JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo face customer anger over stimulus checks

The IRS is now starting to distribute the third round of stimulus checks, worth up to $1,400 per eligible adult and child. But the timing of getting a check may depend partly on a bank's policies, with some customers of JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo expressing frustration after the banks said the coronavirus relief payments won't be available until March 17. 

The reason, the banks say, is due to an issue outside their control. Although the IRS started issuing payments over the weekend, the official payment date isn't until March 17, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase told CBS MoneyWatch. Wells Fargo added that it "is not holding the funds" and that it will deposit the money into accounts as soon as possible.  Yet other banks are crediting the funds to customer accounts immediately. Current, a New York-based banking startup, is using its own balance sheet to credit the funds rather than waiting for settlement. Some of its customers received access to their stimulus funds on March 12, a day after President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion bill into law.