EBS MoneyManager

magoo84

Hi there,

I'm an AIB current account customer and I'm thinking of switching to another bank as the fees are a joke. From checking around on Boards and elsewhere, it seems picking an alternative is a matter of choosing the least worst option, as all seem to have major drawbacks. I have Revolut and N26 accounts but I'm hesitant to switch to them completely for my salary and so on due to the horror stories I've heard about them freezing accounts and making it very difficult to resolve.

I'm inclined to switch to EBS as they have no day-to-day transaction fees and there's a branch very near me. However, the account is extremely basic, and they've no mobile app for managing the account itself. There's no Google Pay/ Apple Pay (although this can be worked around using Curve).

The above aren't dealbreakers for me but I'm wondering how others have gotten on?

OrangeLavender

If switching is off-putting, you could look at ways to reduce your AIB fees like using a credit card or Revolut for day to day expenses and paying off or topping up once or twice a month from your AIB account. This cuts down massively on the transaction fees.

Delta2113

Yes go with EBS and use Curve, Revolut etc.

jj880

Switched to EBS when UB closed. Over a year now.

Great servive for no fees. Cant complain.

Yes there is no app banking but you can log into the website on your phone no problem.

You get a card mobile app to approve payments and an authenicator app for logging into online banking.

I have EBS and a basic Revolut card.

Not ready to switch to online bank only yet until mortgage is paid in 5 years time. Hopefully EBS are still going until then.

EDIT: I recommend doing the EBS Switcher that lets both accounts stay open until you have all your DDs etc. sorted. Some did switch automatically for me but there were a few that took a while to get moved manually.

coylemj

I have a MM account and it services most of my direct debits so I'm not knocking EBS from the sidelines but I see no future in the service. AIB owns EBS and they have clearly put zero investment in it for the past several years. Which is probably why EBS can still offer a no fees current account. But this can't last forever.

If the MM service was to be brought up to date by adding (1) support for Google/Apple pay to their cards and (2) a decent mobile app, it would almost certainly coincide with the introduction of a fee structure - why would AIB give us those goodies for nothing? The alternative (which I see happening sooner rather than later) is for AIB to close down EBS and move all of the EBS accounts to AIB.

For those reasons, I would not migrate my current account today to EBS from another bank.

jj880

Same thing said on here last January. AIB will close EBS soon. Hasnt happened yet.

Worth a punt for fee free banking as long as it lasts for me anyway.

Good to have a revolut card which has a lot of the features EBS doesnt. I like having a backup card at all times.

crinkley

Joined EBS just over a year ago, its where my salary is paid into and use revolut for everything else, its basic but its zero fees and I refuse to pay AIB or any other bank fees for a poorer service than I can get for free from Revolut. As another poster said I've been hearing for over a year now that they are going but still no decent rumours about it. The only downside for me is the limit of 2000 tranfer, but very minor.

magoo84

Thanks for your replies everyone. I think EBS were considering winding down their current account offering last year, but they'd be mad given the high footfall at their branches, at least if my local one is anything to go by. I don't necessarily think that fees would automatically follow any future investment in the service either, as I presume that EBS current accounts aim mainly to to attract future mortgage customers, and given that they've increased interest rates on some of their savings products, hopefully that's a sign that current accounts are no longer a net cost to them and removes any need for them to introduce extra fees.

coylemj

I think EBS were considering winding down their current account offering last year, but they'd be mad given the high footfall at their branches

I wouldn't see any link between the number of people with current accounts and the footfall in the branches. I'd have thought that most people who visit branches are lodging or withdrawing money to or from savings accounts. I have an active MM account and haven't set foot in a branch of EBS since about 2018.

ednwireland

moved personal and joint to ebs. works fine, obviously limited, it is free after all. can't get foreign currency transactions only accepts euro transfers. nearly an issue but got round it at the other end.

but I have revolut and n26 so just use those abroad.

I've been in a branch recently but have slightly unusual circumstances. and I paid a cheque in recently.

the banking landscape is pretty crap here to be honest

magoo84

Thanks all. I'm going to go ahead with EBS after all, I see that Bank Of Ireland's annual technological meltdown is underway today.

coylemj

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787549#Comment_120787549

Fine. Just be aware of one restriction which may or may not inconvenience you....

There is a daily limit of 5,000 which applies to all transfers and that includes moving money between your accounts. You also need to be aware that you can only transfer money to an external payee from your MM account, not from a savings account. What this means is that if you need to pay the likes of a credit card bill or transfer money out using funds in a savings account, you will be subject to an effective daily limit of 2,500. Because you will first need to transfer 2,500 from a savings account to your MM account, then transfer that amount out. At which point you will have reached your daily 5,000 limit. So if you had a credit card bill of 6,000 and all the money was in a savings account, it would take you three days to move the money!

jj880

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787549#Comment_120787549

Welcome to fee free banking!

Windows 98 must be playin up for BOI 😅

pakb1ue

I recently moved from KBC to EBS. One thing that is annoying is the lack of setting up a standing order online. You have to fill in this form https://www.ebs.ie/content/dam/ebs/pdfs/useful-forms/ebs-dac-standing-order-mandate.pdf and bring it into the branch or send it in the post. When I rang them they said I can send it in via email but on the FAQ page it says that is only for amendments.

In order to amend a standing order we require a signed instruction to do so, signed by all parties on the account. This can be posted to 10 Molesworth Street, Dublin 2, D02 R126, faxed to 01 874 7416 scanned and emailed to info@mail.ebs.ie or dropped into an EBS office.

horse7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120772461#Comment_120772461

The phone should be a Samsung or iPhone type as it doesn't recognise xaoimi or similar.

jj880

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120794260#Comment_120794260

Where did you hear that?

I was using Xiaomi redmi 6 when I switched and then changed to Xiaomi x4 pro last summer. No problems using either phones for both EBS apps.

coylemj

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120791996#Comment_120791996

It's bizarre that on the EBS FAQ page, the reponse to the question 'How do I set up a standing order'? relates solely to how to transfer money from an external bank to an EBS account. It doesn't tell you how to set up an outbound SO at all.

In fact, it's a copy & paste of the response to the question above it: 'I need to transfer funds to my EBS account. How do I do that?'

But I recall researching this for a family member a while back and somewhere else on the EBS website, it tells you that (as you stated above) a SO requires a signed piece of paper which you need to deliver by post to head office or in person to a branch.

jj880

This is a no fee bank account. Very basic features. I switched and only had to go to a branch once to lodge. Havent had to do anything else that couldn't be done in Revolut. I dont see the point complaining about what EBS offer. You read up on what an account offers and the limits involved and decide if you want to switch. If you need more features from a fee charging bank then switch to another bank instead.

horse7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120794350#Comment_120794350

I was using a xaoimi mi max without success and now a Poco 4 pro with no success.

padyjoe

You must be doing something wrong, I've a Xiaomi released in 16', and it works.

jj880

Did you register your device with EBS so it shows in the apps? IIRC this needs to be done by phoning EBS support number.

coylemj

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120798527#Comment_120798527

Yes, you need to phone EBS to get an activation code for the new phone. It comes in a paper letter and has a shelf life of about a month. When logging in to online banking, your old phone will continue to get the authentication message until you put the code into the new phone. So best to ask them for a code a week or so before you get the new phone.

pakb1ue

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120791996#Comment_120791996

Just to follow up on this I was able to set up a standing order via the email address listed for amendments. Didn't even print it off just converted the PDF to a doc and edited it on my computer. Only downside is you cannot see it listed the online portal, you can only see the transaction happen after money has left your account.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120791996#Comment_120791996

I've created several Standing Orders by emailing the form.