BOA: Oops, they did it again…
I’m guessing that you’ve seen the headlines.
For Bank of America’s Poorest Customers, Banking Just Got More Expensive. (Quartz) Here’s a snippet from the story.
Bank of America this month eliminated its once cutting-edge eBanking program, completing a process it began in 2013. The program, first introduced in 2010, was part of an initiative to bring in customers who were amenable to a digital-only banking experience. For those who wanted IRL customer service and paper statements, the program had a $8.95 monthly fee. But this was waived for customers who agreed to not use a teller and complete all routine transactions digitally.
The new policy, which guts the free eBanking program and moves its customers to a standard Bank of America checking account (with a $12 monthly fee), has sparked unhappiness from current and previous users.The new $12 fee is waived for customers with a daily balance of at least $1,500 or at least one direct deposit of $250 a month, but many of Bank of America’s poorest customers won’t meet those requirements. A petition on Change.org that protests the change in policy has more than 45,000 signatures as of this writing.
As I’m writing this, I realize that I might not have the right headline. “Oops, they did it again.” That isn’t fair to banks. The job of a bank is to make a profit for its shareholders. So when something isn’t profitable enough, they’ll make the change. That isn’t a bad thing. It is the way every for-profit organization is run. It just isn’t great for customers.
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