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Comment by bad_haircut72 | Hacker News Reader

Recently my wife got locked out of her bank account - all cards blocked, unable to log in to the website or app, so effectively her whole finances were frozen - because she was trying to order a new bank card over the phone and some system couldnt do voice recognition (which we did not know they even used). We were getting ready to get on a plane to NYC, from California (she banks with TD bank) but after a tearful session of phoning anyone and everyone we could at TD, suddenly it magically got reversed.

The problem is not just the tech, its building systems where humans are essentially slaves to the system, with no recourse or power over whats happening.

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Few things are more important in modern life than access to your money. That's why I would never use an online bank. I use a local credit union but "local" with actual branch offices you can walk into and talk to a human are the important thing.

TD bank has branches but that's not super helpful if you're at the airport. the helpful thing is having a "relationship manager", someone you can call or email directly - you can get that at a big bank or a small one, and you don't need tons of assets, a lot of banks its having your direct deposit with them is enough to qualify for some special relationship.

Online banks typically offer much more competitive financial products. I have some HYSA accounts at 4% APY, that’s not achievable with a CU or traditional bank.

The solution is the same solution as any financial risk: diversification. I have many accounts at many banks. If any one of them goes down, I’m fine. If multiple go down, I’m still fine in the interim.

My CU has 6-month CDs at over 4% right now.

CDs are okay but I don’t prefer them due to lack of liquidity. There’s basically no reason to choose a CD over a HYSA at the same rate.

The minumum deposits are a lot lower. If you have a HYSA with low balance requirements, sure that's great.

I tend to think the same way, but I've personally had far more issues with my local (largest in the region) credit union. Their (human) customer support reps frequently make mistakes processing my share certificates that automation would have otherwise avoided.

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