T

his refers to '€œWhy digital banks in financial services are gaining ground'€ (The Jakarta Post, April 11) by Mike Baxter, Richard Fleming and Thomas Olsen.

No wonder, every time I go to a bank I feel like I go to a ['€¦] well I don'€™t know. There is no word for it.

When I walk in I am greeted by a security officer, who diverts me directly to the number counter '€” and that'€™s all he does, the whole day, nothing else and no one cares if I actually want to do something that may not require a number.

After waiting for so many hours, sometimes because the bank cannot open all four counters that are installed, for whatever reason, because it cannot be lack of minions behind the desks, I always lose my temper because '€œspecial clients'€ just skip everything in total ignorance of common courtesy like waiting for their turn.

But here is the point of the bank '€” they don'€™t care about customer satisfaction at all. Do this, do that, sign here, give a copy of your ID '€” again, please bring your passport, oh sorry only between 11 a.m. and 11:05 a.m. will we accept that transaction, please come again tomorrow and so on and on.

The best one ever was a nice lady telling me after waiting 90 minutes for my turn, '€œOh sorry, but for that amount you should use the ATM'€ and only after coordinating with her supervisor was she able to accommodate my request.

Banks need their clients'€™ money '€” and in return, they treat their normal clients like that. I once changed banks because of that.

I prefer online banking over dealing with these clerks, because then I don'€™t feel like I am being treated like a pest.

Oliver Broekdiek
Jakarta