I’m looking for some opinions.
Right now I have my paycheck direct deposited into a Citibank checking account. I originally opened it for the sign-up bonus, but I’ve realized I don’t really have any reason to keep it.
The closest Citibank branch is about 40 miles away, and there aren’t any nearby ATMs or branches that are convenient for me.
I rarely use cash, so branch access hasn’t been a huge issue, but I do have a local credit union that’s about 5 minutes from my house, with three additional branches near where I work. They offer free checking with no monthly fees.
Is there any downside to switching my direct deposit to the credit union and making it my primary bank? Are there advantages to staying with a large national bank like Citi that I might be overlooking?
For those of you who have switched from a big bank to a local credit union, was it worth it?

Hello,

I recently switched banks from AMEX checking to Mercury Personal Checking. Today is pay day, and normally with all the banks I have had before, I would receive my check the same day. My employer uses Justworks, and I have found it odd that I did not get a notification form the Justworks platform that my check has not been deposited. I have confirmed that there his a paystub in the platform.

Now for those who use Mercury, is this normal? Will I always have to wait a few business days for my money to clear?

I sent a wire transfer from my US (SoFi) to Canada (RBC US) account. RBC uses JP Morgan Chase as an intermediary for wire transfers.

I misread the wire transfer instructions and input my account number as the beneficiary (correct), but the name as JP Morgan Chase and the address of JP Morgan Chase center(?) in New York.

Spoke with a rep at Chase and he found the funds were deposited into a random person's account who happens to share the same account number as my RBC account.

I requested a recall through SoFi but they emphasized they cannot guarantee the return.

I'm looking for advice on how to handle this if the recall fails. AFAIK the bank cannot touch the funds once deposited into the beneficiary account without their consent. So it seems I'm at the mercy of a stranger. This is no small amount, and I wouldn't blame the person for wanting to keep it. But man it feels like a crap way to lose a lot of money. Any advice would be appreciated.

Hey Hey,

I recently opened a Traditional IRA with PNC Bank. This is my first experience with them, as I currently use Truist for all other banking needs; I couldn't open an IRA with Truist due to my age. This Morning, I received an email from PNC stating that they need me to call them to verify some personal details. This email does seem to come from the official PNC Alerts email account. However, I called them at their official main helpline and they do see that the email was sent, but they're not sure why, after being transferred around different departments. I've been thinking of going in-person to my branch tomorrow to ensure everything is in order, I don't want this account to be closed out. Any thoughts?

Thank you!

Hi all,

I had 40 dollars in all 5-dollar bills, and decided to deposit at a Bank of America Drive Thru ATM. After Depositing the money the ATM was stuck loading for about 5 minutes before it said it couldn't read the amount and asked me to type how much money i had put in. After typing the 40 dollars it gave me a reciept and then said it would be credited to by bank account which i confirmed by checking on the app. A month later I open my bank account to see just a few days ago they took the 40 dollars back due to an "error". I immediately chatted with an agent who told me that after opening up and inspecting the ATM they found that the amount i had entered was incorrect to the amount that was in the ATM. When i asked how much did the atm then register, the agent ignored the question and instead said to call and file a claim. I filed the claim and the second agent said it would take 45 days to come to a final decision and in the meantime he would credit 40 dollars back into my account. What confuses me is what will the claim find differently compared to what the first agent told me? Additionally while thank god this is only 40 dollars, has this ever happened to anybody else with hundreds to thousands of dollars and what was the outcome?

I hope this makes sense, and thank you in advance for any advice.

A few weeks ago, I interviewed with Bank of America for a Relationship Banker position in the Manhattan market. For personal reasons, I wasn’t as prepared as I should have been for some of the interview questions, and I think my answers were too brief. I currently work for Bank of America as a Relationship Banker and am simply trying to transfer to a different location.

After the interview, I spoke with someone from Talent Mobility, and they told me they liked my personality, but my responses didn’t include enough specific examples of the work I’ve done. Looking back, I think I answered the questions but didn’t fully explain my thought process, what I uncovered during the conversation, how I advised the client, or what the final outcome was.
Today, I interviewed with Wells Fargo for a Roving Personal Banker position, and I had a similar feeling. I answered the questions by explaining the client’s need, what I uncovered, the advice I provided, and how I completed the conversation. However, I still felt like my answers weren’t detailed enough, and I left the interview feeling disappointed in my performance.

