Bank Asks: Why do you want your money?

tyllwyd

Innys wrote:

Other posters to this thread have said that the bansk ask what you want to use it for to abide by their money laundering regulations. Come again? The money is going OUT, not IN. How can withdrawing money have anything to do with money laundering? After all, the money laundering regulations were followed (presumably) when it was deposited.

I don't know, I'm just guessing - but if someone went in and withdrew £3000 cash and said it was to buy a car ... and then went in a few months later and withdrew £2000 and said it was to buy a car ... and then went in a few months later and withdrew £5000 and said it was to buy a car - then that might trigger some kind of an alarm. Do you see what I am trying to say?

The money might have been deposited by what seemed to be a legitimate way but turned out to be dodgy - maybe money transferred in from somewhere outside the EU where regulations aren't so strict - and now it has been turned into cash.

scottish_blend

tyllwyd wrote:

I don't know, I'm just guessing - but if someone went in and withdrew £3000 cash and said it was to buy a car ... and then went in a few months later and withdrew £2000 and said it was to buy a car ... and then went in a few months later and withdrew £5000 and said it was to buy a car - then that might trigger some kind of an alarm. Do you see what I am trying to say?

nope- sorry I'm with the OP on this one.

so what if you wanted to withdraw money regularly to buy cars as you say? who's to say you're not buying them cheaply, doingthem up and selling them as a line of work, or a sideline.

Sorry - but if I wish to withdraw a sum of MY money from MY account - I will, and I won't be telling them what it's for. It none of their damn business whether I'm going to invest it elsewhere or plonk it all on the favourite in the National imho.

Katyag

To me banks asking what you want to do with your cash when you withdraw is is like the doctors receptionist asking you whats wrong when you ask to make an appointment!!! None of their business!!!:rotfl:

But i dare say i wouldnt have the guts to tell them that!

I was once, when depositing £4.5k into a current account, told 'You're not going to leave that there are you?'

tyllwyd

scottish_blend wrote:

so what if you wanted to withdraw money regularly to buy cars as you say? who's to say you're not buying them cheaply, doingthem up and selling them as a line of work, or a sideline.

There's nothing to stop you doing that. But that's not to say that a string of cash transactions won't trigger some kind of investigation behind the scenes (HM Revenue and Customs might be interested, for one).

I've never worked in a bank, but I know that accountants and solicitors have a duty to report transactions if they have any suspicion (or even if they ought to have any suspicion) that it might involve money laundering.

climbgirl

Katyag wrote:

I was once, when depositing £4.5k into a current account, told 'You're not going to leave that there are you?'

That sounds like a sound question, for once! The current account had a rubbish interest rate, no doubt and I imagine they would advise you to put it in a savings account (hopefully!)

The questions are irritating though - I tried to open a couple of instant access savers with the bank I have my current account at. They were intended as utilities pots, that kind of thing - few hundred quid in there, max. "Why do you want to open them?" "Why are you doing your utilities like this?" "Why aren't you opening this account?" (the one he suggested had notice period for withdrawals). Even when I said "I've done my research, this is the account I want, it's not really any of your concern" he still tried to sell me accounts with poor interest rates, various loans, "premier" accounts with fees......

He was most concerned that I didn't want to be added to their mailing list for new products. It wasn't until I started quoting accounts with far higher rates at him that he shut the hell up!

Biggles

That sounds like a sound question, for once! The current account had a rubbish interest rate, no doubt and I imagine they would advise you to put it in a savings account (hopefully!)

But the point is, they want you to put in one of their savings accounts, and quickly before you transfer it to ICICI or somebody else.

Mrs Biggles used to get fed up with this line of questioning when she was paying a cheque in for me, and got into the habit of saying, "That money is just resting in our account" (with apologies to Father Ted)!

regularsaver1

there are certain withdrawal regulations set up - where cashiers have to look at the activity on their account (come on its their job) . if irregular transactions they will ask questions and have to get authorised

remember they will say what you said to their manager who will probabaly have a go at them

ashcarrot

Tell em the data protection act prevents you from answering their qn.

regularsaver1

cashiers have to report anything that they see as possibly suspicious - failiure to report means ican mean heavy implications

anniecave

Katyag wrote:

To me banks asking what you want to do with your cash when you withdraw is is like the doctors receptionist asking you whats wrong when you ask to make an appointment!!! None of their business!!!:rotfl:

OT my doctors receptionist does ask this for every patient for every appointment as we have a walk in service. So they can decide whether you are urgent or not.

So it's basically all just money laundering stuff really.

I had this when I opened a savings account (I think it was Cahoot). If you were depositing more than £1000 they wanted to know where the money had come from, eg inheritance, reinvestment, sale of assets etc etc. I just put re-investment. It's just box ticking for them I reckon.

Same as I opened a regular savings account and they wanted to know what I was saving for. "To get a higher rate of interest than your other accounts" wasn't an option. Saving for a car or the deposit on a house was listed.

Interestingly enough I've never had LTSB asking me qustions. Halifax kept trying to sell me their maxi ISAs and PEPs and things a while ago.