Banking Blues

Citibank fraud at Gurgaon could have been avoided

2011-01-08T19:22:00.000-08:00

Not that "Blowing My Own Trumpet" is a regular business practice but
it is merely a fact that i came across this blog while the memory of
this Rs.300-crore SCAM [?] is fresh in everyone's mind.

If you care to go back to the previous post here, there is a mention
of "systems" and that is precisely the commodity that Citibank found
missing at their Gurgaon office.
Or, even if they claim to have had any in place,then it is pretty much
obvious that the systems in place were lacking in the very ingredients
that, though as an afterthought, were found to be absolutely necessary.

Mr. V. Ramakrishnan, the Nobel laureate in Chemistry for 2010 can be
a suitable example to quote about the need for sincerity in any field
of activity, if only for the fact that the author of this blog majored
in Chemistry [ with no formal qualifications in banking ] while Nobel
prize winner Mr. V. Ramakrishnan has no such formal qualification.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
All the Banks and Financial Institutions that feel the need to AUDIT
their internal systems in the wake of this "Citibank episode" should
discuss the matter, take appropriate decision [ as per their relevent
"system in place" ] and call the ADVISOR in...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
[signed]
$$
Sanjeev Suri
C.E.O.
DestiNATION Excellence
Mobile : +91-9818981076
A Professional Consultancy for
Corporates Wanting to Achieve
EXCELLENCE - Worldwide !
===============================

CONSULTANT Available : Are Banks Listening ?

2010-09-04T04:46:00.000-07:00

Every bank claims to have a SYSTEM in place, yet it always is to the
detriment of the customer.
Of course, they will gladly welcome you as a new customer but then,
the responsibility for " customer care " after you become one will
devolve on a separate "UNIT" and not on those people who interacted
with you and convinced you about the bank's MATCHLESS SERVICES.
Sounds familiar ?

CUSTOMER CARE also appears to have a distinctly different meaning
for different BANKS.

Note :
Author of this blog has 22+ years of hardcore experience in
CUSTOMER CARE and confidence in his own ability that he can
provide effective solutions for any bank that is willing to
admit that there is a scope for improvement.
##
WILLINGNESS to improve is the 1st step to achieving EXCELLENCE.

DestiNATION Excellence
A-26, [West Wing - Gr. Floor],
Jangpura Extension, New Delhi
Mobile : 0-9818981076

ICICI DEADLINE ???

2009-02-27T22:15:00.000-08:00

A letter dated February 16,2009 from ICICI Bank
was delivered to me late on February 26 with an
invitation [ or is it a THREAT ? ] :
You are called upon.....for amicable settlement.

The amount of Rs.8071-46 claimed as dues arises
entirely out of Late Charges / Interest etc. to
the tune of Rs.8100* and the same was much less
when the "exact computation" was made in sorry
anticipation of a long drawn out [?} battle for
EFFICIENCY & CUSTOMER CARE !
Sadly, ICICI Bank has shown a pathetic aversion
for both {*I Can Instantly Convince Intelligent
persons - bankers / customers ].

Having been deprived of my Rs.30/- by any petty
swindler may not have been so painful as the job
being handled by ICICI* Bank[*Please See Above].

### DETAILS of the case are already on the blog.
#### And - the undersigned tried contacting the
Bankers at THE GIVEN NUMBER [ # 9350363845 ]
more than five times before posting this blog.

Sanjeev Suri
C.E.O.
DestiNATION Excellence
Mobile : +91-9818981076
A Professional Consultancy for
Corporates Wanting to Achieve
EXCELLENCE - Worldwide !

Saturday, 28 Feb 2009 12:30 PM IST

Readers' Count added on 19 February, 2009

2009-02-19T01:46:00.000-08:00

A Hit counter is being added to warn the
erring bankers that their misdeeds will
definitely reach this many people around
the world !

S

Is Banking the "Be All & End All" for BUSINESS ?

2009-02-02T03:31:00.000-08:00

A simple question ! But, the implications are immense.

If a person is made to run around by the bankers, how
/ when can the normal business be transacted ?

If you are an INTELLIGENT Banker or a HARRIED customer,
please leave your comment/s.

S.S.

FUNNY BanKING - really !! It's Barclays THIS TIME !!

2008-09-03T05:31:00.000-07:00

While 2 months to set "minor things" right may be
the norm - Barclays Bank are PROMPT in what their
top bosses call the "Collection" function :-

Having paid the dues - one receives calls by the
dozen to "confirm if the payment has been made".
Then, patience is what you need [EARLIER NOTES].

But THIS one must take the cake in PROMPTNESS :-
*** SMS-1 Date = 29-Aug Time = 18:11
-------------------------------------------
Thank You for your payment. We have received your
Cheque of Rs.5350 which will be credited to your
Barclaycard account subject to realization.