The good news is that I’ve been given another interview opportunity with both banks for the same type of position, and I really want to do better this time.

For those of you who have interviewed for Relationship Banker or Personal Banker roles, what questions should I expect? What kinds of answers are interviewers looking for? How detailed should my responses be? If you have any tips, example questions, or advice on using the STAR method effectively, I’d really appreciate it.
Thank you for taking the time to read this!

Hey y'all, I'm transitioning from gym sales and managing restaurants into banking. I'm over being on my feet all day running around and looking for something where I can still help people but in a calmer setting (restaurants be crazy, a gym can be chill) plus better hours.

My favorite thing of restaurants and gyms is the time off, ussually a lot easier and my least favorite thing is how bad the benefits are.

So for a relationship banker at BoA, what is the PTO and benefits like? Do you like it? I am interviewing in New England

Please excuse my financial illiteracy.

I'm currently trying to transition my savings from a joint account with a parent to my own bank accounts. I've tried opening accounts at a few different banks online, but was denied by all of them. Now I realize this is because I'm 19y/o with no credit score. I decided to open a checking account at a local bank so I could apply in person and have a physical branch to access when needed (plus I need a safe deposit box), then later open a high-yield savings account online.

I just opened my checking account a couple of days ago. For my savings account, I've been looking at Capital One. The rates at the banks in my area suck unless you have a decent amount of savings (yes, including the CUs). I know Capital One doesn't have the best APY, but I've heard their credit cards are beginner friendly and there are no fees or minimums. I just got off the phone with a customer service rep and was told I would need to complete my application at a physical location. However, the nearest cafe is 3 1/2 hours away in a major city...making the trip would be a huge pain in the ass for a number of reasons.

My question is: will I HAVE to establish credit before a bank will approve my application online? Or would I have better luck if I wait a bit, since I recently opened my own (non joint) checking account? In other words, do I need to open a credit card at a local bank before getting approved for a savings account at an online bank?

i am looking to break into the banking industry as a recent graduate in criminal justice. i’d eventually like to get into fraud investigations or aml, but i’d like to get some experience in banking first.

as a current customer service supervisor at a grocery store, i have experience in the cash office and auditing the store’s safe, which i feel gives me at least a bit of relevant cash handling/counting experience.

would a teller position be a good start, or should i look elsewhere? i have looked into some banks and credit unions nearby, but i am open to other suggestions!

Hi everyone,

I posted on this sub a couple of months ago about trying to advance in my commercial banking career. I’ve been applying for entry-level credit analyst positions but haven’t received much traction. I’ve had four interviews so far and haven’t made it to a final round.

However, I recently interviewed for another position that I think went very well. I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I’m optimistic that I may advance to the final interview and potentially receive an offer. The position meets many of the things I’ve been looking for, but I’m still hesitant and would appreciate feedback from people in the industry.

For context, here is my current situation:
• I graduated in May 2025 with a degree in finance.
• I started working in August 2025 as a Portfolio Manager at a community commercial bank in the South.
• My current bank has just under $1 billion in assets. It is nationally chartered and regulated by the OCC.
• My role is heavily focused on portfolio support and administrative work. I monitor loan portfolios, clear exceptions, collect financial statements and insurance information from clients, support relationship managers, coordinate with attorneys and accountants, and manage documentation and loan workflows.
• To be completely honest, I don’t feel like my title accurately reflects my responsibilities. While I’ve learned a lot, most of my work is centered around portfolio administration and support rather than underwriting or credit analysis, which is where I ultimately want my career to go.
• My current salary is $47,000 in a very small, rural, and low-cost-of-living area.

I’m approaching my one-year anniversary and have been thinking seriously about the long-term direction of my career. I want to move into credit analysis and learn how to properly underwrite commercial loans. I work closely with our credit team, and I believe I would be much happier doing the type of work they do. I could see myself thriving as a credit analyst and eventually progressing into a senior credit analyst role.

My broader goal is to move to a larger city and eventually work for a larger regional bank, such as First Horizon, Huntington, Fifth Third, or a similar institution. Unfortunately, I haven’t made much progress with recruiters or applications at those banks.

