There are so many things I love about living here, but one thing that's definitely not on that list is banking. Banking in Honduras is usually very time consuming. Even if you avoid the busiest days of the 15th and end of the month (pay days), as well as Mondays, going to the bank can still sometimes involve waiting in line for an hour or 2. There's a special line for seniors, pregnant women and women with infants, but if you're not lucky enough to fall into one of those categories, then be prepared to be there for awhile!
Today, I had my 3rd trip back to the BAC bank for the process of opening a bank account in my business name. I've always just used my personal account for banking, but recently I had to receive a payment that was made by check in my business name, so I've been attempting to open an account so that I can cash it. For trip 1, I hauled along all my business documents (escritura publica, business permit, RTN, etc), as well as my ID and personal RTN. I waited for a customer service representative, told her what I wanted to do, and was told my temporary residency card wasn't good enough (for residency renewals, the card doesn't get printed right away, and often it's several months of just having a temporary card, something that happens every year), and that I needed to have a reference letter from my other bank, even though I already have a personal account at BAC. However, they said the paperwork I had would be sufficient if I became 'affiliated' with them, meaning signing up to have a POS system through them. That sounded fine with me- I've managed just fine up until now without accepting credit cards and just using PayPal when needed, but if that's what I needed to do for an account, then I was fine with setting up for POS too.
So I went upstairs to do that paperwork, and then back downstairs to work on the bank account. After 4 hours in the bank, I was finally sent home and told that they needed some authorization, and would call me to come back in a few days, but that the second trip would be pretty quick and just need some signatures, and that I wouldn't have to be in line.
I popped in a few times for my second bank visit, but there was always already someone with customer service and I didn't have time to stay there so long, so trip 2 took awhile to actually happen. On Friday, I finally went first thing in the morning, as they said that was the best time to go. Unfortunately, someone was already there, so I settled in for the wait. Once my turn finally came, I sat in front of the representative for over an hour while she typed in stuff on her computer, just answering 3 basic questions. After over 2 hours in the bank, I had to leave, as I had arrivals coming to the hostel. The representative kept saying it was nearly done, but I had to go, so she asked me to return first thing Monday morning, just for signing things.
Monday morning, I got there just as the bank opened, well prepared with a sweater and a blanket, as the last 2 visits I had nearly succumbed to hypothermia from the a/c. I settled into my seat with the customer service rep and got myself wrapped up while I waited. After nearly an hour and a half, she finally finished the paperwork and was ready for my signatures, and then got me up to the counter without the line in order to get my bank book. Success! After 8 hours of bank waits, I now have an account in my business name! The POS part is a next phase, so that will still take longer, but since my main interest was to get the account open, today has been a successful day.
If you're setting up a business in Honduras and need to open a business bank account, I'd suggest arming yourself with a good book, a sweater and a blanket, a lot of free time and patience before you head to the bank.
Today, I had my 3rd trip back to the BAC bank for the process of opening a bank account in my business name. I've always just used my personal account for banking, but recently I had to receive a payment that was made by check in my business name, so I've been attempting to open an account so that I can cash it. For trip 1, I hauled along all my business documents (escritura publica, business permit, RTN, etc), as well as my ID and personal RTN. I waited for a customer service representative, told her what I wanted to do, and was told my temporary residency card wasn't good enough (for residency renewals, the card doesn't get printed right away, and often it's several months of just having a temporary card, something that happens every year), and that I needed to have a reference letter from my other bank, even though I already have a personal account at BAC. However, they said the paperwork I had would be sufficient if I became 'affiliated' with them, meaning signing up to have a POS system through them. That sounded fine with me- I've managed just fine up until now without accepting credit cards and just using PayPal when needed, but if that's what I needed to do for an account, then I was fine with setting up for POS too.
So I went upstairs to do that paperwork, and then back downstairs to work on the bank account. After 4 hours in the bank, I was finally sent home and told that they needed some authorization, and would call me to come back in a few days, but that the second trip would be pretty quick and just need some signatures, and that I wouldn't have to be in line.
I popped in a few times for my second bank visit, but there was always already someone with customer service and I didn't have time to stay there so long, so trip 2 took awhile to actually happen. On Friday, I finally went first thing in the morning, as they said that was the best time to go. Unfortunately, someone was already there, so I settled in for the wait. Once my turn finally came, I sat in front of the representative for over an hour while she typed in stuff on her computer, just answering 3 basic questions. After over 2 hours in the bank, I had to leave, as I had arrivals coming to the hostel. The representative kept saying it was nearly done, but I had to go, so she asked me to return first thing Monday morning, just for signing things.
Monday morning, I got there just as the bank opened, well prepared with a sweater and a blanket, as the last 2 visits I had nearly succumbed to hypothermia from the a/c. I settled into my seat with the customer service rep and got myself wrapped up while I waited. After nearly an hour and a half, she finally finished the paperwork and was ready for my signatures, and then got me up to the counter without the line in order to get my bank book. Success! After 8 hours of bank waits, I now have an account in my business name! The POS part is a next phase, so that will still take longer, but since my main interest was to get the account open, today has been a successful day.
If you're setting up a business in Honduras and need to open a business bank account, I'd suggest arming yourself with a good book, a sweater and a blanket, a lot of free time and patience before you head to the bank.
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