Small business banking

[dellatjie]

@ians,

Your account manager also has a great influence on your experience with your bank.

We had a shop which required regular cash banking and regular EFT's as well. We were registered on the pay-as-you-use package. No one asked us when we opened our account which pricing option we wanted. I didn't even know there were different packages.

We ended up paying up to R1800 bank charges per month.

Only upon enquiry and complaining about the fees, did my account manager inform me about these pricing options. After changing to the appropriate option - R700!!

I feel that she should've kept an eye on the account (as I know they do, because they contact you regularly regarding the overdraft and funds coming in), and given me the option without me asking.

So, at the end of the day what I am trying to say, is make sure that the pricing option they are giving you, will be sufficient for your business. Go through the brochure and make sure what is included and what the terms and conditions are.

I hope it works out for you!

[Houses4Rent]

Do you really think a bank/company coining it will tell you anything voluntarily which will result in less money for them...?

[Newretailer]

Ian, I am a sole prop and used to have everything going through one account, but it became messy. What I did was opened a second savings account linked to the main account (I am with Capitec) in my business name. I now keep my business expenses separate for my own sake and also to make bookkeeping easier.

Years ago I had an accountant who ran an accounting firm with about 6 employees. She told me she was still running as a sole prop as it made more sense and was cheaper to run. That advice stuck with me. The only problem is when you want to sell the company, there is no company to sell, but the way I see it is you can still sell your assets and customers etc.

[Houses4Rent]

To me running a business as sole prop is financial suicide. If anything goes wrong you go down with it - sometimes for a long time.

[Newretailer]

Not if you do not have any debt. I pay my creditors as I go along. I know most people cannot run a business like that, but I have been going for 15 years and have been growing slow but organically. It works for me.

[Houses4Rent]

It works until the day someone successfully sues you for something you did not see coming. Lets think of an example - a car accident maybe and your insurance found a way to reject your/the opponents claim. Make that a bad accident where someone ends up in a wheelchair or worse... Suddenly you have a hectic debt to pay....

Or you are a landlord like me and someone slips in your house and manages that it was your fault e.g. wrong tiles used. Ends up being badly hurt for short or worse long term.

A large client lets you down and does not pay you and puts you in a bad cash flow situation and suddenly you cannot pay your creditors as you should.

SARS picks up long and largish mistakes your accountant made and now you owe SARS a large amount and penalties on top.

You are in married in community of property and your spouse has large debts or suffers one of the examples above. Suddenly you are going down too.

We all do not plan to be unable to pay our debts and then suddenly Murphy strikes... Never say never.



There are probably many other examples.

[Basment Dweller]

Good points here, we've had all kinds of out the blue financial problems, my father was sequestrated by and old creditor that lodged a case that we knew nothing about and judgment was passed in his absence, we had to pay lawyers to get out of that one.

Regarding the banking charges, South Africans have now idea how badly we are getting raped on the fees until you have experience with banking in other countries. I have bank accounts in an EU country and there are basically no transaction fees, no EFT, cash widrawal, sms fee, service fee, fee fee fee all cleverly obduscated so you can never work out what you're paying...just one fixed payment and finshed.

[ians]

Seems banking on the weekend is not a smart thing to do.

[ians]

I thought it was just me again. Seems standard bank internet has crashed. They have sent a message for people to please be patient

[ians]

If you had a lunch appointment or need to fill up or pay uses a card best you cancel. Card machines are not working either. You can withdraw cash from sone ATMs