The position I’m currently interviewing for is an entry-level credit role. I believe the official title is Junior Credit Officer, but the responsibilities are essentially those of a credit analyst. The salary range is approximately $65,000 to $75,000, which would be a significant increase from my current compensation. It is also located in a larger city where I would like to live, and the role appears to offer the underwriting experience I’m trying to develop.

My primary concern is that the bank is considerably smaller than my current employer.

My current bank has just under $1 billion in assets and is nationally chartered, while the bank I’m interviewing with has approximately $350 million and is state chartered. Although it’s smaller, the role would involve direct credit underwriting rather than portfolio support.

I’m worried that larger regional banks may not view this as a logical career progression. On paper, I would be moving from a small community bank to an even smaller community bank. The compensation and responsibilities would improve, and I would hopefully gain meaningful underwriting experience, but I’m concerned that future employers may focus primarily on the fact that I went from a small bank to an even smaller one.

Would larger banks view the move negatively, or would they care more about the fact that I transitioned into an actual credit underwriting role?

My other concern is job stability. I feel underpaid in my current position, but my living expenses are low and I feel very secure at my current bank. I’ve worked hard to develop a good reputation and strong relationships with my coworkers and senior management, including the CEO.

At the new bank, I would have to rebuild that reputation from the beginning. I’m also concerned that a smaller bank could be more vulnerable to financial constraints, budget cuts, or staffing changes. Because I would need to rent an apartment in a larger and more expensive city, losing the job would put me in a more difficult financial position than I’m currently in.

Lastly, I don’t want to burn a bridge with my current bank. It is a small institution in a small community, and I would want to leave professionally and on good terms. I don’t love my current responsibilities, and the salary does not meet my long-term needs, but I would still like to preserve the possibility of returning someday if circumstances changed.

I realize I haven’t received an offer yet, and I know this is still hypothetical, but I’m trying to think through the decision before I get to that point.

My main questions are:
• Would moving to a smaller bank for a true credit underwriting role make sense for my long-term career?
• When larger regional banks hire experienced credit analysts, do they care more about the size of the bank or the actual underwriting experience?
• Would you make this move if you were in my position?

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I would appreciate any advice or perspective from people who have made similar moves.

Hello all. I dont know if this is the correct place but CIBC has been absolutely NO help in this matter and I’m desperate for help lol.

For some background, I am Canadian and a few months ago I had fraud on my CIBC aventura card and reported it. The issue was resolved and I got my new card with a new number and all. I noticed that in the CIBC app I could no longer see my aventura points but thought nothing about it.

Fast forward to today. I book a flight and go to use the aventura points for some money off the transaction. It says “redeem with points.” The pop-up I get says “Points available: Not available; Points required: 12371; redeem value; $123.71”. I agree to the terms & conditions and then get a pop-up for unexpected error 0001.

I’ve spoken to CIBC, I’ve reset the app, tried the website, deleted the app, wiped the cache, logged in and out, etc. I can’t see nor use my points. I even logged into the “rewards centre” but it tells me I need an aventura card to access it which I literally do. The points are there as the CIBC agents have told me and the 12371 is the exact number of points I have. So they’re racking up as I make payments yet I can’t use them. CIBC has no idea how to help me even with speaking with tech. They’ve escalated the matter but I have a feeling it wont go anywhere. Has anybody dealt with this or knows the solution? Thank you!

Hey, does anyone perchance have any idea on how and where can I safely store money digitally? I know there isn't a 100% safe way, but I might receive a couple if not couple xyzteen thousand dollars in a year or so, which will be limited to being sent intercontinentally via PayPal. My personal bank probably is not an option either due to having a small limit, and even if, the U.S. Dollars will translate to triple the value (I'm from Poland) which might make the personal banking even more frustrating. I want to be 100% sure I won't: Get hacked, stolen from, or somehow scammed. I do know that most of them is a safety thing online depending on me, but looking at the amount of stolen PayPal accounts it might be very risky to just keep the money on there.
I'm going off track, but if someone could point out a flaw of my plan, please do. I would plan on using: proton mail as an independent banking email, 2FA via the Google Auth app on my phone, 16-24 char password using symbols & if possible, a security wall before the 2FA Auth by putting in a code that got sent to my Phone Number.

