Staff Reports
Who Pays the Price? Overdraft Fee Ceilings and the Unbanked
Number 973
June 2021 Revised December 2021

JEL classification: D1, E43, G21, G38, G5

Authors: Jennifer L. Dlugosz, Brian T. Melzer, and Donald P. Morgan

Would a cap on overdraft fees increase financial inclusion? Studying an event in which state-level caps were relaxed for national banks, we find that caps constrain the supply of overdraft credit and deposit accounts. Absent caps, banks charge customers more for overdraft but bounce fewer checks and reduce required minimum deposits. Low-income households are both more likely to open accounts and less likely to lose them, suggesting they prefer being banked despite higher overdraft fees. Overdraft fee caps thus hamper, rather than foster, financial inclusion.

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AUTHOR DISCLOSURE STATEMENT(S)
Jennifer L. Dlugosz
The author declares that she has no relevant or material financial interests that relate to the research described in this paper. Prior to circulation, this paper was reviewed in accordance with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York review policy, available at https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/index.html.

Brian T. Melzer
The author declares that he has no relevant or material financial interests that relate to the research described in this paper. Prior to circulation, this paper was reviewed in accordance with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York review policy, available at https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/index.html.

Donald P. Morgan
The author declares that he has no relevant or material financial interests that relate to the research described in this paper. Prior to circulation, this paper was reviewed in accordance with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York review policy, available at https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/index.html.
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