Banks’ increasingly draconian efforts to fight fraud and money laundering are going too far and creating an unsustainable situation for many customers. A new survey reveals that more and more customers are questioning the banks’ methods.
With Sweden’s highly digital economy, it has also become ideal for exploitation by fraudsters and criminals. The question now is whether things are going too far for individual bank customers. According to a survey by Realtid, the problem is widespread.
Most people do not object to the regulations themselves, but to how they are enforced and a lack of proportionality. Many believe the burden of proof has shifted entirely—it is no longer up to the bank to show suspected criminality, but rather the customer is expected to prove their innocence down to the smallest detail.
As many as 74 percent of respondents to the survey believe that Swedish banks have become too aggressive and that the measures are legally uncertain and disproportionate. Another eight percent also agree but feel the banks have no other choice due to the regulations.
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Ten percent think it hasn’t gone too far and that the risk of fraud and money laundering requires strict control.
For business owners, the situation is even worse, with several reporting that their accounts have been closed without warning, which in practice amounts to a ban on doing business. In recent years, major banks have shut down thousands of accounts, a practice that continues to increase.
“System Error”
“My personal account was terminated because I couldn’t explain a Swish payment of 500 kronor from my brother. This is a system error of biblical proportions,” writes one survey respondent.
“We have to accept that the world looks different now. If we want to stop gang crime and terrorism, the banks need to stay on top of things. I find the scrutiny professional,” writes another.
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“It’s no longer about security. It’s about banks choosing the easiest way to cover their own backs, no matter whose lives they destroy in the process,” claims a third.
Withdrew Too Much Cash
One of those affected by the banks’ arbitrariness is Anders Hallstensson, who prefers to use cash for his purchases.
Länsförsäkringar Bank suddenly decided he had withdrawn too much of his own money and demanded he account for how he had spent the money, based on laws against money laundering and terrorism financing. This was to be done by submitting receipts for every purchase over the past 18 months—an impossibility, as Hallstensson had not kept every single receipt.
“For me, born in 1963, cash is a security and a given,” he told Nya Wermlands-Tidningen.
Since the bank did not consider the documents he submitted to be sufficient, they blocked his ability to withdraw cash, resulting in his decision to switch banks.