Online Bank Accounts and Personal Bankruptcy: What You Need to Know
With the rise of digital banking platforms like KakaoBank, Toss Bank, and K-Bank, the convenience of managing finances has reached new heights. However, when it comes to filing for personal bankruptcy, many individuals find themselves uncertain about how to present these online accounts as valid financial documentation. The courts continue to stress the importance of ‘transaction clarity’ and ‘verification of authenticity,’ necessitating thorough preparation akin to traditional bank accounts.
Legal Acceptance of Online Bank Accounts
Accounts from digital banks such as KakaoBank, Toss Bank, and K-Bank are legally recognized for their transaction records. While physical passbooks are non-existent, users can print or save their account statements as PDFs for submission. The courts do not require physical passbooks, as long as the submitted documents clearly show the account number, holder’s name, and transaction details.
How to Print Your Bank Statement
Within banking apps, users can access account management or transaction history menus to obtain information similar to a bank statement. For instance, KakaoBank allows users to save their entire transaction history as a PDF, while Toss Bank provides options to export as Excel files or images. The essential elements that must be included are:
- Account holder’s name
- Account number
- Transaction dates, amounts, inflow and outflow details, and balance changes
If these conditions are met, screenshots may be accepted as evidence, though submitting a PDF is generally preferred for its reliability. Additionally, it’s advisable to ensure that the app name and the date of the query are visible on the document.
Highlighting and Annotating Your Statements
To successfully navigate the bankruptcy process with online bank statements, it’s not enough to simply print and submit them. Key transactions related to the bankruptcy case, such as salary deposits, automatic card payments, loan receipts, or repayments, should be clearly highlighted or annotated. This proactive approach helps the court examiner quickly identify relevant financial flows, increasing the credibility of the submission. For self-employed individuals, organizing card sales deposits or merchant fee details can significantly aid in evaluating actual income.
FAQ: Are Screenshots Sufficient?
While screenshots may be acceptable for short-term purposes, they often lack the consistency required for bankruptcy submissions. Monthly screenshots might overlap or miss crucial data, and some courts place a high value on the completeness of documents. Therefore, it is safest to prepare documented PDF outputs or well-organized Excel files for each account, print them, and submit them.
Proving Account Ownership
Since digital banks do not provide physical passbooks, supplementary materials verifying account ownership may be necessary. Typically, users can attach screenshots of the ‘account holder information screen’ from the app or capture the account management screen showing the account holder’s name and partial social security number. Alternatively, an account opening confirmation document, available from platforms like Toss or KakaoBank, can be printed and submitted.
Conclusion: Online Accounts in Bankruptcy
Digital bank accounts do not disadvantage individuals in bankruptcy proceedings. In fact, they offer the potential for more organized and straightforward transaction reporting compared to traditional banks. However, this requires applicants to take responsibility for clearly documenting the context and purpose of each transaction. Properly organized documents can expedite approval without the need for corrections, underscoring the importance of careful preparation in the bankruptcy process.