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Comment by JumpCrisscross | Hacker News Reader

> You mostly can't talk to anyone

No phone number should be a dealbreaker for banking. 99% of the time, you don’t want to talk to a banker. But that 1% of the time can make or break you for months or years.

These start-ups (e.g. Bank Simple, Revolut, et cetera) prey on consumers who have only experienced the 99%. You don’t want to have a 1% event, like fraud, or an issue overseas, or a liquidity crisis, with a service you can’t talk to. (It’s also bad enough when it’s your first time with an issue. You don’t want to be banking with someone who’s (a) never solved that problem before either and (b) not available to talk to.)

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> No phone number should be a dealbreaker for banking. 99% of the time, you don’t want to talk to a banker. But that 1% of the time can make or break you for months or years.

To be fair, even having a phone number may not help. I spent four months at the beginning of the year trying to get HSBC to close a business account. When visiting the branch I was told I needed to phone head office as they deal with business accounts. After speaking to first line customer support I was told many times "someone will call you back" but nobody did.

Eventually they closed it, but I never received a refund for the account charges between when I requested the closure and it actually being closed, which I was promised.

> 99% of the time, you don’t want to talk to a banker. But that 1% of the time can make or break you for months or years.

This is why I still use my local Sparkasse (credit union) and pay ~9€ a month. They can sort out pretty much everything instantly - need a second card for your s/o, a secondary account for handling freelancer income, or a loan? No problem, show up and get what you want.

Additionally: when you're up for buying a house and all the lender bank has to look is the credit score, you will be paying more interest than if you apply for a credit at the bank that has handled your business over decades. None of the "new online banks" does real estate financing.

> Additionally: when you're up for buying a house and all the lender bank has to look is the credit score, you will be paying more interest than if you apply for a credit at the bank that has handled your business over decades.

Which country are you in? This has most definitely not been the case for me anywhere I've lived. It's irrelevant if you were a customer with the bank before the mortgage application or not.

[citation required]

In my experience neither credit score nor past business have a significant impact on interest rate. Price and value of the house is everything.

> you will be paying more interest than if you apply for a credit at the bank that has handled your business over decades.

Is this actually true? That would be a real reason for me to do the same, but if not I would prefer my money to stay with the GLS, which invests it ethically.

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