*** SMS-2 Date = 29-Aug Time = 18:18
--------------------------------------------
Your payment is due on 01 Sep 08. Total:Rs.5349.43;
Min. Due: Rs.4900. Log on to www.barclaycard.in and
pay online! Pls ignore if already paid.

And, we're made to believe "Singh is King" !!

Is One Year Too Soon ??

2008-07-23T01:51:00.000-07:00

I plan to "SUE" ICICI BANK < if this is at all
possible under the antiquated Indian Laws> for
LIBEL, DEFAMATION & BREACH OF TRUST when
my patience finally runs out [circa July'08]!!

The Reason ?
Exactly the same as what caused someone else to
commit suicide in the not too recent past !
And ICICI Bank was magnanimous enough to grant the
widow a "COST / COMPENSATION of Rs. 15 Lakhs".

My PROMPT payment made in June, 2007 made its way
to my Credit Card <# xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-2006> finally
on March 3, 2008
BUT, the accumulation of charges [ their computer
does it's job faithfully on 20th of each month ]
from July 20, 2007 to 20 June, 2008 is proving too
much of a mental burden for me to handle.
## I am confident that - in spite of communication
dated June 23, 2008 [ at Managerial Level ]- there
would be an EXTRA levied on July 20, 2008 as well.

July 23, 2008 : After a full year of trying my patience,
they had the audacity of deputing a representative to
"verify my Residential Address"; they happen to be only
one of the eight banks who were informed by me regarding
my Change of Address [on June 16, 2008] to do so !

Just how soon is "reasonable" ?
The Banking Codes and Standards Board of India with
it's Office in the RBI Building, Mumbai and the Indian
Banks' Association might like to discuss it and decide.
Whether or not they consider it necessary to go public
with their deliberations is another matter altogether !

Sanjeev Suri
C.E.O.
DestiNATION Excellence
Mobile : +91-9818981076
"A Professional Consultancy for
Corporates wanting to Achieve
EXCELLENCE" - World-wide !

P.S. : My apology to my overseas Associate who had to be
interrupted the other day [July 21, 2008] just because of
this "pending" matter. **Phone call from 044-66068888

Finally Figured Out ICICI Bank

2008-05-07T20:12:00.000-07:00

Inefficiency Concerns Inevitable - Can't Improve

On 6/6/2007 my ICICIBank credit card payment
of Rs.2000/- was posted to my OTHER CARD but
within the same CUSTOMER ID. [*My Fault ?? ]
So, on 20/6/2007, i was levied an INTEREST +
TAX amounting to Rs.593.61

On 29/6/2007, they "promised" [i have little
by way of proof] to "do the needful WITHIN 5
DAYS" and reversed these extra charges + tax
on 6/7/2007 [is that proof enough ?].... BUT,
the Rs.2000/- [..Rs.1999.80 after adjustment]
was NOT TRANSFERRED....That's THE STORY !!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
One-Two months of delay being "EXPECTED" from the Indian
Corporates, i did not bother, presuming that things will be
fine ! ALAS - What an Error of Judgement !!
On 4/9/2007, i spoke at some length to their Customer Care
"Representatives" - little knowing that the total time spent
by me during the next 3 months would amount to nearly/more
than two hours.
On 6/12/2007, with one last e-mail, i gave up.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
On 3/3/2008, the "needful" was done [5days ?]
BUT , by now, Interest & Penal Charges were
close to Rs.3500/- & i was asked to PAY UP !!

On 8/4/2008 - following their SMS - i sent an
URGENT e-mail to their resolution centre i.e.
customer.care@icicibank.com AND THEN spoke to
an ICICI Bank representative for nearly 15 mts.

On 7/5/2008 - after all this - there's again an
SMS informing me that [verbatim] :-
Payment of Rs.4037.43 on your ICICIBank Credit
Card 5xxx2006is due on 11-MAY-08.You may pay a
min amt of Rs.380. Please ignore if already
paid. <07-MAY 13:39 ICICIBank>

While i start the painful process [ Previous POSTING ] all over
again, one thing i've finally figured out - what ICICI stands for -
we used to do it as students all the time :-

Inefficiency Concerns Inevitable - Can't Improve

http://www.ss528sv.zoomshare.com

A Pleasant Surprise & The Same Old Story !

2008-04-09T02:06:00.000-07:00

Receiving a response from ICICI Bank within
24 hours as compared to 48 asked for at the
bank's website WAS a Pleasant Surprise.

However, the 18 minutes that we took for an
'agreement' to be reached was FRUSTRATING,
understated as my feelings always are.

The 'agreement' that the CSO -ICICI Bank was
ready for ?
That she has no way of contacting ICICI Bank's
Collection Department and she would provide me
with the contact details for me to follow up !

