17/01/2022
Hi everyone,
As a new year resolution, I would like to talk openly about my entrepreneurial journey. I hope by sharing some of my experience and thoughts I can help other people who are starting their businesses and do not know where to begin. Believe me, I was there 😅. Today, I would like to talk about opening a business bank account, which is the first and the most important step of starting a business.
⠀
When I first applied for the business bank account I went for HSBC. The only reason I chose HSBC was the bank's image - it seemed more prestigious to me😑.
⠀
Opening a HSBC business account took so long (nearly 2.5 months), and no one informed me of my application progress. I had to call them every week to chase up and the only response I got was "check on your application status". Over time I start questioning why I needed to pay for this - there has been no extra service but the basics offered by the bank.
⠀
At first, I thought only HSBC does this. But when I talked to other founders, I realised that other major banks charge this fee as well. I even asked people from the Santander business account team why business account holders need to pay for this. No one would clearly explain why.
⠀
I got so annoyed and finally, I changed my business account to Starling bank. Previously I was sceptical of these new banks that do not have any physical branches, but with time and experience, I realised that physical presence does not matter as much as I thought.
⠀
What matters is how fast they were - it took exactly 2 weeks to switch banks (get all the information and money transferred to Starling bank). They informed me at each step whenever there was an update either through the app or email. Their response time was super fast. Most of all, they do not charge a penny for their services!!!
⠀
This article is not sponsored at all. Also, I do not mean to harm any existing banks. This is purely a personal opinion from experience. Probably there are things I do not understand - like why they charge business bank account holders. If you know why they do so, I would love to know as well!:) Have you experienced something similar?
