Banking reimagined: Wealthfront Cash
In 2019, Wealthfront made waves by launching its first banking product: a high-yield savings account. We had toyed with the idea of becoming a bank, but ultimately decided against it—so calling it a “checking” or “savings” account was out. Instead, we named it the Wealthfront Cash Account. It turned out to be the perfect name for a product that went far beyond the traditional.
This wasn’t your typical bank account. It came with a funky debit card that offered free ATMs nationwide, a slick and seamless savings/spending experience, FDIC insurance up to millions of dollars (compared to the usual $250,000), and a variable interest rate that was consistently 20 times higher than traditional banks. All of this, with no fees, no market risk, and unlimited free transfers. It was designed for customers who wanted simplicity, value, and trust in one place.
Why we built it
At the time, the stock market was volatile, and customers were nervous about keeping their money invested. Rather than watching them liquidate their portfolios and move their cash to traditional banks, we wanted to offer them something better—a smarter, easier, and more rewarding way to manage their money.
Wearing lots of hats
As the content lead for the product, I worked on every part of the journey—from the earliest design sprints to the moment we launched (and beyond). My job was to make sure every word, every message, and every guide worked as hard as the product itself. Here’s what that looked like:
Crafting consistency: I developed and enforced content standards across emails, support docs, and in-app messaging, creating a voice that was friendly, smart, and always clear.
Leading with simplicity: In many cases, such as with designing a list of recent transactions, there was no need to reinvent the wheel. Nevertheless, we felt some things could use a little extra explanation, like explaining the different between “available” and “pending” transactions, and offering some hyper around interest received, opportunities to boost APY (via referring friends). Whether I was writing copy for the product or managing legal reviews, my focus was always on making the cash account intuitive and user-friendly.
Streamlining workflows: Figma was a young product, and I adopted it along with the rest of the design team, though my learning curve was admittedly a little steeper than my teammates who has already mastered Sketch and Invision. I experimented with developing efficient processes in both Figma and Google Docs to manage the large volume of content needed for launch, setting myself for becoming a more multifaceted designer. I’m very grateful to my team for giving me the space to learn.
Redesigning the transactions page
This was my first big leap beyond content into product design, putting my new Figma skills to the test. The challenge? Moving money between Wealthfront accounts wasn’t as straightforward as a simple “deposit” or “withdraw” due to technical constraints. So, I led the charge with a content-first approach to create a solution that was simple, feasible, and easy to use. While my original design has evolved, the foundation I laid remains in today’s much cleaner UI (shown below)—a small but meaningful win.
Scalable email design system
With funds flowing around more freely, we started feeling a little unconformable with our messy transactions emails. They hadn’t been touched in years and were full of outdated content, inconsistent design, and bugs. Worst of all, the voice didn’t match the product, leaving users confused and cold.
I pitched the idea of creating a modular design system and revamping the voice and tone for our 200+ emails and got leadership on board. Working with a designer, I built templates that:
Unified our product and email voices, creating a seamless experience.
Supported complex content formats, making the templates scalable.
Simplified implementation for engineers, saving time and effort.
The result? Emails that were as polished and effective as the product itself.
Driving growth with experiments
Once the Cash Account launched, I shifted my focus to growth experiments. My team discovered that many risk-averse clients were holding onto too much cash, hurting their long-term financial growth.
To tackle this, I created a limited-time in-app messaging experience that encouraged clients to “take a small step” and invest just a portion of their cash. I emphasized key features like liquidity and tax-smart withdrawals to build confidence and provided a transparent breakdown of how we calculated their “extra cash” and “potential cost.” This approach resonated with our clients, who appreciated the balance of encouragement and honesty.
Reflections
Working on the Wealthfront Cash Account was a career highlight—not just because of the product, but because of the energy and collaboration behind it. It was such an exciting time at Wealthfront as we expanded into new financial services. I’ll never forget the buzz in the office as our CEO shared his vision or my PM returned from a meeting with another signed partner bank, bringing that vision one step closer to reality. That feeling of being so deeply connected to the journey, to every step of the process, is something I’ll always treasure—and something I aspire to bring to every project I work on.
