HSBC - be warned! (Cairo)
Dear fellow expats,
just let me tell you a story of the worst experience I have ever made with a financial institute ever in my life until today.
HSBC EGYPT
I am not sure whether this experience is branch specific (6th of October), bank-specific (HSBC) or one of those Egyptian problems...
First, getting a credit card as a foreigner seems pretty impossible. ot sure what the big deal is, in Germany even my Vietnamese Friend got one without problems. And we were students that time, not hard working professionals.
Second, ATM machines. There are hardly machines to get money from. I mean in whole 6th October/Sheik Zayed there are maybe 10ATMs. When I am lucky, I can draw some cash. But usually the ATM is switched off or no cash is availible? Guys... You have ten f******** all over the city and are not able to feed them with money? What are they doing all day?
Hotline (yes, the one for "advance" customers) is friendly but they can't help in any case. We will call you back. My *** they do. Never.
When you try to visit the branch where you opened the account (6thOct) you feel like visiting a dump. Worst bank building ever. Usually banks try to be those shiny clean castles, signalling strength and reliability. Not this one. Not sure, but are they deliberately trying to be ridiculous because there is no proper road or carpark for the bank? you have to drive through piles of rubbish and then make your way through the sand to reach the stairs of this building. Inside, a lot of "service" agents who are all busy on facebook/their phones giving a s*** about waiting customers. Maybe after 5 mins they have time for you.
If there are any documents missing for let's say opening a second account or applying for a credit card, what would a normal bank do? Yes call you and inform you about this. Not HSBC, they will tell you that there are documents missing after you waited three weeks for the opening conformation and trying to find out what is taking so long.
HSBC as global partner for InterNations... I really hope somebody from HSBC upper management is reading this. Because neither the branch manager nor the customer relations officer give a damn about the many complaints I had.
My final step was to leave HSBC. Now I am looking for a bank which is actually trying to care for the customer. But I have the slight feeling that all banks in Egypt will be more or less the same.