While I acknowledge that it would take some time before cryptocurrency completely replaces our brick-wall banks as the next finance solution for everyday life, I really worry about the major ills our our banking system today. I hope that things improve for the better, but alas, it keeps getting worse each day. If it would be possible to call a round-table meeting of all stakeholders in the banking system and discuss the way forward, I would have done it. Regrettably, this is not possible.
A lot is sadly wrong with how our banks and banking services are run. In this article, I will highlight just 5 things wrong with out banks today.
One of the banks I use even debits twice on each transfer of funds to another bank. The most embarrassing part is that they also debited me on when funds are sent from another bank to my account. This is how their system is set up. Almost all the banks in this country run that way. They debit customer accounts with high amounts for performing little value transactions and that is really a challenge tthat has eaten into the system.
Take a look at this transaction I made with one of my banks. The transfer was unsuccessful after several attempts. Notice that the money continued to be refunded to my account. It took 24 hours and trying countless times to complete the transaction. I started trying on 22nd April (See red box), and the money finally delivered on 23rd April(See green box).
As a result of the terrible state of bank networks, many customers like me run several accounts with different banks. When one bank network is down or terribly slow, we try the next for a little improved transactions. Basically, almost all the banks have regular several hours of network down time. Customers have to spend hours in the banking hall, waiting for the networks to return to enable them complete a basic transaction. A transaction that should take few seconds or minutes might take hours or days to complete because of poor bank network.
Unfortunately, emergencies do not respect time. They happen any time and we find ourselves needing to access banking services quickly or at odd times. If only banking halls are open to customers at any time of the day, or somehow runs 24/7, we would have less to complain about.
There have been many reported cases of people loosing out during emergencies because they could not access some very important document as a result of the bank not working at that odd hour. I read a story of a young man that missed an important flight and had to pay extra fees to sleep over at the hotel because the bank which is supposed to issue him some travel document does not open on weekends - and it was weekend. Experiences like this abound and this shows or highlights that limited of banks not working round the clock.
The challenge with bank physical structures is that if you could not visit them, you fail to have access to their services. This is so unlike crypto which has been designed to be accessible from any point provided you have a mobile device. Location is a big reason why large populations of people in some areas - especially in developing countries - are unbanked.
One of the commonest issues we have is when some banks prevent you from taking all your money because you must maintain a certain minimum account balance. There are other times too when you are not able to move all your funds or a certain amount of funds because a part of it has be taken by the bank as transaction charges. At other times, the bank could take your fund for performing specialized service like international money transfer. I have been debited by my bank for a recurrent cost which I never setup. These are all unauthorized use of your funds by the bank because you have given them the power to keep and control your funds.
It is not difficult to see why we hail crypto as the next big thing in the world of finance. Cryptocurrencies have liberated us and given us the power to save, move and transact our funds beyond bothers. I strongly believe that no matter how long it takes, cryptocurrencies will still reach mass adoption and enter mainstream, effectively replacing the banks. Until then, the ills of modern banking are many and they seem not to bother about getting their acts right or improving anything.
