Totally agree.
I’d start calling it the bank that shall not be named 
Getting people to switch banks
It’s tough, I know someone who works there and I’m always so nervous to be negative about things, like I said above, for fear of tallpoppy-ing people but I really do reckon it’s a massive brand faux pas. 
- which is bad because I don’t like things not working for people, want to see people succeed! Anyway, I won’t be typing out number links, it feels like a 404 Error to me writing it.
1 Like
Agree @DylanJ. Open Banking will provide the infrastructure to make account switching much easier! Will be a big win for consumers and a loss to the majors. They have relied on apathy and inertia for too long. Difficulty will be around the ensuring customers are comfortable sharing their data within an open data regime.
1 Like
100% agree, aside from the hassle of switching in the past, I feel like people didn’t really mind their banks. Or at least tolerated them. Now that the royal commission has dragged up some seriously unhappy customers, I think it’s going to make the concept of switching seem a lot less arduous. In the long run it will be good for everyone, even the big 4.
2 Likes
when i think back, one of the things that made me feel ok about switching to a primarily online bank (ING) was knowing that I could still deposit money (through Australia Post).
It was basically about me realising that I didnt need a bank ‘branch’ anymore
3 Likes
Also: Glad the big 4 are now funding this …after a war with Aus post.
1 Like
agreed. though it does seem odd that AusPost just doesn’t apply for a banking licence and enter into competition partnered with a CUSCAL or something, they have the distribution network already, and they have a previous model e.g. NZ post / kiwibank.
1 Like
100 % odd. But if you can politically cobble the big 4 to pay full freight for everyone then im all for that!
I might use 2/4 for business and professional purposes but I absolutely despise them and don’t have investment exposure above what my industry super fund does. (AustSuper) Once a viable alternative for SME comes along I’ll be punting both! (Thinking Judo Capital)
But I only essentially need a transaction account.
Disclosure:
My exposure to banking & FS stocks is as follows:
Xinja
Berkshire Hathaway
Macquarie Bank
Magellan Financial Group.
IAG (inherited) — I actually think this is the best General Insurer listed locally.
I’d be hard to see myself adding further traditional fin services exposure.
Of the above: Berkshire Hathaway & Xinja are the most concentrated. Basically a buy and hold Buffett style.
1 Like
Changing banks can be arduous. I’ve been there and it does take a little while to migrate everything into the new accounts… so there needs to be a very good reason for someone to do that.
My honest opinion - right now, with what I’ve been reading here and in the news about what Xinja is planning, they are going to be pushing it up hill to get any traction in the market. The reason? Simple really, they’re not offering anything that isn’t being done already.
Full disclosure - I invested in Xinja - not the minimum, but not a huge amount, fairly conservative. I did that because I think they have a fun and exciting brand and a group of people who are dedicated to building something new.
But - for me to actually move my banking to Xinja I need something new, something better and something easier than I already have… but Xinja don’t have that, and don’t appear to have plans to, and that worries me.
I currently bank with one of the former credit unions that has become a mutual bank. Owned by members for members. I’ve never used one of the Big 4 banks and I doubt the Royal Commission results will affect me or my bank one little bit. Profits go directly into products members want, and to keep costs down. I don’t pay any fees…haven’t for years. I can use any ATM in the country, I have access to online banking, mobile app, Google Pay, Apple Pay, BPay, external transfers, Osko for instant payments, access to a branch for cash and cheque deposits, I earn Qantas Points on my savings etc. etc.
What is Xinja offering that my existing bank doesn’t? Absolutely nothing. In fact they are planning to offer a lot less, and I can only get to it from one single smartphone.
So - in my humble opinion that is the crux of the problem - we can say words like new, different, Neo Bank, not legacy etc etc… but you can’t expect people to go to the trouble of switching banks, only to have access to a lesser product.
I really hope it works out, but I have a terrible feeling the money will run out before we get there… just my opinion, hope I’m wrong.
4 Likes
Brett makes some really interesting points, many of which I agree with. Xinja will need to beat ING and UBANK in terms of features and reliability for me to switch (I am also an investor).
Maybe the focus is on new customers or getting existing bank customers to add Xinja as well as their existing bank (e.g. use Xinja as a disposable income account, that uses AI to determine what can be spent in a week or something like that). Maybe their marketing needs to focus on why you would add Xinja as a service. I have two banking accounts. Most people I know have a couple.
1 Like
Hi @brett - not sure they need you as a customer to succeed to be honest.
From what you’ve described the array of products you access (e.g. Qantas points / cheques), you’re right you don’t match the profile of what Xinja is building and the customer they want.
If all Xinja does is access the entire young person market for their transactional banking needs, people who when they’re starting out don’t need nearly the product range that you’ve described above, they’ll still succeed.
