STB Current Account Closing

Anthorn

A sad day for those who support the alternative financial market but it had to happen sooner or later in the circumstances. Secure Trust Bank Current Account is closing and new accounts cannot now be opened.

As you know, our Current Account is closing
Following the launch of fee-free basic bank accounts by the largest banks and building societies we’re closing our Current Account on 12 September 2016.

https://www.securetrustbank.com/login-to-your-account

STB appear to be leaving their customers up the creek without a paddle and directing customers to open basic accounts offered by banks and building societies.
https://www.securetrustbank.com/faq

There are some offerings on search engine sponsored ads which bear the title of Secure Trust Bank. Please note that whatever account you open it is not a Secure Trust Bank Current Account. However whether STB has sanctioned the use of their name by others is unclear. I have not seen any comment from STB itself about it.

The_pc_tech

My deepest sympathy if your employment is on the line over this but if you are in financial difficulty (I thought this was aimed at those people) what benefit was there to them by taking a management fee.

Sounds like progress to me.

premierfella

I've also thought the account failed the cost/benefit test, especially more recently as banks have been dragged towards making basic bank accounts even easier to get without fabricated barriers, but I believe the benefit of the STB account often mentioned was the "free" prepaid card automated transfers to assist with budgeting.

Anthorn

The_pc_tech wrote: »

My deepest sympathy if your employment is on the line over this but if you are in financial difficulty (I thought this was aimed at those people) what benefit was there to them by taking a management fee.

Sounds like progress to me.

At the time they started there wasn't much of an alternative. The banks denied an application for an account and we were stuck. STB provided an account with most of the functions of a bank current account without a credit search.

What I've seen is a bank which is self-destructing. They cancel their fee-paid budgeting account which may have been due to competition from other similar services and transform it into a fee-paid current account and that is now gone due to competition from the new basic bank accounts. They should have stayed with the budgeting account which is still a service which is needed.

colsten

Anthorn wrote: »

They should have stayed with the budgeting account which is still a service which is needed.

What is a fee-paid budgeting account and why is it needed?

Anthorn

colsten wrote: »

What is a fee-paid budgeting account and why is it needed?

Er ... for budgeting? Similar to thinkmoney. Money is paid in, bills are paid out and what remains is available to spend. Moneyway is still going but is confined to finance such as car finance.

colsten

Anthorn wrote: »

Er ... for budgeting? Similar to thinkmoney. Money is paid in, bills are paid out and what remains is available to spend. Moneyway is still going but is confined to finance such as car finance.

Millions of people run their budgets without paying a penny for an account, and they do it better, with the help of pen and paper, a spreadsheet or a personal finance package.

System

Aren't Secure Trust the Labour party's bank after the Co-op bank kicked them to the curb?

The_pc_tech

I went through a stage myself of being a bit reckless money-wise, noones fault but my own.

I lived on my overdraft for a number of years and racked up quite a bit in debt (which I should be able to complete paying off in the next couple of years)

Eventually I realised I couldn't carry on the way I was as I was paying out a fee for a packaged account and interest on the overdraft.

I paid off the overdraft with some overtime I'd earnt, switched banks onto a no monthly fee account.

I opened a second account and put my regular outgoing DDs on that and set up a standing order to feed it on pay day

Though I can see the account on my Internet banking I disregard the balance as money rhat is already spent.

This has helped me with my budgeting and to keep out of my overdraft.

I do totally agree that financial education should be on the curriculum.