DAYS after Republic Bank Limited (Guyana) reopened its doors following a three-day shutdown of all services to facilitate an upgrade to its banking platform, some customers are complaining that some services are still not available at the popular city bank.
Customers are reporting the unavailability of the Visa Travel Card, and of the telebanking and online banking services being down; another customer reported some $80,000 missing from her account when she checked it on Monday evening, after the bank’s reopening.
On checking with the bank, she said she was told someone using her ID card withdrew the money in New Amsterdam, Berbice, and she would have to refer to that branch to clarify the situation.

“The last time we withdraw money was the evening on the 30th [October], right before the bank closed and our account was intact and the day it reopens which was [Monday] it’s short,” reported Anastasia Caesar

“At Water Street, whole half day, and after back and forth conversation and begging them to see the slip, the alleged person signed to withdraw the money from the teller. They said we have to go to New Amsterdam. They said everything change and they don’t know what’s going on up there. They said the person used my ID card. I recently took my husband’s last name legally, so I don’t have an ID card yet.”
Following widespread notices, the bank closed its doors and all services were unavailable from Thursday, October 31 at 14:00hrs until Sunday, November 3, 2019 at 16:00hrs. In an explanatory statement, the bank said that it was done in order “to enable increased transaction efficiency, enhanced product offerings and an overall improved customer experience, while positioning the bank to better serve you.”

Last Monday when the bank reopened its doors, the various branches were flooded with customers, leading to lengthy transaction times at the various service counters. Some staff noted having issues with accessing the “new software,” compounding the issue.
Some commented that they are considering switching banks or closing their accounts in the wake of the frustration.

“I am withdrawing most of my money and depositing into GBTI [Wednesday],” commented Julian Cadogan, who left the Republic Bank location upset, on Tuesday, after he could not access some services.

“I understand the unavailability of services in order to facilitate an upgrade, [but] the fact that these services continue to remain unavailable after the upgrade is unacceptable. I have a VISA travel card for the sole purpose of shopping online; I was told that I cannot put money on the card and they cannot say when they will do such. They just said the service is down.”

He notes that the situation is causing a domino effect in other aspects of his life.
“I am now looking at a two-week delay. I need to place my orders by a specific time so that it can be posted to me. We are heading into the Christmas season where it is predicted to have a lot of rain; since my job is heavily dependent on the weather, the longer the card remains unavailable, the greater my losses,” he said.

Guyanese in Barbados, Trinidad and Jamaica are also having issues accessing their accounts at the ATMs overseas.

“It’s trash. There’s no communication with customers although they insist on having your contact, and they refuse to answer honestly when they’re in the hot seat,” commented a Guyanese student unable to access her account in Trinidad to pay for necessary commodities.

Up to press time the company had not yet responded to an email requesting a comment on the situation, sent to Marketing and Communications Representative for the company, Michelle Johnson.

Another customer, who requested anonymity, noted that he found the need to return to the bank on Tuesday, after an account transfer that he did on Monday did not go through.
“I needed to pay [someone] some money, at the ATM that long line was dotishness; I not going through that, so I went to the non-cash section to do a simple transfer from my account to the young lady’s account. They said yes she would get it [Monday]. I sit down at an event and my phone ringing off. The girl spent hours waiting in a long ATM line to find out there is no money there, I felt so embarrassed. So that was my experience,” the young man related.

On returning to the bank on Tuesday, he discovered that he was not the only one with the issue

“When I go back to the bank, they say alright no problem, the system up now so it gon’ go through. When I went back there I saw the same faces from [Monday], and they were angry. Transactions that were done [Monday] were done in part but not in full, because the systems were up and down, that is the real issue. When I asked someone they said by Thursday or Friday everything should be ok,” he notes.

The Republic Bank upgrade has come months after the bank beefed up security measures beginning last June, to mitigate a “brute-force” attack. This attack had resulted in several customers seeing money mysteriously disappearing from their accounts for purchases they had never made or authorised.

The bank has since refunded millions to a number of customers.
Republic Bank is Guyana’s largest commercial bank. In September, the central bank, the Bank of Guyana, denied Republic Bank’s plans to take over the operations of Scotiabank in Guyana, noting that “it would lead to systemic issues” affecting the health of the financial system here.