Precisely the point i made in yesterday's post!

SS

5 Days = 8 months ? Trust ICICI Bank Cards

2008-04-08T04:41:00.000-07:00

The SMS dated 29/6/2007 promised to take the
"necessary action" 'within 5 days' :

TASK :
To transfer a sum of Rs.2000/- from one card
to another within the same "Cust ID" as was
requested[ why do they need to issue so many
cards?....that is another matter altogether]
by the customer.

The transfer was finally effected on 3/3/08 ;
after raising an amount of more than Rs.3500/-
in LATE PAYMENT FEE / INTEREST CHARGES and the
now inevitable SERVICE TAX.

[!] This too, unfortunately, is not the end of
the matter. The onus of "requesting" that the
charges be reversed lies squarely on the card
holder.

Allah Maalik ! as they say.
Even His ordained time for certain things is
"9 months".

Comments Invited from co-sufferers !

http://butitistrue.blogspot.com

Barclays Joins the Bandwagon !!

2008-04-01T01:42:00.001-07:00

"SIR, Your Payment is Delayed."
Personal Experience, strictly !!
But I am sure many more all over India would have experienced the
same phenomenon !!

My Barclaycard payment falls due on day 1 of each month.
And, as it is like for every payment, it is paid by 27-28.
Since their NEW FACILITY was operational at Sahara Mall, Gurgaon,
and as it is conveniently close [incidentally], i went personally to
drop the cheque.

On March 3, 2008, there was a call from Barclaycard, Mumbai asking
if i had made the payment. Having given all the details including
the fact that it was paid on 27, i was not too pleased to note the
Late Payment Fee charged on 7.3.2008 and the cheque *credited very
next day. *Bank's profit = Rs.436.18

Each bank claims to have a SYSTEM in place, yet it always is to the
detriment of the customer.
Of course, they will gladly reverse the charge BUT why does it have
to be the customer's responsibility to "call up customer care after
the bill has reached [you]" ?

CARE appears to have a different meaning for BANKS.

Note :
Author of this blog has 22+ years of hardcore experience in
CUSTOMER CARE and confidence in his own ability that he can
provide effective solutions for any bank that is willing to
admit that there is a scope for improvement.
##
WILLINGNESS to improve is the 1st step to achieving EXCELLENCE.

Destination Excellence
Off : A-26, [West Wing - Gr. Floor],
Jangpura Extension, New Delhi
Mob : 0-9818981076

What Value Sincerity ? And, Efficiency ?

2008-03-19T07:36:00.000-07:00

Banks often reply to your queries with a
'standardised format' without signatures
so that if you need to pull them up, they
have a completely valid defence:

Name the culprit and we shall take up the
complaint seriously.

SERIOUSLY ? The banks take anything up to
5 days to 'respond' even with the formats
in place. And, they are not even remotely
apologetic about it !

Check this out yourself - if you haven't
experienced it already !!

Sanjeev Suri
http://GANGofGAMERS.blogspot.com

Send NO BILL : Charge LATE FEE

2008-02-07T04:04:00.000-08:00

Most of the banks appear to be using this
ploy to generate EXTRA INCOME from their
credit card biz.

The latest to join the bandwagon was HSBC
whose Dec'07 bill did not arrive.
Again, there was NO BILL for Jan'08 and a
phone call is all they proffer as a means
of reminding the card holders about their
liability.

I am seriously thinking about shifting my
loyalty BUT ...........where ?
They are all doing this !

Is the BANKING OMBUDSMAN conscious of this
malpractice? Or, is it merely "convenient"
to turn a blind eye ?

Billed TWICE - today (?) !!

2008-02-04T07:12:00.001-08:00

Bank = ABN Amro

Even though i paid my credit card dues
on 31/1/2008, due date being 1/2/2008 ,
the bank has also debited my S.B acct.
with an equivalent amount.

Is it merely because of the mandate i
signed for auto-debit OR, can we term
this as INEFFICIENCY / CARELESSNESS ?

http://sanjeevsuri.ws

Banking on Your BANK ? Forget it !!

2008-02-04T07:12:00.000-08:00

Banking sector has a reputation for being
one of the more efficient service sectors
BUT my bankers, it appears, are hell-bent
on disproving the adage.

Not a week passes without a new situation
cropping up ; maybe, i have exaggerated a
little but, as you will see - there are a
lot of UNWANTED things happening with too
little respite between episodes.

While i narrate my own sob-stories about
BAD BANKING EXPERIENCES, i also extend an
invitation to ALL visitors to this blog &
to those who come to know about this blog
through chance conversation/s to please
ADD to the content on this blog.

We can, perhaps, unite and force our dear
BANKERS to shed their BLINKERS !!!