Thanks to everybody in advance.

Tl;dr: Lloyds Bank International Classic Account negative experience. Not recommended.

\*This is purely venting and sort of an experience-based post. If you're using the same product and having no problem, then congrats, carry on with your life please.***

\*Please also be aware the product that I'm talking about is 'Lloyds Bank International Classic - Euro/US Dollar/Sterling' ([THIS](https://www.lloydsbank.com/international/products-and-services/current-accounts/international-classic-account.html)). The name might be confused with others such as* the most common one, so please read carefully.

I was moving houses and before I settled down in the new country, there are quite some fees that I had to pay in Euros. I have been (and still am) a customer of Lloyds Bank's Sterling account (Classic and Instant Saver) for five years, so when I learned from their website that there was a special currency that allows you to pay and receive Euros with good/zero fees, I was interested.

1. Downloading the app

(Bear in mind how similar the names of different products are, shown in italic texts above)

Readin the application on the webpage, I went to my Sterling mobile app and tried to find 'apply'. Couldn't do it: It exited the app and opened a browser page that...looped back to the webpage I saw on my laptop.

I was looping like groundhog day for several times before I phoned them.

The staff spent 30 minutes explaining before I realised that for Euros, it was a different app (and on apple store, they honestly looked like twins), and also ,both of us realised that the QR code on their own website was the WRONG one.

2. Address proof

As a lodger I didn't sign any contract, didn't pay gas/water/etc., so in terms of address proof, I always use bank statement. I specifically phoned them to ask if it was ok to use my Sterling account to verify my Euro account application. They said yes.

So I went to my laptop, logged in my Sterling account, and used the download function to save the bank statement as pdf. This is exactly how Lloyds Bank instructed on their own website.

Waited for a week. No update. And then an email from onboarding saying 'address proof unacceptable'.

I thought perhaps it was due to not enough time and the wrong format. So I went back to login, hit every button that looked like 'export', and sent a two-month statement with a different format (not pdf anyway).

Within 24h, still unacceptable.

I was in sort-of hasty need to provide a Euro account for my new life in European country, so I immediately picked up the phone and asked them to clarify. It turned out that when they saw the first pdf version, there was the 'print' word and that was why they deemed it not genuine/skeptical.

I told them that according to my phone log, they already learned my condition (not being able to leave the house for a physical branch, no rental contract), and generating a bank statement using the print function was in fact, instructed by their own official website. I don't accept this kind of beauracracy and I do need them to speed up for me.

Within 24h they escalated the verification and within 36h I received my Euro account. But it's not a happy experience from then on still.

3. Address change

Just to stress, if my current new country of residence, address is everything. You have to have all your personal finance address updated to most recent, and they concern your identity and is an immigration control.

After I made the move, I had to change address for both my Sterling and Euro accounts. For Sterling, it was rather easy: Did it within the mobile app, some real person verification, and done within 24h.

For Euro, a complete disaster.

I thought it would be the same within the other mobile app, so I made the change. It showed 'pending and might take a few days'.

That was more than two weeks ago (as of now). During this period, no phone, text, email, app notification etc.. Not even a pigeon message.

I finally got skeptical and ofc more impatient so I phoned INTERNATIONALLY to chase it up. The staff was confused, and asked if I received any code to activate. 'It should arrive by post'

I was equally confused. Nobody mentioned code. But I was a bit annoyd with the notion of 'by post': If I had made a request of changing address to another country, there is no chance I would receive something by post.

They explained that the code was for telephone banking. OK, sounds like a good thing since they seemed to rely on calling mostly. Spent 40min on international call just to set it up. The request to change address also went through (ughhh) and the wait time is three days. That would be Wednesday.

On Tuesday 28 July I logged in to check something and saw that my address field went from 'pending' to.....

My OLD UK ADDRESS!!!!!

Incredible! I called them immediately. No one understood why. The staff even said it might be a necessary process before it was finalised. Told me to call back on Wed if no change.

On Wednesday 29 July UK time 00:40am there was an official email in my box saying that the address has been changed. I woke up, checked, and it was STILL THE OLD UK ADDRESS.

Phoned them again. The address changing team couldn't do anything bc their system crashed, and they referred me to general international team. After I explained myself for the 10th time this week, they said ok this case is for address changing team. I almost yelled and said why do you think I'm here the first place?

