Barclays closed my current account - warning to other expats

GeordieinAotearoa

ToastLady said:

Revolut have opened in New Zealand now, albeit without a banking licence at the moment. Would it be possible to have your pension paid in there, and then you can whip it out to your own bank in New Zealand after currency conversion?

Unfortunately not, but thanks for the suggestion.

Section62

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

Voyager2002

km1500 said:

yes it is annoying - it would presumably be equally difficult for me (living in the uk)  to get a current account in another country

That is very far from the truth: I have opened bank accounts in several different countries, usually because I was working there. My US bank account was opened simply because my employer (in West Africa) paid me from an office in the USA.

friolento

Section62 said:

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

The FCA has no say in the regulations of other countries. Banks, however, have to comply with the regulations of the countries they are offering a service in. Providing a current account to a resident of country X means that they have to have a licence, or a passporting arrangement, for country X.

Section62

friolento said:

Section62 said:

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

The FCA has no say in the regulations of other countries. Banks, however, have to comply with the regulations of the countries they are offering a service in. Providing a current account to a resident of country X means that they have to have a licence, or a passporting arrangement, for country X.

So what banking regulations changed in New Zealand as a result of Brexit?

Because if the FCA are saying there is no regulatory issue (from a UK perspective) then it could only be something New Zealand have done (or not done) which has led Barclays to close the OP's account ("due to Brexit")

...or it could be that the somewhat more obvious explanation is correct - that Barclays simply don't want to provide banking facilities to people not living in the UK.

Bostonerimus1

Section62 said:

friolento said:

Section62 said:

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

The FCA has no say in the regulations of other countries. Banks, however, have to comply with the regulations of the countries they are offering a service in. Providing a current account to a resident of country X means that they have to have a licence, or a passporting arrangement, for country X.

...or it could be that the somewhat more obvious explanation is correct - that Barclays simply don't want to provide banking facilities to people not living in the UK.

I think this is the issue. The costs and fraud risks associated with overseas account holders probably make them "bad for business" in a strict sense and being a long term account holder has little value today. I had an account with Nat West for 15 years after I left the UK and eventually received a letter saying that they would be closing the account because of lack of activity. I had ample time to contact Nat West and they offered to keep the account open if I was going to use it, but I decided to close it and withdrew the balance of a few hundred pounds.

we’ve certainly gained in convenience in so many ways with internet banking and cashless payments, but many less common services have been sacrificed on the alter of efficiency.

GeoffTF

Section62 said:

friolento said:

Section62 said:

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

The FCA has no say in the regulations of other countries. Banks, however, have to comply with the regulations of the countries they are offering a service in. Providing a current account to a resident of country X means that they have to have a licence, or a passporting arrangement, for country X.

So what banking regulations changed in New Zealand as a result of Brexit?

Because if the FCA are saying there is no regulatory issue (from a UK perspective) then it could only be something New Zealand have done (or not done) which has led Barclays to close the OP's account ("due to Brexit")

...or it could be that the somewhat more obvious explanation is correct - that Barclays simply don't want to provide banking facilities to people not living in the UK.

When we were EU members that had to provide the service if you went to another EU country and it did not cost them much more to include NZ. Now that they do not have to provide the service at all, they have decided to discontinue it.

km1500

Voyager2002 said:

km1500 said:

yes it is annoying - it would presumably be equally difficult for me (living in the uk)  to get a current account in another country

That is very far from the truth: I have opened bank accounts in several different countries, usually because I was working there. My US bank account was opened simply because my employer (in West Africa) paid me from an office in the USA.

yes but presumably you had a local US address. ie you were not living in the UK and trying to open a US bank account ?

Section62

GeoffTF said:

Section62 said:

friolento said:

Section62 said:

GeordieinAotearoa said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

I do! Barclays said as much.

Of course they would.  So much more palatable than telling you they can't be bothered to keep your accounts open when it is more hassle (to them) than it is worth.  A standard MO of corporations to say "we are unable to" when what they mean is "we don't want to".

Somewhere there is a quote from the FCA saying that whether to provide accounts to people living overseas is a commercial decision for the individual banks, not a matter of regulation.  If I can find the quote I'll copy it here (unless someone finds it before me)

The first post in this thread -

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6474399/barclays-to-close-accounts-of-all-british-expats/p1

The FCA has no say in the regulations of other countries. Banks, however, have to comply with the regulations of the countries they are offering a service in. Providing a current account to a resident of country X means that they have to have a licence, or a passporting arrangement, for country X.

So what banking regulations changed in New Zealand as a result of Brexit?

Because if the FCA are saying there is no regulatory issue (from a UK perspective) then it could only be something New Zealand have done (or not done) which has led Barclays to close the OP's account ("due to Brexit")

...or it could be that the somewhat more obvious explanation is correct - that Barclays simply don't want to provide banking facilities to people not living in the UK.

When we were EU members that had to provide the service if you went to another EU country and it did not cost them much more to include NZ. Now that they do not have to provide the service at all, they have decided to discontinue it.

^The second time it has been claimed banks were in some way "forced" to keep accounts open if people moved to another EU country (although not if the person remained in the UK) - but is that really the case?  What was the regulation that required banks to maintain the accounts of people as they moved round Europe, but not if they stayed at home? (genuine question)

Is your assertion "it did not cost them much more to include NZ" based on some kind of evidence, or just a guess?

Does anyone actually know whether Barclays were providing a service in New Zealand under NZ regulations, or whether they were providing a service in the UK which just happened to be used by people living elsewhere? ....Possibly without Barclays knowing where in the world their permanent residence is.

wmb194

GeordieinAotearoa said:

wmb194 said:

jaypers said:

wmb194 said:

jaypers said:

Blame Brexit!

Hah hah! Really it’s because post-GFC Barclays gave up on its global ambitions. HSBC’s still hanging in there though (well, not in New Zealand).

It is absolutely because of Brexit

I'm sorry, you're going to have to spell out to me how it's relevant to the OP in New Zealand and Barclays outside the EU. The article you've linked doesn't explain it to me.

Edit: And Barclays used to have continental Europe EU subsidiaries but post-GFC it closed most (all?) of them so of course it no longer has local banking licences.

Barclays actually told me that it was because of Brexit. Something to do with changes in cross-border financial regulation as a result of our leaving the EU.

Then why does it still offer accounts to expats or whomever in 70 countries? That was just an answer to fob you off with or from someone who doesn't really know. It's probably more to do with a customer's net worth - it wants international customers with deposits/investments with it of £100k+. It does seem that it does not want to offer accounts in New Zealand, though, so there might something specific about this country.

https://international.barclays.com/#:~:text=Wherever%20you%20are%20in%20the,global%20ambitions%20for%20330%20years.