Citizens have organized an event to move all funds from banks and put them into credit unions on November 5th, 2011.
Organizers are calling the event“Bank Transfer Day” and are encouraging people nationwide to participate November 5.
The Facebook page for the event states the following:
“Together we can ensure that these banking institutions will ALWAYS remember the 5th of November!! If the 99% removes our funds from the major banking institutions on or by this date, we will send a clear message and give the 1% a taste of the fear that we experience every day when we aren’t able to pay for our rent, food, medication, utilities, student loans, etc.”
So far over 60,500 people have RSVP’ed for the event.
The participants of “Bank Transfer Day” take issue with the response of big banks’ to the Durbin Amendment, which is an addition to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that caps the debit interchange fees banks can charge merchants.
The organizers claim the banks will begin to charge their customers $3-$5 fees to off-set the money they will lose because of the interchange fee cap.
The event’s Facebook page further describes why they are boycotting:
The Durbin Amendment is an add-on to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Public Law No. 111-203), signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. The Act allows the Federal Reserve to regulate debit card interchange fees of banks with over $10 billion in assets. Over the summer, the Fed released the final rule on the matter by limiting debit card interchange fees to a maximum of 21¢ per transaction. In response, these “major banks” have decided that beginning early 2012 any consumer with less than $20,000 in combined accounts will be charged a monthly $3-5 fee if they use their debit card at any point during the month. This is a blatant attack on the 99% that cannot & will not be tolerated. In a stand of solidarity, on November 5th we will transfer our money & close our accounts with these major banking institutions to take our business to credit unions (or local banks if a credit union isn’t available). Since #OccupyWallStreet began, these banks are donating our money (and money they’ve made with our money) to law enforcement agencies to heap abuse on our brothers & sisters. NO LONGER.”
The idea came from Kristen Christian, a Los Angeles art gallery owner, who had both personal and business accounts with a big bank, and had enough of ridiculous fees and poor customer service.
So Christian created an event on Facebook called “Bank Transfer Day” and invited 500 of her friends to close their accounts at big for-profit banks and move their money to credit unions on Nov. 5.
Bank Transfer Day.. are you in?
BofA's $5 fee and all of the other new debit fees banks are beginning to charge are in response to the fall in revenues from debit card transactions that are the consequence of the passing of the Durbin Amendment and the subsequent Federal Reserve ruling to limit debit interchange at $0.22 + 0.05% of the transaction amount.
Those of us who were paying attention to what was happening knew that this was coming and warned against it. Here is one of the things we wrote at the time: http://blog.unibulmerchantservices.com/banks-may-…
What happened was that the government decided that a substantial portion of the banks' revenues would be collected by retailers. The banks then decided to make up for the shortfall by creating new revenue sources. Is that surprising?
I think many people have lost sight that banks are business no different than Macys, Target, or a gas station. Many business big and small ask for you to either make a minimum card purchase or offer a discount for using cash (gas). All of these industries have cost associated by Visa, M/C, Discover and AMX usage. I just think its funny that banks are being targeted as "the man"
I have no problem with capitalism. I am okay with the banks making a profit. However, I have a choice about where I spend my money and I have decided not to pay a fee for the convenience of using my bank card. You see… it is really no different than switching from Time-Warner to Netflix, or changing dentists. Like many of the folks who are switching banks, I am just happier with a different product that better suits my needs.
On a side note…Macys, Target or a gas station have not received taxpayer bailouts to help them recover from bad business practices…nor have I ever heard any of them referred to as "too big to fail."
Well, if they have any money, the 65,000 that said they would do this, are doing it for the wrong reasons. George Miller (Ca) and Terea Guilderducci have already in the works to take your 401K, IRA and private savings, take those out. Obama is glad to c the OWS's so that they can help to take the USA down, 30's Depression is here folks, so take your money but take it for the rite reason=so Obama can't take it.
well its not just banks its media as well they are collaboratiing the best ways to take from the poor and give to the rich how bout we change the game they are playing how bout that
Wont work but a worth try anyways. I might do that anyways Banks get bailed out and they keep giving bonuses to the managers and CEOs for what? If my business goes under can I get a bailout?
If the retailers actually shared in the risk of these transactions maybe the banks would not have to charge such high fees, but when retailers like TJMaxx have major security breaches, it is the banks that take the brunt of the losses. So now the retailers get even more of the money, and still take no more of the losses. Who wins here? The banks? The consumer? I don't see any prices going down…
what people fail to realize is that to join a credit union a credit check is needed. so if your credit is less than perfect good luck getting an account.
