HSBC closed my account?

PROLIANT

sutton111 wrote: »

or crossfiring ive heard people mention that (unsure what it means)

A cheque is written, deposited, and an account provisionally credited, with a virtual amount created. At the same time, the fraudster opens Internet banking facilities, and on several occasions on the same day, that virtual amount will be transferred back to the account from which the original cheque was issued. When the money is sent out of the account, it goes out as real money, and lands back in the original account as real money

ro888

new2civvystreet wrote: »

Money laundering is (in it's most simplest way) concealing the origin of money obtained from criminal means. A student might be doing a small business in stolen mobile phones; for example. If the money is coming into your account from lots of different bank accounts instead of the student loans company/your parents bank account or an employer that will immedietely look dodgy. Or you might be bringing in large amounts of cash and depositing it in at regular intervals with no other money (like a student loan) coming in.

All my money was given from my parents. Normally, I used them to pay my fees, bills and occasional transfer to my brothers studying in foreign country. All the transfer is between family and all the accounts are also in HSBC. It's nothing more normal than that.

oldwiring

sutton111 wrote: »

or crossfiring ive heard people mention that (unsure what it means) but ive read people say that.

These links may help your education/
http://www.doubletongued.org/index.php/citations/cross_firing_11/

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/cross-firing.html

new2civvystreet

ro888 wrote: »

All my money was given from my parents. Normally, I used them to pay my fees, bills and occasional transfer to my brothers studying in foreign country. All the transfer is between family and all the accounts are also in HSBC. It's nothing more normal than that.

OK, so just to get this straight; you have no student loan and no job. Money comes in from your parents bank accounts and then you're sending some to bank accounts abroad but these are HSBC accounts.

I don't have enough knowledge to know if that would be an issue. Maybe shelfstacker might have an opinion. Some banks do expect that your student loan is paid into the bank account; they might suspect that you have a student account elsewhere that your loan is being paid into. Which is a bit rubbish for the people that don't want a student loan! (this wouldn't be a money laundering thing, just to do with the fact that they don't want you to have student accounts elsewhere).

Last thing I can think of is that they don't like the countries where you're sending the money to your brothers. I'm going out on a limb here but maybe a simple letter explaining where your money comes from and where it goes and why might encourage them to consider re-opening the account?

ro888

new2civvystreet wrote: »

OK, so just to get this straight; you have no student loan and no job. Money comes in from your parents bank accounts and then you're sending some to bank accounts abroad but these are HSBC accounts.

I don't have enough knowledge to know if that would be an issue. Maybe shelfstacker might have an opinion. Some banks do expect that your student loan is paid into the bank account; they might suspect that you have a student account elsewhere that your loan is being paid into. Which is a bit rubbish for the people that don't want a student loan! (this wouldn't be a money laundering thing, just to do with the fact that they don't want you to have student accounts elsewhere).

Last thing I can think of is that they don't like the countries where you're sending the money to your brothers. I'm going out on a limb here but maybe a simple letter explaining where your money comes from and where it goes and why might encourage them to consider re-opening the account?

My brothers are studying in Japan. They don't like Japan, do they?
Also, I was going to apply a HSBC student bank account. There was only one more step to go through. However, they just kicked me out.

So, the conclusion is :
1. If you don't use your account quite often, it may be closed.
2. If you put less than 500 into your account every month, you will be downgrade to current account.
3. If you put more than 500, you will get a current advance account.
4. If you put too much, you can have it closed without reason...

ShelfStacker_3

If you're unemployed, but you have vast sums of money going into the account then going out to foreign accounts (HSBC or not) then that would look like classic, if fairly obvious, money laundering - it is those sort of unusual transactions which get flagged up, either by systems, by bank staff or even by cashiers if they suspect something while you're there (it can be done, I've done it, similar circumstances). As new2civvystreet suggested, there are numerous countries which banks have to take specific care over transactions to and customers from, simply because those locales are at risk for money laundering, fraud etc.

Basically, if you have an innocent explanation for this behaviour, call HSBC and try and explain your side. If not, then... well, go screw, really

(Disclaimer as in sig, do not know official side, going by resolutions found on forum etc.)

EDIT: Just seen your latest post - Japan isn't on the list, but on the face of it what you're doing still seems a little bit dodgy to the bank.

BTW, at any rate the bank cannot tell you under any circumstances that you're suspected of money laundering. That would be tipping off, and is illegal.

dougz_2

These stories are making me paranoid now. I have recently been moving my savings back and forth through my current account, because with internet savings accounts the only way to withdraw seems to be focused through the same linked account. Whereas in the old days you would get a cheque with the proceeds from the old savings account that could be payed straight in to the new institution without troubling your current account.

I am now thinking that maybe would it be safer to have more than one current account to at least split up the volumes a bit? Or maybe you can insist they still send a cheque instead for some reason?

ShelfStacker_3

You shouldn't be paranoid about that. If it's just you moving your savings around, in and out of accounts in your own name electronically, that's what you're supposed to do, and the banks probably wouldn't care. I certainly wouldn't consider that cause for suspicion... it's if it comes in en masse and leaves quickly to other peoples' accounts, especially abroad, after not resting very long, and the behaviour looks different to what the customer usually does, that would be flagged up. You moving a few grand out of your savings every so often wouldn't really be a cause for concern.

Extant

I feel as though I should start closing some Barclays bank accounts.

I don't want our customers to feel left out.

new2civvystreet

Don't look at my account then. I've just had my pension lump sum payout put into my current account by my ex-employer (and I'm about 40 years short of 65). I'm waiting for a phone call to either tell me it looks dodgy and my account is being frozen, or someone ringing up trying to persuade me to invest it somewhere.

Then again, it'll only get spotted when someone actually deals with my account because I've rang up telephone banking/gone into branch right?