Is it proper for the teller to ask the depositor why he deposits this amount to someone?
By Simone
@Janet357 (75656)
February 6, 2020 9:18pm CST
a few days ago my husband told me that a bank teller asked him why did he deposit a huge amount to this person?
The $25,000 was part of the payment for the lot the company my husband works for , did buy.
A few years ago, I withdrew some amount for the downpayment of the house we bought.and the teller asked me what would i do with the money..
A few days before our wedding, my mother-in-law withdrew this amount as a gift to my husband. the teller asked why did she withdraw such amount?
am wondering why work ethic does not exist in their vocabulary..
It is our money, so why asked? we can do whatever we want. Do tellers in your country ask the same thing everytime you make huge withdrawals and deposits?
16 people like this
18 responses
@Alexandoy (65308)
• Cainta, Philippines
7 Feb 20
I am not sure but I think that is now the protocol with big money - knowing why you will deposit or why you will withdraw. That is regarding money laundering act. That also happened to my wife's sister with a deposit of 2 million pesos. It was questioned.
4 people like this
@Alexandoy (65308)
• Cainta, Philippines
7 Feb 20
@Janet357 for business people, they usually accept the check after checking with the bank for the balance.
1 person likes this
@rsa101 (37969)
• Philippines
7 Feb 20
Oh I think the amount of money is quite big so the banks are ordered to at least know the nature of the transaction being done as required by the Central Bank to ensure that it has nothing to do with Money Laundering activities. There is a minimum amount that will trigger banks from investigating it.
3 people like this
@rsa101 (37969)
• Philippines
7 Feb 20
@Janet357 Yeah I also do not want it but it their way to know if the money came from clean transaction or not. It is the AMLAC that requires the banks from doing this and they are very strict when transferring money and receiving money coming from abroad too.
3 people like this
@RasmaSandra (74001)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
7 Feb 20
Well, I can tell you that whatever transactions I am doing that seem odd to the bank they ask me about and I am grateful to them. Once I had someone ask for some money and then they would invest it for me and in a month there would be double money for me. The bank explained that was totally not legit and if they had not asked I would have been out a couple of thousand I could not afford to lose and so on. At least for me, I like that they ask.
2 people like this
@RasmaSandra (74001)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
7 Feb 20
@Janet357 that was my case but if you knew the amounts you wanted or needed then you should have just been allowed to do what you had to do.
1 person likes this
@Janet357 (75656)
•
7 Feb 20
@RasmaSandra yes.. but i just wish they would stop asking such. because i dont do any other transaction aside from depositing and withdrawing my own money
1 person likes this
@thelme55 (76479)
• Germany
7 Feb 20
I think they have a limited amount and will ask the customer what for. When we receive money from our insurance company which is more than 5K€, they have to report it to the BIR so they will know where the money came from. They do it to avoid money laundering.
2 people like this
@marguicha (216234)
• Chile
7 Feb 20
In my country, my executive calls me if I have given someone a very big check. Buut it is something that is not done in front of other people
1 person likes this
@marguicha (216234)
• Chile
7 Feb 20
@Janet357 It is even dangerous if the teller is telling that you will be having lots of money in your pockets in front of other people
@infatuatedbby (94921)
• United States
7 Feb 20
YES it is annoying. Also, they ask me what my employment is. None of their business! However as Alex mentioned it is protocol and they want to prevent money laundering.
1 person likes this
@hereandthere (45651)
• Philippines
7 Feb 20
as alex and rsa have said, it's related to the anti-money laundering act. even when i went with mother to close one of her accounts, we were asked also why.
bank employees are trained to do that and to remain pleasant even if the depositor is getting annoyed. so imagine how they feel too when they're just following protocol and the law.
1 person likes this
@jobelbojel (34730)
• Philippines
7 Feb 20
I think it is irrelevant to ask a customer why. If I am the teller, I would think it is a payment for goods or property a person bought for this person.
1 person likes this
@yanzalong (18981)
• Indonesia
7 Feb 20
Tellers in our country never ask such questions.
1 person likes this
