabank
Banks based in South Dakota
Banks based in Iowa
Companies listed on the Nasdaq