A couple from Baton Rouge unexpectedly found themselves billionaires overnight, only to discover the truth behind the $50 billion mistakenly deposited into their account.
Darren James, a real estate agent, and his wife were reviewing their bank account on a Saturday in June 2021 when they were shocked to see a $50 billion balance in their Chase Bank account.
The 47-year-old Louisianan shared with Fox the moment his wife showed him her phone, exclaiming: “Look at this!”
James recounted: “All we could think about was, ‘Who’s going to be knocking at our door?’ Because we don’t know anyone with that kind of wealth.”
“It felt amazing to see so many zeros in our account, even if just for a moment. I’m used to the one-comma club, not the three-comma club,” he joked, indicating that he is more familiar with having thousands rather than billions of dollars.
To address the situation responsibly, the couple promptly contacted Chase Bank to report the anomaly, telling CNN it was not just a simple mistake but a significant error.
“This wasn’t a minor mistake. It was more like someone fell asleep on the keyboard,” James remarked. “I was certainly surprised and curious about how it happened. Maybe a wealthy uncle gifted it to me?”
Despite briefly entertaining the idea of a long-lost relative leaving them a fortune, the family learned the truth: the deposit was a rare error.
Within four days, Chase Bank had corrected the error, returning the couple’s account to its rightful balance.
“I was a billionaire for four days,” James shared with Fox. “It felt incredible, even though we couldn’t use the funds.”
James credited his integrity, explaining that he never considered using the money, as doing so would constitute theft.
“My moral compass points me in the right direction,” he said. “There’s a difference between morality and legality. Honesty and integrity took over, and we knew we couldn’t touch the money. It wasn’t ours to spend.”
He jokingly added: “Unless it was from a rich uncle or a Saudi prince email promising $50 billion, that’s another story.”
Although they briefly enjoyed the status of billionaires, the family remained curious about how the mistake occurred and whether their account security had been compromised.
James noted: “We’re still trying to figure out the why and how of it all, and we’re aware we’re not the only ones this happened to.
“The main concern is whether our account was compromised, and the bank hasn’t reached out to us. We haven’t heard anything from them.”
CNN reported that Chase Bank acknowledged the error, providing a different timeline for when the issue arose and was resolved.
Chase Bank spokeswoman Amy Bonitatibus told the outlet: “We experienced a technical glitch a couple of weeks ago that affected a limited number of accounts. The issue was resolved within a day, and all accounts now reflect the correct balances.”