Connecting your first bank – Help Center

Connecting Your First Bank Account

Nova connects to over 20,000 banks, credit unions, and financial institutions through Plaid — a secure, industry-standard service used by apps like Venmo and Robinhood. Your credentials are never stored by Nova.

How to Connect

From your Dashboard, click Add Account (or the + button).
Select Connect Bank Account.
A secure Plaid window will open. Search for your bank by name.
Log in with your bank credentials directly in the Plaid window.
If your bank requires it, complete multi-factor authentication (a text code, email code, or security question).
Choose which accounts to link — checking, savings, credit cards, loans, investments — then click Continue.
Plaid will sync your account balances to Nova. This usually takes just a few seconds.

What to Expect

Balances update automatically — Nova refreshes your connected accounts regularly so your net worth stays current.
Multiple accounts at once — if your bank has several accounts (checking + savings + credit card), you can connect them all in a single Plaid session.
Read-only access — Nova can only view your balances. We can never move money, make transactions, or modify anything at your bank.

Troubleshooting

Can't find your bank? Try searching by the full official name. Some smaller credit unions may not be supported yet.
Connection failed? Double-check your credentials and try again. Some banks have intermittent issues with third-party connections.
Stuck on MFA? Make sure you're entering the code quickly — they often expire within a minute or two.

Once connected, your accounts will appear on your Dashboard and Charlie will start generating insights about your finances.

Still need help? Visit /contact and we'll get you sorted.

How to Connect

From your Dashboard, click Add Account (or the + button).

Select Connect Bank Account.

A secure Plaid window will open. Search for your bank by name.

If your bank requires it, complete multi-factor authentication (a text code, email code, or security question).

Choose which accounts to link — checking, savings, credit cards, loans, investments — then click Continue.

Plaid will sync your account balances to Nova. This usually takes just a few seconds.

What to Expect

Balances update automatically — Nova refreshes your connected accounts regularly so your net worth stays current.

Multiple accounts at once — if your bank has several accounts (checking + savings + credit card), you can connect them all in a single Plaid session.

Read-only access — Nova can only view your balances. We can never move money, make transactions, or modify anything at your bank.

Troubleshooting

Can't find your bank? Try searching by the full official name. Some smaller credit unions may not be supported yet.

Connection failed? Double-check your credentials and try again. Some banks have intermittent issues with third-party connections.

Stuck on MFA? Make sure you're entering the code quickly — they often expire within a minute or two.

Once connected, your accounts will appear on your Dashboard and Charlie will start generating insights about your finances.

Still need help? Visit /contact and we'll get you sorted.