Chile Forum

I am planning on opening a chilean bank account in the near future and was wondering if there was any opinions on which comapny/bank is better to use. The account will be primarily used to deposit paychecks and pay living expenses.

Grazie,
Rook

My personal experience with banks as follow:

-Banco Santander Santiago, huge bank with worlwide branches, more interested in loans and mortages than bancking accounts for individuals, which is, in my view, just a secoundary business for them, the worst service if you are now owing them money

-Banco de Chile, the second biggest, is in fact the merge of 3 diferent banks: former Banco de Chile, Banco Edwards and Citibank Chile, is the kingdom of chaos and confusion, nobody knows nothing and employees there are more dissoriented than a mormon inside a topless bar.

-Banco de Credito e Inversiones, is a bank specially devoted to persons, in my view is the best to open an individual banking account, they care.

-Banco del Estado, crowded and bad smelling, but the most convenient commisions and rates of interest, if you are patient with long lines of people waiting and your nose is strong, is the best choice.

-Other minor banks: BBVA, Scotia Bank, Banco del Desarrollo, etc etc are small banks and quite decent, they are primary devoted to smaller customers or bad credit story not accepted in the main banks, are the bank of choice of small entrepreneurs

employees there are more dissoriented than a mormon inside a topless bar.

tombrad2 wrote:. . . . employees there are more dis[]oriented than a [M]ormon inside a topless bar. . . .

The most amusing thing I've read today.

Anyway is not my creation (sad to say)
"andas mas perdido que Mormon en un topless" is a very popular chilean saying

Interesting to know, Tomás. By the way, I've been frustrated all day trying to remember the name in a Chilean saying that runs something like, "más perdido que el Teniente Fulano".

Oh it is "mas perdido que el Teniente Bello", it is based in a true story of one of our first aviators who missed his way flying from Santiago to Mendoza in 1914. "Mormon en un topless" is the modern version for the same meaning

"A partir de entonces, los chilenos comenzaron a usar la frase "más perdido que el Teniente Bello" para referirse a personas distraídas o que se han perdido en el camino" http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alejandro_Bello

http://www.emol.com/noticias/cultura_es ... cia=213173

Thanks, very much, Tomás. I'd remembered the story (even the year!) but had forgotten the surname -- though how I could forget so simple and common a surname as "Bello" is beyond me even now.