Banks are increasing fees and consumers are angry

Banks are increasing fees and consumers are angry (Alberta Times) Due to low interest rates and new regulations, it is difficult for banks to make money in traditional ways, such as lending to individuals and businesses...

(Alberta Times)

Due to low interest rates and new regulations, it is difficult for banks to make money in traditional ways, such as lending to individuals and businesses. Many banks have begun to charge fees that are not controlled by new regulations, such as ATM cards (debit). card) monthly fees, checking account monthly fees, etc. Consumers blame the charges as a callous response by banks that were bailed out during the financial crisis to a time of economic hardship and high unemployment. Since interest rates are now at record lows, it is difficult for banks to set high interest rates on loans. The new regulations have eliminated or reduced many traditional charges, such as checking account overdraft fees, late payment penalties for credit card payments, etc. Federal regulations have also reduced the fees banks charge merchants for consumers using charge card transactions. In order to make up for their revenue losses, banks have begun to charge new fees. Bank of America announced that it would charge a monthly fee of five yuan to customers who use debit cards, which aroused the anger of consumers and became one of the items protested by the "Occupy Wall Street" movement. Even President Obama criticized the bank's measure. Consumers Union said on the 18th that if banks refuse to cancel such charges, consumers should switch to other banks or credit unions. The new fees planned by banks include: ●Citibank will charge a monthly fee of $20 from December for customers with a total balance of less than $15,000 in their checking, savings and investment accounts. ●Wells Fargo plans to trial charging a monthly fee of $3 for its charge card in New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Georgia starting on the 21st. ●JP Morgan Chase plans to trial a $3 monthly fee for its charge card in Wisconsin and Georgia starting in February next year. ●SunTrust Bank in Georgia plans to charge a monthly fee of $5 for customers who open a basic checking account to use a debit card starting in June next year. ●Regions Financial Bank in Alabama plans to charge a monthly fee of $4 for charge-off cards starting in October. NAB Research bank analyst Nancy Busch said that in the past year, most major banks have eliminated free checking accounts, and added layer upon layer of fees for everything from sending monthly statements to using ATMs, plus planned new fees. This is too much and has hurt the banks' public image.