My Bittersweet Banking Journey

Introduction: Most of you have already got an idea about me, my passions for exploring things and stepping into weird stoppages once in a while. Today's topic will somewhat seem boring to a lot of people, but trust me, it is the single most important factor specially if you've aced all the necessary skills to flourish in life and earning money like never before and now want to keep those somewhere safe, calculatedly! I've worked in a local bank here in Bangladesh, for more than 2.5 years and had fair share of experience to know and implement the basics. Sharing my funny photos and a card below 👨 Let's learn about some banking terms and my story in this sector!

What is Banking?

- Banking is an industry or business that handles cash, other financial transaction for individual consumers and businesses alike, protects money for others. They do it by lending money, generating interest that creates profits for the bank and its customers. 

What are some common basic Bank Services?

Banks offer various ways to stash your cash and various ways to borrow money, i.e

- Checking Accounts: These are deposits used by consumers and businesses to pay their bills and make cash withdrawals. They pay little or no interest and typically come with monthly fess, usage fees or both.

- Savings Accounts: These accounts pay interest to the depositor depending on how long the account holders hope to keep their money in the bank. 

- Loan Services: Banks make loans to consumers and businesses at a higher interest rate from the cash that is deposited by their customers. Banks lend the money out in car loans, credit cards, mortgages, business loans etc. 

For example, a bank may pay 1% interest on saving accounts and charge 6% interest for its mortgage loans, earning a gross profit of 5% for its owners.

What are the types of Banks?

Most banks can be categorized as retail, commercial or corporate, or investment banks. The big global banks often operate separate arms for each of these categories and I'll try to talk about those too.

- Retails Banks: These are probably the ones you're most familiar with. Your checking and savings accounts are often kept with a retail bank, which focuses on general public. These banks offer loans and may provide credit, debit cards and they're the ones with numerous branch locations in populated areas.
For example, BRAC Bank in Bangladesh.

- Commercial Banks: The ones that focus on business customers also known as 'Corporate banks'. They manage payments for customers, provide lines of credit to manage cash flow, and offer foreign exchange services for companies that do business overseas. Ex - Standard Chartered Bank

- Investment Banks: If a company wants to go public or sell debt to investors, it often uses an investment bank. They help businesses raise capital in financial markets and may also advise corporations on mergers and acquisitions. Ex - IDLC Finance Ltd

- Online/ Mobile/ Neobanks: They aren't actually real banks, with physical outlets rater these tech-forward companies create attractive and easy-to-use interfaces to operate their service virtually. They generally partner with a traditional bank that holds customers' deposits and manages finances like the ability to view accounts, pay bills online etc. Ex- bKash

- Central Banks: They usually manage the monetary system for a government and do not deal directly with the public. They are responsible for the stability of the currency and the economic system as a whole. Bangladesh Bank, the Swiss National Banks are some of the examples.

- Community Development Banks: Sometimes referred to as CD banks, are privately owned banks that focus on Social responsibility and may receive support from the federal government. Grameen Bank is a popular example for this.

- Credit Unions: Similar to banks, but they are not-for-profit organizations owned by their customers (Investors own most banks). They accept deposits and offer loans but unlike banks, they pass earnings on to members rather than shareholders. Ex - Dutch-Bangla Bank Ltd.

What is Banking Software/ portal / app?

- If your bank is internet-friendly, it will have a portal/ website/ app where you can access your account by logging in and do all kinds of transactions including paying bills. I have worked directly for a year in the core team of Building Astha and got certified, the first mobile banking app from BRAC Bank. Other examples are EBL SKYBANKING, City Touch etc.

Debit vs Credit Card

- Debit card, also known as ATM cards are often used for taking your money off in cash from any ATM booth, or for instant transaction after buying anything. You can do the same for credit card but the amount will be billed at a later date.
For Example: You buy a cloth for $10 by debit card, and your account will be reduced by the same amount instantly. You do the same by credit card, the amount will reduce at a later date.

How to choose a bank?

- It's a personal decision that depends on lots of factors I mentioned above already and involves weighing different considerations. Please read all those carefully and choose your priorities. Consider important factors like location, fees, interest rates, purpose of banking, offers and discounts, security, apps etc.

How's life as a Banker?

- I'd like to answer diplomatically being aligned with the title, bittersweet! For most, it will be tiring, boring desk job which is true. But if you look at the incentives, facilities and stabilities, it actually has got massive potentials for your future growth (of course if you can multi-task and keep balance between your everyday work-life). There are different kinds of bonuses that you can avail from time to time, including insurances for security and paid annual leave for straight 11 days in Bangladesh (which adds up to 17 days in total if you can keep all the weekends). I remember visiting Goa, India and Koh Phangan and Bangkok, Thailand in the same year I got in bank in 2019 (the last normal year, without Covid-19). These are also spaces for casual, emergency, sick leaves in case you need them.

Conclusion: That's all for today! I hope you found this article helpful and will share these tips among your closed ones. Let me know if you have other queries. I will try to detail down all these points separately in my upcoming articles.

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Till then, HAPPY BANKING!