Banks That Don’t Use ChexSystems in Arkansas

Features & Benefits

• Up to $450 bonus
• Minimum opening deposit of $25
• Monthly service fee: $0 or $6.95
• Over 40,000 surcharge-free MoneyPass ATMs

Features & Benefits

• Up to 5.02% APY on savings
• Up to 2% cash back
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly fees or overdraft fees

Features & Benefits

• Sign-up bonus up to $300 with qualifying direct deposits
• No monthly fee
• Earn up to 4.50% APY on savings
• Over 55,000 fee-free ATMs

Features & Benefits

• Build credit just by using your debit card
• No minimum balance or monthly fees
• 40,000 fee-free Allpoint ATMs in the U.S.
• Get paid up to 2 days faster
• No credit check or ChexSystems

Features & Benefits

• Over 14.5 million downloads
• No credit check or ChexSystems
• No minimum opening deposit
• Over 60,000 fee-free¹ ATMs

Features & Benefits

• Earn up to 4.00% APY
• No monthly fees
• No minimum balance requirements
• Over 30,000 fee-free ATMs

Bank OZK offers a second chance checking account called Pathway Checking. There’s a $50 minimum opening deposit, but no minimum balance requirement.

The monthly service fee is $10, and you won’t earn interest like some of Bank OZK’s other checking accounts.

Pathway Checking comes with a Visa debit card, plus unlimited check writing, online banking, and mobile banking. You also get bill pay, with 15 free payments a month and each one costing $0.50 after that. 

BOK Financial uses ChexSystems for new accounts. However, they offer an Opportunity Banking account to help you get a second chance.

There’s a monthly fee with this option, which is $9.95 if you enroll in direct deposit, or $14.95 if you don’t. You get a debit card as well as online and mobile banking, and bill pay.

In addition to a large ATM network across the country, you can also request one overdraft fee refund each year.

The minimum opening deposit is $50. To save a monthly paper statement fee of $1.50, you can also switch to e-statements for free.

After you’ve managed your account well for a year, they could approve you for an upgraded checking account.

Cadence Bank offers several checking accounts that don’t use ChexSystems. Minimum opening deposits range from $25 to $1,000. However, for some checking accounts, you can get the monthly fee waived by meeting certain requirements.

The accounts come with the basic features you’d expect, like a free debit card, online banking, and bill pay.

Diamond Bank’s second chance checking account is called Diamond Encore. The minimum opening deposit is at $100, but there is some flexibility with the monthly fee.

It starts at $10, but can be reduced to $8 per month when you enroll in direct deposit. Once you reach 12 months with no insufficient funds, you can switch to another checking account at Diamond Bank.

In addition to an instant-issue debit card, you get unlimited check writing and online and mobile banking services, including mobile deposit.

You can find Diamond Bank locations in Glenwood, Mount Ida, Hot Springs, Murfreesboro, Dierks, Nashville, Mineral Springs, Mena, Hope, DeQueen, Ashdown, Russellville, and Texarkana.

First Service Bank is a non-ChexSystems bank and they also don’t use a credit report to approve new accounts. There are multiple checking accounts available, including Earn Checking, Earn 50+ Checking, Reward Checking, and General Checking.

The most accessible account for most people is General Checking. You’ll need a $100 opening deposit, but you can easily get the $5 monthly fee waived by enrolling in e-statements.

You can find multiple First Service Bank branches across Arkansas, including Conway, Clinton, Dermott, Flippin, Greenbrier, Little Rock, Marshall, Mountain View, Shirley, and Yellville.

Fresh Start Checking is a second chance account available from Focus Bank designed to rebuild your financial history.

The monthly service fee is $7.95, but can be reduced to $5.95 by enrolling in e-statements. There’s no minimum balance with this account, and it takes just a $50 deposit to get started.

You get a debit card with this account and can also purchase checks to use. Free benefits include online and mobile banking with check deposit. Focus Bank has Arkansas branches in Jonesboro, Marmaduke, and Paragould.

FSNB offers banking without ChexSystems or credit checks, allowing for easy account opening with a $5 deposit.

Checking account options vary: Advanced Checking has a $10.95 monthly fee; Career Checking and 50+ Checking are free with a monthly direct deposit; Basic Checking incurs a $6.50 fee if the balance drops below $100.

The accounts come with a Visa check card, free online and text banking with bill pay, and an interest-bearing account, conditional on maintaining a minimum balance.

Additional perks include fee-free ATM transactions at FSNB locations, mobile banking, free e-statements, and no charge for cashier checks and money orders. Customers also receive one free box of standard checks every quarter.

Hope Credit Union uses ChexSystems, but they aren’t as strict with negative entries as other financial institutions.

As long as the applicant has a credit score of at least 600, and doesn’t owe any money to Hope Community, HCCU is likely to open an account.

Hope CU offers five checking account options. Some of them have a $25 minimum balance requirement and as a $9.95 monthly fee. However, the fee is waived if the account has at least $200 in it.

Checking accounts come with unlimited paperless transactions, free online and mobile banking, free eStatements, and overdraft protection options.

Fresh Start Checking from Red River can get you back into banking, even if you don’t qualify for a traditional checking account because of your ChexSystems history.

There’s a $10 monthly maintenance fee, but you’ll receive an instant-issue debit card and the usual online banking features you’d see with regular accounts.

To qualify for membership at Red River, you must live, work, worship, volunteer or attend school in one of the following Arkansas counties:

• Clark
• Garland
• Hempstead
• Hot Spring
• Howard
• Lafayette
• Little River
• Miller
• Nevada
• Pike
• Sevier

Alternatively, you can join if you have a family member who is already part of RRCU.

You can qualify for River Valley Community Federal’s Fresh Start Checking account if you have a history in ChexSystems within the last five years.

There are some requirements you’ll need to meet, however. The record must be less than $300 and your charge-offs must be satisfied before opening the account.

Each month, you’ll pay a fee of $5 for Fresh Start checking. You’ll also need an opening deposit of $100, which will be placed on hold during the first 30 days. After 12 months of no instances of non-sufficient funds, you can upgrade to a traditional checking account.

To join River Valley Community FCU, you must live, work, or worship in one of the following Arkansas counties: Ouachita, Calhoun, Columbia, Union, or Dallas.

Southern Bancorp is a non-ChexSystems bank with multiple checking account options. The most basic version is the Freedom Checking account.

It requires a $100 opening deposit, but the $2.95 monthly fee can be waived with e-statements. It’s a no-frills account to get you back into banking.

It’s easy to find a Southern Bancorp branch in Arkansas. In fact, there are over 20 branches throughout the state.