Global Bank Checking Account fees - $21.40 per month!

[MJ]

Hi Everyone,

In March and in April I noticed a debit for 'N/D Cargo Saldo Minimo' for $21.40.  Since I'm overseas at the moment, I emailed Carmen on this to see what was up. Her reply is quoted below:

"The charge is for balance below the minimiun in checking account.

The minimum balance is $300.00 on personal y $500.00 on corporate accounts at all time during the month"

 

I have emailed her to see if this is a new policy and am waiting for a reply.  This seems like a new policy but, of course, I wasn't notified.  By the way, the balance of an attached savings account does not come into play.

Anyone else encountered this?

M

[Bonnie]

Don't you love Panamanian banks? They float and profit by deposits from a stateside bank for three weeks, demand that you have $5000 on deposit for a credit card with a $5000 limit, and charge you if your minimum balance on your checking account falls below $300. I gave my checking account up early on because of excessive fees. And lots of other people did too when Helmut and Linda Pedersen had numerous checks to bounce while they were out of town because the bank wouldn't acknowledge that Linda's signature was hers even though, she claims, it looked like all her other check signatures. To add insult to injury, they had to pay all the fees associated with the bounced checks. I still keep money in my Panamanian bank (Global), but I now deal strictly in cash.

[JudyS]

2 hours ago, MJ said:

Hi Everyone,

In March and in April I noticed a debit for 'N/D Cargo Saldo Minimo' for $21.40.  Since I'm overseas at the moment, I emailed Carmen on this to see what was up. Her reply is quoted below:

"The charge is for balance below the minimiun in checking account.

 

 

 

The minimum balance is $300.00 on personal y $500.00 on corporate accounts at all time during the month"

 

 

 

 

I have emailed her to see if this is a new policy and am waiting for a reply.  This seems like a new policy but, of course, I wasn't notified.  By the way, the balance of an attached savings account does not come into play.

Anyone else encountered this?

M

This isn't a new policy.  I was charged that amount several years ago when I let my checking account go below $300.  Since then I always make sure I have the minimum in the account.

[Roger B]

It is very important to get from your bank their fees and charges table.  They usually have them where it is listed all the charges they have for the different services and transactions.  each bank has their own fees and charges and may vary.

Banks are the same everywhere.  I got an account at BB&T in the US and they charge me some higher fees.  A friend of mine in Florida told me to change to another bank because the service of this bank is awful and the fees and charges are the highest in the state.  Banks dont care about customers.  Specially if we are not rich and have a lot of money in an account.

 

 

[Penny]

I just looked at my check ledger for the account I keep at MultiBank. Basically, the only thing I write checks for is to pay my insurance premiums. I think it's not worth the hassle and fees to keep a checking account in Panama. Like Marilyn, I learned the hard way that there was a $25/month fee for low balance when $125 was deducted from my account before I realized it.

[Keith Woolford]

This trend of charging fees to maintain accounts is not restricted to Panama.

Royal Bank sparks backlash with fee hikes in the Caribbean

Customers line up to close their accounts after RBC introduces new banking charges

Royal Bank is the only big Canadian bank that hasn't announced any personal banking fee hikes in this country this year. But it's still facing the wrath of customers — in the Caribbean.

Some RBC Caribbean clients are so upset over new monthly charges, they lined up for hours to close their accounts. 

"Customer exit continues at Royal Bank," read one recent headline on a local news story about a run on an RBC branch in St. Kitts. 

"RBC customer pull-out spreading throughout the region," announced another article.

RBC wouldn't confirm details to CBC News, but it appears that customers in at least seven Eastern Caribbean countries — including Antigua and Barbuda, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines — are now facing a monthly charge of 25 East Caribbean dollars ($11.75 Cdn) for some personal bank accounts. 

Seniors with an RBC Sixty Plus account will be charged a $12.50 XCD ($5.88 Cdn) monthly fee.

Minimum wage in St. Kitts is $4.23 Cdn an hour, the highest minimum wage among the countries affected. 

The bank rolled out the new charges between May 23 and June 20 at a time when it's enjoying multi-billion-dollar profits. Numbers released at the end of May showed RBC boosted its second-quarter profit by three per cent to $2.57 billion Cdn. 