I am a member of the Fort Worth Community Credit Union. They did NO credit check of any kind and you only have to have $5 balance to maintain an account. I had a Wells Fargo account before this, where they did do a credit check and because mines is not the best, I had all sorts of crazy restrictions and the daily balance was hell of a lot higher than $5. Chase, you have to have a balance of $1000 or else do direct deposit. Good luck with that if you're the owner of a small business
Just look at it this way, a credit union does not have shareholders, banks do. A banks primary concern is for it's shareholders. A credit unions primary concern is for it's members. BECAUSE< without members, the credit union would not be there. So just from that alone a credit union will usually take better care of you and work on being more financially sound and smart, rather than a bank that just worries about raising it's stock value. Even if I got the same rate or lower loan rate with a bank, I'd rather support a local credit union than support a bank that could care less if you left. Remember, at a credit union you are a member, not a "customer" as you are with a bank.
i think every time you open a checking acnouct, your credit score goes down and comes back up after a while if you don’t bounce any checks.any bad checks with bring your credit down too.
Here's a thought- the banks that were charging or going to charge the debit card fees have now decided to stop or not start the charges.. what now?? if this was the reason everyone was going to leave a their banks, then what is the reason now?
A bank is a business for profit. A credit union is non profit but will still charge you most of the time a membership fee to start and overdraft fees still apply. So what's the difference? Charge you a fee up front or just later..
It's only to let them know people are paying attention, that it. It's a protest, an action, a visibility for people's anger and their increasing understanding of what's happening.
That's it.
You are missing the point of move your money day. It is not about some little fees or fear of the government…………..the banks can now gamble on Wall Street with the depositors money (your money) and your mortgages (see Glass Segal act info)………they lost and had to be bailed out.
We will not get the attention (read power) to make changes with the powers that be right now unless it involves MONEY. I only have a very little BUT if enough of us move our money away from their greedy hands they just MIGHT pay attention to us and our wishes for them to STOP GAMBLING WITH OUR MONEY, OUR PENSIONS, OUR MORTGAGES ETC ETC ETC.
It won't hurt you to make a siimple transfer………..it may make you feel as though you have a little say (read power) in the situation. It is simple and non-violent. Thank you.
bank – business.. credit union – helping people.. i think its worth trying
Why does everyone feel they should get something for nothing??
Because the majority of "us" in America cannot AFFORD to pay to put our money in Bankers coffers
I tried to transfer my banking but when I got there it turned out I was overdrawn $72.55 (forgot about that home still I ordered off ebay). Needless to say the branch manager wasn’t willing to accept my home still AND 8 gallons of my Hooch e Mama white lightning and call us even.
Fortunately I spoke with 2 of the more butch tellers there, Dagmar and Alex, aka Al and explained my plight and asked if maybe they might like to come over for some libations etc. When we woke up the next morning my couch was broken, there was vaseline handprints on the wall and an awful pounding in my head but my bank card showed a $14.32 positive balance, so all in all a good thing.
Take that Wall St!!!!!!
Wont this really hurt banks, isnt that a bad thing…
Dentist Near Fort Collins
This blog can only only be described as special, thanks for the insight. Payment Protection Insurance
i don't know if that's a good idea
bank tellers have nice smiles on their faces when you go in there
According to me In the early history of the United States there was no national currency and an insufficient supply of coinage.Banknotes were the majority of the money in circulation.
A debit card (also known as a bank card or check card) is a plastic card that provides the cardholder electronic access to his or her bank account(s) at a financial institution.
oh i know that it's just into something great and I am already loving the way it is then for all of us.
My favorite Warren Buffett quote is this: It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.
Steven Cohen is one of the most successful hedge fund managers.
He returned nearly 30% annually since 1992. Even in 2011 he beat the market
by more than 6 percentage points.
What is Steven Cohen buying recently? His picks did well last
year.
There are an estimated 10,000+ hedge funds in the U.S. today. Hedge Fund are estimated to manage about $1.5 trillion in assets, but because all hedge fund data is self-reported, the exact number is unknown. Estimates of new assets flowing into hedge funds exceed $25 billion on average for the last few years.
Organizers are calling the event“Bank Transfer Day” and are encouraging people nationwide to participate November 5.
I thought they moved it to December.