4 ms·

Seems like India is leap-frogging way past where the U.S. financial system is. On the other hand, I worry if all this personal ID data got hacked.

Veratyr 11y ago
They seem to be starting from scratch and the U.S. financial system is probably the worst system available in first world countries so it makes sense that they'd skip it. It'd be fantastic if the U.S. would follow their example and take more than baby steps out of the 20th century.
rahulr 11y ago
Hacking is definitely a worry. A bigger problem might be communicating and teaching people not to part with this information easily.
catchmrbharath 11y ago
India is way ahead of the US financial system. I am a student here in US and I can't really fathom how bad the US financial system is. - Intra bank wires / transfers are free and happen within 10s - Cheques are free - You don't have a system where you can lose all your money if you give your handwritten cheques to somebody (who came up with echeques anyway?) - You don't get charged to have a checking account. They pay you interest for your account. - Get a message about every transaction, every withdrawal that you do immediately.
- _jgdh 11y ago
  Inter bank transfers are also instantaneous and cost $0.08 per transaction
- aptwebapps 11y ago
  I'm not going to argue against the general thesis that the US banking system is antiquated, but I gotta pick these nits: - Checks are usually free in the US. - You don't usually get charged to have a checking account in the US. - The lack of interest on most US checking accounts is due to the very low inflation rate and nearly zero federal rate. Adjusted for inflation, what is the interest rate of your Indian checking account? Back in the 70s when inflation was high in the US checking account that carried interest were not uncommon. I do seem to remember that they were called something else, but I can't remember right now.
  - catchmrbharath 11y ago
    - You don't usually get charged to have a checking account in the US. I have to maintain a minimum balance of 1500$ for the checking account to be free. >> - The lack of interest on most US checking accounts is due to the very low inflation rate and nearly zero federal rate. Adjusted for inflation, what is the interest rate of your Indian checking account? Back in the 70s when inflation was high in the US checking account that carried interest were not uncommon. I do seem to remember that they were called something else, but I can't remember right now. Agreed. I got carried away trying to make a point :).
    - maneesh 11y ago
      Pick a different bank. Almost every bank I walk by offers free checking with $100 balance, or even less
      - vinay427 11y ago
        Pick an even better bank and you have no fees, non-negligible interest, and free ATM withdrawals with fee reimbursement worldwide. You'd have a hard time finding many other banks in the world that offer that.
- jeevand 11y ago
  Indian banks have their own problems. I have spent lots of time dealing with Indian banks which want me to show up in person to handle certain account issues while i was in US. Security works more by obscurity where you have to provide lots of details, which can be bad if you don't regularly use the accounts. Customer service depends on situation. When i deal with private banks, i will be treated really well (with offer for tea/cold drinks/snacks :) & personal attention from manager. My dad, who deals with public sector banks in rural area tells me that he dreads to go near banks. The managers apparently are super rude, with a condescending attitude towards rural people.
- signal11 11y ago
  A lot of Indians frequently mention "message for every transaction" as a positive. I see it as a negative. Cash use is declining in most European countries, and if I had to use 2-factor every time I paid for a pack of gum with my card I'd go nuts. Instead my card providers provide risk-based alerts, e.g. when I shop at a new place (I recently received an alert while ordering furniture at a new online store). Overall fraud rates are pretty low in Europe, so this probably works out okay for both customers and card providers. That said, given how much malware there is on the average Indian PC/phone, perhaps two-factor makes more sense there.

Veratyr 11y ago

They seem to be starting from scratch and the U.S. financial system is probably the worst system available in first world countries so it makes sense that they'd skip it. It'd be fantastic if the U.S. would follow their example and take more than baby steps out of the 20th century.

rahulr 11y ago

Hacking is definitely a worry. A bigger problem might be communicating and teaching people not to part with this information easily.

catchmrbharath 11y ago

India is way ahead of the US financial system. I am a student here in US and I can't really fathom how bad the US financial system is. - Intra bank wires / transfers are free and happen within 10s - Cheques are free - You don't have a system where you can lose all your money if you give your handwritten cheques to somebody (who came up with echeques anyway?) - You don't get charged to have a checking account. They pay you interest for your account. - Get a message about every transaction, every withdrawal that you do immediately.

_jgdh 11y ago
Inter bank transfers are also instantaneous and cost $0.08 per transaction
aptwebapps 11y ago
I'm not going to argue against the general thesis that the US banking system is antiquated, but I gotta pick these nits: - Checks are usually free in the US. - You don't usually get charged to have a checking account in the US. - The lack of interest on most US checking accounts is due to the very low inflation rate and nearly zero federal rate. Adjusted for inflation, what is the interest rate of your Indian checking account? Back in the 70s when inflation was high in the US checking account that carried interest were not uncommon. I do seem to remember that they were called something else, but I can't remember right now.
- catchmrbharath 11y ago
  - You don't usually get charged to have a checking account in the US. I have to maintain a minimum balance of 1500$ for the checking account to be free. >> - The lack of interest on most US checking accounts is due to the very low inflation rate and nearly zero federal rate. Adjusted for inflation, what is the interest rate of your Indian checking account? Back in the 70s when inflation was high in the US checking account that carried interest were not uncommon. I do seem to remember that they were called something else, but I can't remember right now. Agreed. I got carried away trying to make a point :).
  - maneesh 11y ago
    Pick a different bank. Almost every bank I walk by offers free checking with $100 balance, or even less
    - vinay427 11y ago
      Pick an even better bank and you have no fees, non-negligible interest, and free ATM withdrawals with fee reimbursement worldwide. You'd have a hard time finding many other banks in the world that offer that.
jeevand 11y ago
Indian banks have their own problems. I have spent lots of time dealing with Indian banks which want me to show up in person to handle certain account issues while i was in US. Security works more by obscurity where you have to provide lots of details, which can be bad if you don't regularly use the accounts. Customer service depends on situation. When i deal with private banks, i will be treated really well (with offer for tea/cold drinks/snacks :) & personal attention from manager. My dad, who deals with public sector banks in rural area tells me that he dreads to go near banks. The managers apparently are super rude, with a condescending attitude towards rural people.
signal11 11y ago
A lot of Indians frequently mention "message for every transaction" as a positive. I see it as a negative. Cash use is declining in most European countries, and if I had to use 2-factor every time I paid for a pack of gum with my card I'd go nuts. Instead my card providers provide risk-based alerts, e.g. when I shop at a new place (I recently received an alert while ordering furniture at a new online store). Overall fraud rates are pretty low in Europe, so this probably works out okay for both customers and card providers. That said, given how much malware there is on the average Indian PC/phone, perhaps two-factor makes more sense there.