This number is growing, and fast. Millennials are now the largest proportion of the workforce and they will switch banks to get away from anyone attached the existing crowd, including UP (which is just a front for Bendigo & Adelaide), U Bank which is just a front for NAB, and even ME Bank which is just a front for Union-run funds.
That being said, that will not be ALL Xinja will be doing, but it is why even at this point in time, I respectfully disagree with your opinion.
Lastly, and I think an important point for all the investors in the bank. You own shares in this bank. It’s not a bank like CBA that you bash, it’s new and fragile. The duty of you as an investor in this bank is not just to expect them to do stuff for you, it’s as much about you making Xinja a success too.
I’m going to make Xinja a success. This will be by using their products, giving feedback, engaging with the community and investing in the business. I don’t work for them, but I sure as heck want them to succeed, and I will do everything to help them make it so.
3 Likes
Thanks for your rather insightful comment Jason, much appreciated.
It’s also great to know that you are going to make Xinja a success. I’m not sure what they’d do without you. Just in case you didn’t actually read my comment, I think you’ll find that I am giving feedback, I am engaging with the community (which unfortunately means people like yourself) and I have invested in the business… so I’m really not sure what the point is you’re trying to make.
And lastly - the duty of me as an investor is to provide feedback that is meaningful and real, not fanciful comments based on hearsay. Sometimes that feedback is uncomfortable, but the reality is that in order to have any impact on the banking sector, for young people or anyone else, is to disrupt the market. Just like Uber did to the taxi industry, they offered something new, something better and something easier to access. And customers jumped on in droves.
So ask yourself - what is Xinja planning to offer the consumer that the market doesn’t already have? And once you’ve answered that honestly, ask yourself why people would go to the trouble of switching banks right now? That is after all the title of this thread.
As I said, I want Xinja to succeed, and I think it’s great that they have this community to listen to (not to expect them to ‘do stuff’).
1 Like
Hi @brett sorry you feel that way.
(which unfortunately means people like yourself)
Apologies, meant no offence, never do.
I started writing a long post addressing each of your concerns, but text is an unforgiving medium, so it just came across as belligerent, so I stopped. It didn’t seem helpful.
Ever need to sell your shares feel free to let me know I’ll happily purchase them off market using Boardroom’s feature: https://www.boardroomlimited.com.au/forms/Non-Market%20Transfer.pdf
1 Like
@weeksy_j Apology accepted.
I just didn’t appreciate being told that I’m not needed as a customer, like somehow your opinion or ideas have more value than mine.
You may not see it, but just like you I’m passionate about helping Xinja succeed. Sometimes passion can get heated, so lets just agree to disagree and move on.
And no, I’m not selling… in it for the long haul whichever way it goes. 
1 Like
Hi @brett & @weeksy_j - thank you for your debate and contributions 
I guess the point is, that there is a long list of ‘hygiene’ - ie: what’s the point of a bank if it can’t do these things at a minimum? And this list is growing - and will grow again with open banking. So at launch we might not have the full list of what everyone wants. The question is, should we therefore wait till we have 100% of everything (given it’s a moving target) or launch lean and build? And the other question is what other features or attributes are we bringing that the existing banks WON’T have? As you can imagine, this is a big focus of ours and sorry to be coy but we aren’t ready to disclose what’s on our shortlist or when it would roll out, but we are looking at more than copying a set of existing features, and we might prioritise some new things over other people’s ‘hygiene.’ The point is that the benefits of a bank are not just a list of features, but also ease and simplicity and value. So , for example, can I do it 100% digitally? Can I get a home loan in minutes rather than days? Can I earmark or ringfence money without opening a new account? etc etc. And this can also come down to product design and messaging- not just app features. A bank basically stores, lends and pays interest on money. How do we make that so fluid that it continually optimises itself for example? And how to we get people to make those ongoing minor adjustments that are what deliver the long term outcomes? On a pragmatic level, ultimately not having legacy systems or business will mean lower costs (not immediately as our cost of borrowing will be higher than the existing banks) and these can be passed on in the form of more competitive rates and lower/no fees. These benefits will also take time to roll out, but it is a key part of the model. As you can imagine we are very grateful for your investment and the significant time you’ve taken to give us feedback. What we can offer (subject to our getting a full banking licence) is a bank account that - whilst it won’t do everything on your list immediately necessarily - will do a significant amount and will add features and these other benefits not yet available as it goes. During that time we look forward to more feedback on how we should modify it. Thanks again.
4 Likes
One aspect of the current card that isn’t encouraging is the more than 48 hours that it takes to finalise an ATM withdrawal (in the EU, so not in outer 'Stan)
2 Likes