- Thread starter Peterj
- Start date
Anybody else problems with Banco (in)Popular with Internet banking?
For 3 days now I've tried to do an ATM withdrawal from Banco Popular, both at the branch in Sosua and at their ATM in Playero....everyone that I've seen try a withdrawal from a foreign bank has been unsuccessful. I went in to the branch yesterday to ask about it but it was overflowing with people, didn't want to wait it out. Something must be going on with their infrastructure, never had problems with them before.
Get to know your branch manager and sub-manager.
Then, when you walk in, make sure they see you and wave hi and ask if you can ask a quick question, even if they're with someone.
Don't forget those bottles of wine every Christmas!
Good tip JD.....thank you.
Whatever nonsense has been going on the last 4 days seems to be done now. No problem withdrawing cash today.
That may be a more old school approach. My "Official" is actually working remotely or from a call center and I can communicate with the "official",that has changed a couple of times, on WhatsApp. Convenient as I am not in the DR much anymore. But I don't need it much either. It's a personal account.
An acquaintance of mine said he was once told by a fellow expat "send the colonel a bottle of Johnny Walker; and on his day off... he'll think of ya!”
Yesterday I had problems doing transfers, I got an error but the money was transfered, when I get an error before try again I close the app and open again to verify and when I checked the transaction was ok. Also the ATM was slow.
Interesting that my ATM card got rejected at both Scotia and BanResevwas this morning. I got an email from my bank stating that it was suspicious activity. However I cleaned my chip with a bit of alcohol and everything worked out by 1230pm. Not sure what the problem was, me or them.
They have some kind of a system error on all their cards issued by their Popular Bank in Panama (all their 'tarjetas de credito internacional en dolares') since yesterday. Cards are declined everywhere and show exorbitant amount of overdraft in the app. I called them today, heard typical 'en el transcurso del dia', but probaby it won't be fixed until Monday or Tuesday.
Maybe you don't know that, so just for your information: this is a list of credit cards that Banco Popular offers:
Scroll down thru the list, you will see Clásica Internacional, Gold Internacional, etc. If you notice, those cards are issued not by Banco Popular Dominicano, but by Popular Bank Panama. They own that bank.
So, all these "Internacional" cards are not working since yesterday, because something fcucked up between them and their Panamanian bank. I hope they fix it at least on Monday, I have two of those cards and I use them for all my online shopping, as well as for other things.
Popular Inc. is the corporate parent company for all subsidiaries: North America, Puerto Rico, Dominicana and Panama. All assets are managed locally but take brand strategy and guidance from the corporate parent. All credit assets are managed at the entity level as well. They clearly role up to the same corporate entity but operations and assets are managed at the regional level.
Popular Bank in Panama is not a retail bank, they don't have any branches, ATMs in Panama, nothing. It's just a very small office in an office tower with just one girl sitting there. I've been there. You ask that girl what are they doing there and what products they offer, she gives you a card of Banco Popular office on Av. Winston Churchill in Santo Domingo and tells you to go there for all the questions.
So it's just a bank registered by them in Panama for the things that they can't do in DR, like issuing credit cards in US dollars only. They also can open accounts in US dollars in that Panamanian bank for some very important clients with very big $$$, who want their money to be outside Dominican jurisdiction.
I understand your confusion. But I can assure you that each regional entity is responsible for the issueance and management of their credit card business, along with all other assets and operations. Each entity manages the clearing and settlement for their respective region in partnership with Master Card and Visa global. Dominicans are not issued BPP credit cards, as each region issues and manages its own products, regardless of whatever that girl you are referring to says. Have a blessed evening sir!
Dominicans are issued Popular Bank Panama credit cards, and I have two of them, as well as my wife. You can order that card in any Popular branch in DR. If you are approved, they issue the card in Panama and send it here, you receive it in the branch or they deliver it to you.
These cards are issued in US Dollars, the statement is in Dollars (Popular Bank Panama sends you the statement monthly), you have to pay them from your account in US dollars in Banco Popular. You see these cards in your internet banking or Popular app as well as your Banco Popular cards issued in DR.
And as I posted before, yesterday something fcucked up in their system, so these cards don't work until they fix something there in Panama.
Correct.
All Dominican Banks are separate from any other banks that share their names including Popular in the US or anyywhere else.
Assuming they are the same bank will quikcly lead you down a rabbit hole. Different laws apply. They may be owned by the same umbrella
corporation which provides some cross benefits, but that is it.