RBC posted notices in its Antigua branch warning customers of bank fee changes — though the notice does not specify what the changes entail. (Tameika Malone/Observer)

Fees that bite

So many people chose to close their accounts, police in St. Kitts and Nevis even sent out an alert, urging RBC customers to use caution when withdrawing their money.

"Keeping it around the home, office, under the bed, or on your person and not in another financial institution is not a wise choice," the alert said.

Melisa Boutin, an RBC customer who lives in New York but keeps some of her money in a branch in St. Kitts, says the new fee is just too high for the average customer.

"Going from zero to $25 XCD is too much," she said. "They should have expected this kind of backlash." 

Boutin says she plans to close her account the next time she visits St. Kitts, where she grew up.

She says she has spoken with friends on the Caribbean island who joined the rush to pull out of RBC.

One friend lined up for four hours, Boutin said. Another chose to avoid the crowds and withdrew all her cash from an ATM.

"People feel it's a money grab on the part of Royal Bank," said Boutin. "There's no better service coming with that."

Services such as online and mobile banking, for example, have been slow in coming for RBC's Caribbean customers, she claims.

The bank has branches in 17 Caribbean countries and territories, where it serves more than one million customers.

Prime Minister Timothy Harris of St. Kitts and Nevis issued a statement expressing concern over new RBC bank fees in the country. (Government of St. Kitts and Nevis)

The fees sparked such anger in the Caribbean, politicians even weighed in. Timothy Harris, the prime minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, said his government regretted "any inconvenience or hardship caused to our public" because of the charges.

He also urged the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank to expedite its plan to examine commercial bank fees. 

RBC has acknowledged the backlash. 

"We recognize that recent changes to our service fees in the Caribbean are causing concern among some clients in the region," spokesman A.J. Goodman told CBC News in an email.

He said RBC adjusted some fees in parts of the Caribbean "to reflect the cost of doing business in these countries."

The bank continues "to deliver good value and competitive pricing" in the region, he said.

Some learned of fee on social media

RBC's explanation doesn't comfort Boutin, who works as a financial educator.

"If you have to introduce a fee to improve your bottom line, I can understand that. But I don't think that they have their customers in mind," she said.

Melisa Boutin in New York says she will close her RBC account the next time she visits St. Kitts. 'Going from zero to $25 XCD is too much,' she said. (Melisa Boutin)

She claims customers like her weren't properly notified about the charges. Boutin learned about the $25 XCD fee on Facebook, just days before it took effect.

A friend announced the news on the social media site after learning about the charge from an RBC bank teller.

"Please don't be a victim of this ripoff," the friend wrote on Facebook. "Spread the word!"

RBC says it notified customers through several channels, including by letter "in some cases," in branches and on its website.

Last year, new fees for Canadian RBC customers were also met with an outcry from the public and politicians — so much so that the bank axed them before they took effect.

Edited June 26, 2016 by Keith Woolford

[TwoSailors]

When we opened up our Banco General account we were told up front all the fees. If our checking account balance goes below $300 there is a monthly fee.

 

[Penny]

16 hours ago, TwoSailors said:

When we opened up our Banco General account we were told up front all the fees. If our checking account balance goes below $300 there is a monthly fee.

 

Hooray for Banco General -- the best bank in Boquete for my money.

True story. My Panamanian neighbor was hired as a customer service rep by another big bank in Boquete which shall remain nameless (initials are MB). Over a glass of vino tinto I explained to her how gringos expect to be told of all hidden fees right up front and she would be doing her customers a favor if she did that. The next day in her training class, she explained to the class why she thought it was important to divulge all fees when the customer is opening the account. The very next day she was fired.

[Brundageba]

So if it take $301.00 balance to keep you fee free what's the problem?

[MarieElaine]

Canada and the US (particularly after the 2008 crash) now have laws forbidding unnecessary fees.  Governments need to step up and regulate the money grab.

[MarieElaine]

Also, on line banks offer accounts with zero fees.  I bank with USAA and the only fees I know of are overdraft charges.  They also refund up to $15 per month in ATM charges because they do not have their own ATMs.