FNBO Direct Baloney

[cantlogin]

I guess that if I want to be able to get my money out of this "bank" I'll have to give them some answers. I don't recall having to provide this sort of information when opening accounts at other institutions. Has anyone else encountered this variety of nonsense? I'm tempted to yank my funds out now, but they are paying 6% untill sept 28th.

QUOTE:

Hello XXXXXXXX,

As part of your initial application, we did not receive information regarding your current employer, occupation or position. In many cases, this is because you have a status of retired, unemployed or self-employed. We are updating our records as part of our on-going due diligence to be compliant with our standards to support the USA Patriot Act.

Please provide us with your previous employer, occupation and position by sending an email with this information to fulfillment@fnbodirect.com. If this information is not received within 30 days, a hold will be placed on your account(s), restricting all deposits and withdrawals to the account(s). Your immediate attention to this matter is appreciated.

If you wish to discuss this further, please send an email to fulfillment@fnbodirect.com or call 877-370-3707. Please reference your FNBO Direct account number displayed at the top of this page when you contact us.

Thank you for choosing FNBO Direct for your Online Savings Account.

FNBO Direct Customer Service

 

[Sam]

I don't think it's baloney. I think it has to do with security/authentication.

 

[Nords]

We are updating our records as part of our on-going due diligence to be compliant with our standards to support the USA Patriot Act.
Thank you for choosing FNBO Direct for your Online Savings Account.
FNBO Direct Customer Service

"We're exploiting this legislative gold-mine opportunity to declare that 'our standards' include intrusively collecting your personal information for resale to our marketing partners. Help us keep our rates high!"

... they are paying 6% untill sept 28th.

I'd ignore them until September 29th and then officially decline to provide the info as part of a letter closing your account.

Navy Federal Credit Union still has me on their books as an ensign. It bugs the hell out of them, and that's exactly why I keep it that way. I think it also helps me avoid a lot of their automated [-]geezer[/-] targeted marketing tactics, but my main motivation is because it annoys the hell out of their marketing trolls* who call our answering machine and send form letters to complain about it.

*[Yeah, CFB, "redundant", I know...]

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I noticed that my credit report still shows my last actual employer as the current employer.

You'd think after a while they'd figure it out. Apparently not so.

 

[Martha]

What a bunch of hooey. The Patriot Act doesn't require that information. Allowing you to open and fund the account and now demanding the information or your account will be frozen is irritating, though probably legal.

That Act requires banks to implement a customer identification program (CIP) when accounts are opened. The CIP requires procedures for verifying the identity of any person seeking to open an account. The Patriot Act requires the name, date of birth (for an individual), address and identification number. However, based upon an assessment of risks, a bank may require a customer to provide additional information to establish the customer’s identity in order for the bank to establish a reasonable belief it knows the true identity of the customer.

Verification may be through such things as an unexpired driver’s license or passport. For those accounts that are opened by telephone, mail or over the Internet, the bank must have written procedures that describe the methods the bank will use to verify identification. Acceptable verification methods include contacting a customer, or independently verifying the customer’s identity by comparing information provided by the customer with that obtained from a consumer reporting
agency.

USA PATRIOT Act - Long-Awaited Final Customer Identification Regulations That Apply to Banks, Broker Dealers, Trust Companies, Mutual Funds and Other Financial Institutions

 

[cantlogin]

Thanks Martha. I see it the same way. They should have asked me for all of the information they required before opening the account. It really burns me that they are threatening me now, after the fact. I’d be able to give them a previous occupation or employer. They can certainly find that out from the information they already have. What will they demand from me next week or the week after that?
Hooey is a good word. I’m going to start using it more often.

Nords, my natural inclination is to do exactly what you suggested. I’m just concerned about what problems I’ll be creating for myself just for standing my ground.

 

[ladelfina]

Cheney will come to your house and waterboard you until you GIVE UP THE INFO!!!! bwa ha ha ha.

"Hooey!" I like that, too!
I don't see any reason why they should need your previous employer and position. Wonder what would happen if you just put "self", "principal", and "investment manager"?

 

[bssc]

"Only those people with something to hide refuse to answer our questions" - Big Brother.

One of the credit bureaus lists the job I had in college as my current job. Quite amusing.