What is "netbank"

NetBank, formerly named Atlanta Internet Bank (1996) and Net.B@nk (1998), was a financial company engaged primarily in retail banking, mortgage banking, business finance and providing ATM and merchant processing services. NetBank was founded in February 1996 and completed its initial public offering of stock in July 1997. It was one of the pioneers of the Internet banking industry, and recognized as one of the first direct banks in the United States. Its headquarters was in Suite 100 of the Royal Centre Three in Alpharetta, Georgia.

Netbank was closed on September 28, 2007, by the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) in conjunction with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). FDIC insured deposits were acquired by another virtual bank, ING Direct. Several shareholders have filed class action lawsuits against Netbank claiming misrepresentation of the company value during the restructuring period.

In 2012 the NetBank name and domain were sold to BofI Federal Bank by Capital One which had acquired them as part of the ING Direct USA purchase. BofI created a new unrelated bank using the NetBank name and domain aimed at the unbanked.