Identify Unknown Charges on Your Bank Statement
Mystery bank charges are more common than you think — merchants often appear under obscure billing names like 'SQ *COFFEESHOP' or 'PAYPAL *HULU' that are nearly impossible to identify manually.
Leaky Wallet's AI engine is trained on thousands of merchant billing patterns. Upload your statement and every charge gets matched to its real merchant name, category, and whether it's a one-off or recurring subscription.
Identify Your Unknown Charges
Upload your bank statement and every charge gets identified instantly.
Identify My Unknown ChargesFree · No signup · Works with any bank
Common Sources of Confusing Charges
Payment processor names
'SQ *', 'STRIPE*', 'PAYPAL *' prefix instead of the actual merchant name
Foreign currency descriptions
US-billed services showing dollar amounts with FX conversion added
Parent company billing
'ALPHABET INC' instead of Google, 'META *' instead of Facebook
Abbreviated merchant names
Bank character limits truncate names beyond recognition
Annual renewals
Services you signed up for a year ago billing under a new name
Marketplace charges
'AMZN MKTP', 'APPLE.COM/BILL', 'GOOG*SERVICES'
How to Identify Unknown Charges
- 1Export your bank statement. Download your last 90 days of transactions as CSV or PDF from your bank's website.
- 2Upload to Leaky Wallet. The AI matches each transaction to the real merchant, category, and recurrence type.
- 3Review flagged charges. Every unknown charge is identified with its merchant name, what kind of service it is, and whether it's recurring.
- 4Dispute or cancel. Contact your bank to dispute unauthorized charges, or cancel subscriptions you no longer want.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do bank charges show up under weird names?
Banks display the merchant's registered payment processor name, which is often different from the brand you know. Payment processors like Square (SQ*), Stripe, and PayPal prefix charges with their name. Truncation also cuts off names at 18–22 characters.
How do I dispute an unknown charge?
First, identify the charge using Leaky Wallet's analyzer. If you still don't recognize it, contact your bank to dispute it as potentially unauthorized. Most banks have a 30–60 day window for disputes.
What if the charge is from a subscription I forgot?
Upload your statement to Leaky Wallet — it groups recurring charges and shows how long each has been running. If you find a forgotten subscription, the cancellation guide shows you how to stop it.
Can Leaky Wallet identify all unknown charges?
Leaky Wallet identifies the vast majority of charges from major merchants, payment processors, and subscription services. Some local or international merchants may still show under their payment processor name.