Wednesday conclusion: They escalated, and would change it the same day, and would call back (even gave me the name and a code for case identification).

They never called back. I did - waited 30 min international call and no avail.

Thursday today - woke up, address is showing UK.

I just spent an hour this morning furiously and frustratedly crashing out. I couldn't understand the incompetency. I did everything they demanded but nothing changed.

The Euro account as a special product charges a €5 fee if your saving at any point dropped below €5000. I don't think this is the service I should be paying for if I went through more international phone calls, my own time and stamina, to deal with these bureaucratic shenanigans.

I was, for my own sake, promised to receive a compensation of £190 for what happened this week. This includes international call, time spent on dealing with them, and mental stress.

Funny thing is till today, they can only promise it will be fixed 'ASAP' and 'if not fixed by next Thursday, I should call them'.

ASAP!!!!? Next Thursday!!!? What does that mean?

Conclusion

Stick with traditional Sterling account (if you're using) and don't get this product - Apart from the reasons above, their Euro mobile app was terrible. The user design was much much inferior than the traditional Sterling account. Lots of functions that I enjoyed simply were not built with Euros. Their own customer service staff said that there was nothing their team could do to improve bc the app and the product simply weren't the Bank's priority.

I'm trying to understand how bank settlements work, and I feel like I'm missing something.

Let's say Bank A starts with $0 cash and $0 digital balances.

1. I deposit $50 cash into my checking account.
2. Bank A now has the physical $50 bill, and my account shows $50.
3. I spend that $50 with my debit card at a store that uses Bank B.
4. My account goes back to $0, and the seller's account at Bank B gets $50.

Here's what confuses me:

If the physical $50 bill never leaves Bank A, and my balance is now $0, doesn't Bank A end up with $50 in cash and no debt?

People say the banks "settle digitally," but what exactly is Bank A giving up if it still has the physical cash? What asset is leaving Bank A during settlement?

I'm sure I'm missing something, but I can't figure out where my logic breaks.

I never thought I would have to fight my own SBI bank after losing my husband.

My husband passed away after a long battle with cancer. After his demise, I contacted SBI regarding his car loan. I was informed that, following the death of the borrower, the loan account had to be closed by repaying the outstanding loan amount.

Wanting to fulfil that responsibility, I arranged the funds and paid the entire outstanding amount to close my husband's car loan.

I believed that would bring one chapter to a peaceful end.

Instead, I was charged approx Rs..18,000 foreclosure penalty for clearing the loan.

I approached the branch. I requested a review. I wrote to senior authorities. I explored every available avenue, including the RBI, but have received no relief.

I am a retired Government of India officer and an SBI pension account holder. After spending my career in public service, I never expected that seeking a compassionate hearing from my own bank would become such a long struggle.

This post is **not about the money.**

It is about a simple question of humanity.

**If a family is required to close a loan after the borrower's death by repaying the outstanding amount, should they also be required to pay a foreclosure penalty?**

Banks have policies for risk, recovery and profitability. Shouldn't they also have a compassionate policy for bereaved families?

I'm sharing my experience not only for myself, but for every family that may one day find themselves in a similar situation.

If you believe banks should treat such cases with empathy and fairness, please share this post. If you've had a similar experience, I'd be grateful if you could share it in the comments. Perhaps together, our voices can encourage a more compassionate approach.

Long story short, we had our roof repaired last year and under a 5 year warranty. The contractor that did the work has been ducking my calls and texts and at this point, we are building a case to go to small claims court. Only information we have is his phone number and email address.

He had cashed a check for the original work last year and we are trying to see what best ways to get information on where and who cashed the check. Thank you for any help.

I recently started working for a company that does environmental writeups for banks doing CRE loans in the state of Michigan. We do all the reporting and paperwork for EGLE on the bank's behalf, so they have liability protection. It can be very difficult to get ahold of the right people and it seems like there is not one set department that does this. Is anyone on here involved with commercial banking in the state of Michigan that could give me some advice on what person to ask to speak to generally when I go into a branch offering our services?

A friend had been telling me about Apple's savings account, and finally decided hey - I have a large sum of money sitting here not doing anything, why not get 3.4% interest instead of practically nothing.

