NASSAU, BAHAMAS – CIBC Caribbean Limited leads the way in offering the lowest fees for student and retiree accounts, while Fidelity Bank leads in offering the lowest penalties for late credit card, personal loan, and mortgage payments, and also offers the least expensive adult savings accounts, the Central Bank’s latest survey of commercial bank fees has revealed.
The Central Bank of The Bahamas’ semi-annual assessment, conducted for the period ending December 2024, highlighted a range of fees imposed by commercial banks on various products and services for domestic clients. The survey compared a range of scenarios involving typical retail and non-commercial clients with transactional bank accounts, including those with defaults on credit facilities.
In particular, the Central Bank’s findings revealed that CIBC Caribbean Limited offers the lowest fees for student and retiree accounts. “The simulated student account for CIBC Caribbean Limited remained the least expensive,” the report stated. Additionally, CIBC’s “total fees were also the lowest for alleged retiree savings products accounts, both for over-the-counter and digital services.”
Fidelity Bank the regulator noted, stood out for its low penalty fees. The report noted that Fidelity Bank “maintained the lowest in all three categories,” with particular emphasis on the lowest penalties for “late credit card, personal loan, and mortgage payments.” Furthermore, the report states that Fidelity Bank “also offers the least expensive adult savings accounts.”
The analysis also pointed to other key trends in the banking landscape. For instance, “customers who rely on physical or paper-based channels for services experienced mixed trends.” In fact, the average cost for adult chequing accounts increased slightly over the survey period. The report emphasized that “fees assessed for three of the constructed customer profiles decreased” when utilizing digital channels. For example, Bank of The Bahamas (BOB) was noted as being the least expensive option for adult checking accounts using digital channels, though it was more expensive for physical transactions.
The Central Bank’s survey also observed that “students receive the most concessions, followed by retirees.” Furthermore, the survey noted that “retirees still incurred the lowest profiled service prices,” with fees decreasing compared to both mid-2024 and end-2023. Meanwhile, Commonwealth Bank Limited (CBL) was found to offer competitive pricing for students but did not provide ATM cards, which contributed to its slightly lower fees compared to other banks.
In terms of credit services, the report notes that “banks continued to provide the most inexpensive cost schedules to clients who maximize the use of digital channel services for deposit account transactions.” While CIBC, “remained the least expensive for simulated student accounts” and “also ranked as the least expensive for retiree accounts, both for over-the-counter and digital services,” Scotiabank in contrast, was found to have the highest costs for both adult checking and savings accounts when in customers used digital channels, as well as for students and adults relying on physical services.
The Central Bank also found that while “prices continue to differ amongst financial institutions,” the cost of services for seniors using digital platforms was highest at RBC FINCO and RBC, which were also the most expensive for late mortgage payments. Additionally, Scotiabank was assessed as having the highest fees for late credit card payments, with CIBC and RBC also being more expensive in this regard.
