Banking is often seen as a tug of war in Nigeria, especially if you are using a traditional bank. If there is no issue with queuing today, there will certainly be a transaction problem. For this article, we spoke to 4 Nigerians who told us why they finally made the switch from traditional banks to online banks.
Helen.
My own bank was just plain unfortunate.
The ATM card I was issued in late 2020 has not worked more than 5 times. There’s always one issue or the other. The online app is nothing to write home about. I am bad with passwords so I set it in a way that will allow me open it with my fingerprint, but one day, these people locked me out of my app. Sometimes too, I am unable to do transfers for like 3 days. No apology, no nothing. All these wahala because I saved my money with them. After that transfer issue, I just knew it was time for me to pack my bags and go.
Sherifat.
I used to wonder if I should stop using traditional banks or stick with them despite all they have put me through. But when they removed 3k out of my money for “Stamp Duty,” I told myself, enough is enough.
Chris.
My bank has embarrassed me a number of times. Once, I took a babe out to ShopRite. I bought a lot of things, worth about N35k, only for me to reach the counter and pay and my bank packed up. I couldn’t transfer or use the POS. I had to return everything I bought. Another time, I took my friends out to eat. We bought food, time to pay, I couldn’t pay, do transfers or use POS. And both events happened on a Friday.
The most annoying incident was when the bank blocked my account without prior notification. And this was was an account I was getting paid with. I wanted to buy a phone that day, only to see that I couldn’t use my account. I tried almost every ATMs I could find that day, none worked. And this was a Saturday. It was later I was informed that my account had been blocked and I had to upgrade it before regaining access to my money.
You blocked my account without telling me, without sending an email, or doing anything and I had to upgrade before regaining access to my own money? That was the final straw. I tried other traditional banks too, but it just wasn’t seamless. It was a friend who eventually recommended Kuda to me. And you know there’s nothing like reviews from a trusted friend. So I tried Kuda and it’s been amazing so far.
Opemipo.
From next month, Kuda becomes my main bank and also salary account bank. You know why? Kuda has sent me cards twice to my house. With my traditional bank, I had to go to their bank branch near my house to collect a new card and also fill a form when I get there. What’s worse, their bank debit alerts are slow, they can come in days after the transaction, while Kuda’s alerts are instant.
Kuda has a chatbox inbuilt in the app where you can reach out to a customer service rep, my traditional bank might require you to visit a physical branch. Kuda gives 25 free transfers every month. My traditional bank does not. I also like Kuda’s card design. It’s beautiful. Choosing Kuda above my traditional bank was an easy decision to make.
These people are forever free from the hassles of traditional banking. Why not join them so you can be free too?
Download the Kuda app from your app store to enjoy the freedom no traditional banks can offer you.