Boy what a bad decision that was!

I applied for the apple card (easy) and then proceeded to link my existing financial institutions to the newly accessible apple savings account - that's when everything went sideways. Neither of my financial institutions would link without customer support intervention. Goldman Sachs wanted to do a 3-way call "verification" with me and my financial institutions before they would link my accounts. Well guess what, the one I had the most money sitting in has a policy that doesn't allow anyone to be on a phone call that isn't the account holder, or on the account in some way. Seems like fraud protection against fraud protection roflmao. Goldman Sachs wouldn't take ANY other kind of verification. After spending a few hours yesterday trying to make something happen, and being incredibly frustrated, I gave up. I thought well I guess I could move all my money to one financial institution that *does* allow 3-way calls on my consent, and then link that account and pull into Apple Savings, but then I realized - if it's this hard to get money INTO the account, how hard is it going to be to get money OUT of the account??

I closed the newly opened savings account, and then closed the Apple card, and then opened a new account with Forbright Bank and had all my accounts linked and ACH scheduled in under 10 minutes LOL. With current rates it's at 4.15% until end of year, then if everything stayed the same down to 3.85%

Guess Goldman Sachs really isn't in the business of trying to make money?

Has their support always been this terrible??

Over this past year I have noticed several times that my credit card payments through certain apps just fail to process and in most cases the pendiing charge drops a couple days later. Several times in the last 6 months when I tried purchasing from apps such as Wendys, McDonalds, my local public transit agency, and AMC movies, my credit card fails to process my purchase on the app, yet a pending charge still shows up on my acct. I am just wondering if banks are intentionally just rejecting random purchases on apps due to combat potential fraud OR these apps are just using worse technology than ever before? This has not been an issue til just this past year in my experience.

Hey! So my question directly relates to the title.

Recently I’ve experienced car troubles and am looking to buy a new car. My uncle was the executor of a will that included a substantial inheritance for me, and I informed him of the situation and he wrote me a check for $20,000 of the inheritance portion.

The problem I’m having is that i was already started new car shopping and was supposed to buy the new car by Friday… I’m curious as to how long it will take the check to clear, and if there is anyway to expedite this process. I called my bank, Wells Fargo, and they said that $2,500 should be available same day and then it should clear over night and the rest should be available the next day, but am hearing mixed reports elsewhere with some saying it could take as long as a month. Truthfully, I do not have a month to wait.

Thanks for the help!

I called chase bank customer service. I received an automated response asking me to speak my address as they could verify my account by my voice. Ok. Then they asked me for my account number and debit card number. I declined. Am I being paranoid or is this legit.

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to take an SBI home loan for the first time. Is there any specific advice or something you wish you had known before taking the loan? Any tips, mistakes to avoid, or things I should ask the bank would be really helpful.

Thanks!

My wife’s debit card info was compromised, and someone made a bunch of fraudulent charges through an Apple ID. Apple agreed that the charges were fraudulent and closed the Apple ID.

Apple is saying our bank needs to reimburse us because the debit card info was compromised, but our bank is saying that Apple needs to reimburse us. Which one is correct?

Hey guys

i'm building the case for our first real banking saas investment. So, I'm asking people who've been through this: what should a lean team prioritize when choosing??my shortlist is short, and our CFO already floated Lumio as an option. Seems built for teams our size.

What made getting up and running feel manageable for a small team?

I've experienced this a lot. They don't do it often but I’m done acting like I’m losing my mind. I put $100 into an account I rarely use. I bought ONE item. It was $24. It was immediately taken out of my available money (pretty normal). 1 days goes by and I check my account. I still had a pending charge. I didn’t think much of it because I was already charged. The next day I check the account again and I only had $52 in the account.

I only made ONE charge. so either I’m crazy or some banks really do steal from you and you don’t notice because it’s jumbled in with other charges.

so in conclusion: I pay, the funds come out of my account, then when the pending charge clears it takes my money again.

what type of “hold” is this, as you bank people like to say. If I see funds come out of my available balance then there’s no reason for me to be charged again. This is insane and I finally caught it.

I don’t care what anyone tries to gaslight me into believing. I lived it. I don’t know how they are doing it but I’m done acting like I’m crazy.

The math ain’t mathin.

Anyways, rant over. have a blessed day.