From an ICICI Bank flyer,
FlexiCash is a special overdraft facility offered to salaried individuals. Simply put, it gives you the benefit of having a pre-approved and pre-sanctioned cash limit in your bank account.
With FlexiCash, you enjoy the double benefit of ready cash for what you need, whenever you need. From filling those shortfalls to the pleasures of shopping, from paying high interest liabilities to buying consumer durables to meeting your everyday needs, the money is now already in your bank account, ready to use.
WTF mate? How dumb does ICICI Bank think its customers are? FlexiCash lets you pay high interest liabilities being a high interest liability itself? What kind of Bank encourages you to go shopping, buy white goods, or meet everyday needs on an overdraft? Wake up CEO. Is this how you want to run your Bank?
I think the second paragraph was originally worded as:
With FlexiCash, you enjoy the double misery of ready cash for what you don’t need, whenever you don’t need it. From filling ICICI Bank’s treasury to draining your savings, from paying high interest liabilities (ROTFLMAO!) to watching your balance go negative to meeting ICICI Bank’s balance sheet needs, your money is now already on the way to our bank account, ready to lend again.
Since this fundamental truth cannot be printed, the wordings had to be changed.
I once had an overdraft facility on my Citibank Suvidha account. I called to close it. I was informed that once a line of overdraft is closed, I will not be given the option to start a new one again. I have never been happier than that one fleeting moment.
Further reading:
- Unwanted Advice: ICICI Bank — We Want You To Be Perpetually Indebted To Us
- Tip Tuesdays: If You’ve Got Overdraft Protection on a Savings Account, Call the Bank and Cancel It Right Now
- To ICICI Bank: If Passwords Expire in One Year, Why Give Me a Welcome Kit With an Already Expired Password?
- Tweets on 2007-12-02
- Know Your Rights: Your Bank Should Accept Cheques/Drafts Drawn In Fractions of a Rupee
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Pavan 04.21.08 at 9:17 pm
Very True. The mindset is that if you say you give 90 rupees off on a 100 rupees piece of real crap which is really worth 5 rupees, customer will tend to buy it for 10.
AH 09.10.08 at 4:55 pm
Sorry, I don’t agree (and I don’t work for ICICI either).
The bank may want you to utilize the entire line but it is in your hands whether you want to utilize it or not. An overdraft line is a quick and cheap (compared to the only other quick credit - credit card cash withdrawal) credit for really short term or for emergencies.