Why is banking so slow in Ireland?

[exile]

I have a bank account in another European country with online banking. From there I can transfer money to any account (as long as it can accept it) in any bank in the country, instantaneously. I can also make international transfers which take about 3 days to go through.

However I've just opened an Anglo Irish Bank account and wanted to transfer money to it from my Bank of Ireland account. So I called up Banking 365, as is required. I added the new beneficiary account with the aid of a human and was then told it will be ready to use in 5 days; after that it will take 3 days for each transfer to go through. So it will be 8 days before the transaction I want to make will be complete.

8 days versus instantaneously - that is seriously unimpressive. What's different in Ireland?

 

[Towger]

When I have set up a payee with BOI 365, they appeared as soon as I got off the phone.

The 3 days (3 day cycle) wait is because up to about 5 years ago the banks were not interconnected. It is now officially (if you make the payment in the morning) 2 days, but some sections in banks still think it is 3 days. Each transaction has a payment date attached, which is the day *before* the money is to hit the account. The problem is that their systems have to add a payment date to each transaction and some still default to 'Todays date' + 2, so it still takes 3 days. If they use 'Todays' date the payment 'should' work its way through the system ASAP. Payments from Banking 365 accounts to othet BOI accounts are instant.

It worked as followed:

Day 1. Input Day - You tell your bank you want to make a payment.
Day 2 Processing /Cycle Day - Your bank sends the payment to the other bank. This was done by all the banks meeting a car park in the early hours and swapping tapes.!!!! Or so I was told...
Day 3. Transactions are applied to the accounts.

Towger

It is really 'Today’s date' + 1, Transaction goes through on midnight on Day 2 for Day 3.

 

[exile]

Hi Towger,

Thanks for that, interesting.

You said when you set up a payee they appeared immediately - was this another BOI account or an account in another bank? I do remember transferring money to other BOI accounts instantly on the phone then getting a letter in the post saying that account had been added to my beneficiaries list. Also, any difference between the "Transfer money" and "Make payment" list?

Exile

 

[DirtyH2O]

I have switched to NIB online banking and I can add a new payee in a different bank, inluding banks who don't have their own clearing and transfer money inside a day i.e lodge in the morning it appears in the other account that night.