00:00Republic Bank announced that it has paused its new increase of fees two days after the Central Bank of Trinidad
00:06and Tobago said it was engaging Republic Bank directly on this matter.
00:11In response, the Central Bank said it welcomes the statement released by Republic Bank on Friday in full-page advertisements
00:18in the two daily newspapers to announce that it was putting the increased fees on hold.
00:23The Central Bank said its intervention on the matter was minimal and consistent with its commitment to working alongside the
00:30banking sector.
00:32The Central Bank stated that it, quote, commends Republic Bank for responding so proactively to the concerns expressed by the
00:40public, and in particular, the chairman of the board for his very sensitive and positive handling of the matter, end
00:46quote.
00:46In its advertisement, RBL told its customers that it understands that any changes to their banking costs causes concern, and
00:56it has noticed there has been some confusion about what these changes actually mean for them.
01:02Republic Bank then announced that because they value their customers' feedback, they have decided to pause the fee increases originally
01:09set for May 1, 2026.
01:12RBL said that they will share the new implementation dates with their customers soon, and that they, quote, want to
01:20take this time to clear the air and ensure you have all the facts, end quote.
01:25Republic Bank explained that nobody likes a late fee or an overdrawn account, and that when this happens, they either
01:32have to decline your payment, which is embarrassing, or pay it for you, which creates further debt.
01:38RBL said they want to help their customers avoid these situations entirely.
01:43Republic Bank further said that less than 5% of their customers actually use checks as a medium of payment
01:50and have actively switched to their mobile app and online banking, where most transfers are free or low cost.
01:59RBL said maintaining the old systems for checks is very expensive.
02:04Republic Bank also declared that three of their deposit accounts apply only to in-branch teletransactions, and that their customers
02:15will not see fee increases when using Republic Bank's wide network of 130 ATMs, the bank's ACH platform, Republic Online,
02:28Republic Mobile App, or paying with their RBL cards at a store.
02:34Jules Brown, TV6 News.
Comments