I AM convinced that commercial banking in Guyana is stuck in the dark ages and our financial architecture with it. Commercial banks are aligned and conspire to provide some of the most oppressive financial situations that disproportionately affect poor and working-class people.

Let us start with their opening hours. Commercial banks in Guyana have been closing their doors between 13:00 and 14:00 hrs since the 1960s. Fast-forward to today. With all the technological and financial advancements in the world coupled with the changed commercial climate of Guyana, commercial banks still close their doors at 14:00 hrs. This is the text book definition of being stuck in the dark ages.

Next, their chequing policy. First off, why is the chequing facility still exclusively paper-based, where the only way to encash is to physically stand in a line? This method of payment was popular in 15th century Europe. Though the system has morphed around the world, it is still being implemented in Guyana in the very same way it was used back in the year 1501; talking about dark ages!

Further, the commercial banks of Guyana have a collaborative rule that interbank deposited cheques above $500,000 go through a process called “Special Clearance” where the transaction is fast-tracked and the recipient gets access to the funds on the same business day. All cheques with values below $500,000 have to wait three business days. The concept of waiting for three business days has also been with us before the 1960s. The commercial banks of Guyana cannot find a way to modernise this service even after more than three generations.

If you are transacting pittances of $30,000 by convention you need to wait, but those are the people who most need to access their funds to either turn it over in a ‘lil’ hustle or meet pressing needs.
We next come to the ATM culture of Guyana, by far the worst in the world. I’ve never seen so many non-functioning ATMs as I do in Guyana. Republic Bank Ltd (RBL) being the chief culprit. Let me share my experience of this past week.

The closest RBL ATM to where I live is at the RUBIS gas station on Mandela Avenue. On Wednesday, October 23, 2024 around 08:30 hrs that ATM receipt stated “dispenser down,” an indication that the machine had no cash. The dispenser was also down at Wren Avenue.
A visit to Camp Street had a line with no less that 200 persons snaking the lower platform on to the pavement.

The option was taken to skip the long line and head to New Market Street. After standing in line for a considerable period behind 20 persons with only one of three ATMs functioning, I came to be third in line, the last machine stopped functioning. Around 09:45 hrs, people who were milling around to see if the machines will come back on line soon, began to murmur and complain.

The security guard came with an orange emergency cone and said that the ATMs are all out of cash and will not be replenished until sometime around mid-day. She further indicated that she was instructed to place a cone and close the gates.
Next move was to an ATM in the parking lot of the Pegasus Suites, the story was no different. Another customer related that he’d just come from an ATM at Movie Towne and stopped at another in Alexander Street, Kitty and they each had the same issue. At that point it was time to abandon the pursuit.

The following day around the said time, the same rounds were made with similar results, except this time, there was cash at Pegasus.
On Thursday there was added drama. While at the New Market Street location, a male taxi driver was loud with expletives in his verbal tirade against a young lady, berating her for his money. The woman explained that she is a teacher, she didn’t have a cent, she usually takes the bus to school but without the bus fare she was forced to take a taxi to the nearest ATM, not within walking distance, where she would’ve paid him then continue her journey by bus. That dispenser was down so she was now stuck with a taxi she had no desire to continue with.

After unsuccessfully trying another ATM, she ended up in New Market Street which also had no money. The taxi driver grew irate because he couldn’t believe that in this day and age such an ATM saga is even possible, he thought he was being made a fool. Understanding her plight one good youngster paid the taxi plus gave her a ‘top-up’.

This kind of harassment and embarrassment are reserved for the poor and working class. I do not believe the banking industry and more so RBL even care to improve its service to reduce the reliance on cash or to make smaller cash transactions as painless as possible. RBL is the largest bank in Guyana in terms of the number of accounts, total deposits and total assets.

It therefore has to be the trendsetter for new and revolutionary service delivery. RBL more than any singular entity in Guyana has the capacity to employ and manage staff either on a staggered or overtime basis to service and replenish ATMs, even at ungodly hours of the night. They must have years upon years of ATM data to show trends that should assist them to plan appropriate actions.

The repression of the poor via its service delivery is not a case that RBL, and by extension other commercial banks, cannot solve, nor is it a case that they don’t know better. I believe they are running a mafia style banking cartel which by design ‘down-presses’ the poor.
We know that RBL knows better. RBL headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago has been part of the LINX payment system since 1995 where an ATM card from one commercial bank can conduct transactions at any other member bank as if it was used at the home bank.

If this is possible almost 30 years ago in Trinidad, why isn’t it possible here? There are more profits to be made from liberating our local financial systems and interbank correspondence, but not even a profit motive is driving an improvement. I believe there is collective corporate mentality afflicting banking executives in Guyana that was passed down from colonial times.

The culture has such a stranglehold on the industry that even executives who come from liberated banking systems overseas are unable to break the shackles of cognitive dissonance, in a system where the plight of the poor and working class do not rise to the level that requires special policies to relieve their suffering, not even the possibilities for greater profits.

I believe banks should be forced by law to improve these most basic services. Banks must be directed to have ATMs in proportion to the number of accounts held, say, for every 300 customers there must be at least 1 ATM. Also, the placement and distribution of ATMs must have minimum conditions, depending on the concentration of account holders by addresses. Upon reaching a certain quota, an ATM should be located in that district or sub-district. There should also be rules about the length of time an ATM is allowed to stay out of cash or to be in disrepair.

ATMs of the kind used in Guyana is almost an ancient thing and at this day and age we should not be haggling over poor ATM service and servicing. The very banking system that has made the country so cash dependent, has created long lines for every imaginable transaction. Due to lack of space I have to confine my column to these three areas. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to repressive banking practices in Guyana.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.