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Banking experience with IDFC FIRST Bank.

Sinatra

TF Select
UPDATE: 01/Feb/2025 - see post #18.

Wanted to reflect our latest experience with this IDFC FIRST Bank, so that others can take an informed decision and avoid banking with this unprofessional bank.

One of my family member wanted a bank for saving and investment purpose and was massively attracted toward this bank's advertised feature and false PR/online reviews.
The bank was ticking almost all the tick-marks we wanted, even exceeded them on paper.
They confirmed feature over phone banking, like Visa Signature Debit card, 0 fees for any transaction, online or offline, unlimited free ATM withdrawals across any bank ATM, 8% rate in FD, and all. We also informed that, if we visit the branch in-person and open the account, the account will be 0-balance instead of regular 25k AMB.

Hence took out time out and accompanied my family member to the branch. (its their main/biggest branch in a tier-1 city).
Executive in the bank told us that we have been misinformed (by their own customer care) on almost everything. For example:
  • No 0-balance accounts. If you open online or in-person doesn't matter.
  • They seem to receive an email form their top management on the same day via email ordering them not to issue any new Visa Signature card, rather issue Visa Platinum card, we have been told if we came 1 day before we would have received Signature card.
  • FD rates are not 8%, rather 7.8/7.9 (forgotten exact figure).
Sensed few red flag, but somehow the other executive with impressive marketing skill, convinced us, like not much difference from platinum and signature card (we we are not planning to use this as everyday account) , even if you dont do FD you still getting 7% monthly compounding interest in the bank account's idle money, without the hassle of FD/RD. yada yada yada.

So we thought, lets open the account and wait for the account to be active, get internet banking, etc. and than later open FD/RDs.

after few days we received the account opening kit by post.. they sent the worst debit card, a no-name master card.
The RM is very very irresponsible, doesn't bother to even answer our call. Their phone banking says something, branch says otherthing, and in reality something else is happening with us. Each and every individual inside this bank is disconnected and don't have single views on most of the things.

We wasted our time and effort, plus money. If we selected any other bank we could have earned the FD interest for this entire month of january.
Overall the impression we got was very lackluster, and the expression of help desk was very unwelcoming, as if why we visited branch and destroyed their peace of life.

This is India's 5th largest bank. wow !!
There are other, much much smaller, banks out there like, RBL, DCB, who are 1/10th compared to IDFC, but they treat customer so well, their staffs are well informed and dont trick customers.

Please do proper research before thinking about any relatoinship with this bank.
reddit is full of praises for them, but now i released all were 4-5yrs old... we missed to do proper due diligence and hence deserved this inconvenience.
We are planning to visit bank this saturday and shall close this account.

Hope this post will help other to do proper research.
 
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They only issue Visa Debit Cards
Nope. that's a lie we were also told.

EDIT: @ashwink , since you are a mod, DM me if you want me to send you the picture of the card we received for your verification purpose.
EDIT 2: picture of card sent to mod for verification.
 
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Maybe one odd bad experience (this you can find with any bank). I've been IDFC's customer for 4.5 years now and have never faced any issue/ no mis-selling.
 
Maybe one odd bad experience
Isn't we tend to react on our own 1st hand experience rather then others? specially when we are about to trust someone with our money.
Do you think were just unlucky to select this particular branch ? Could my experience have been better at a smaller branch that needs more customers?

since you are an old time customer, ignore selling products, if you ever faced any issue with them, if so what was the resolution time ?
(I have already listed our experience in my opening post)
 
Nope. that's a lie we were also told.

EDIT: @ashwink , since you are a mod, DM me if you want me to send you the picture of the card we received for your verification purpose.
EDIT 2: picture of card sent to mod for verification.
Ye kaunsa verification hai bro? Crop blur karke card details ko yaha bhi attach kiya ja sakta hai na? BIN and MC ka logo se pata chal jata
 
Ye kaunsa verification hai bro? Crop blur karke card details ko yaha bhi attach kiya ja sakta hai na? BIN and MC ka logo se pata chal jata
Still some discussion and doubt clearance is happening with bank , once done. will post update for all.
 
Isn't we tend to react on our own 1st hand experience rather then others? specially when we are about to trust someone with our money.
Do you think were just unlucky to select this particular branch ? Could my experience have been better at a smaller branch that needs more customers?

since you are an old time customer, ignore selling products, if you ever faced any issue with them, if so what was the resolution time ?
(I have already listed our experience in my opening post)
Yes, experience always depends upon the branch.
 
My experiance was always best with them.

I once requested them 10 rs currency, they said do not have it yet but they will order it from main branch. The next day I got a call asking to visit and pick it up.

Once debit freeze was removed from my acccount within 30 minutes of calling. Other banks would have asked to visit the branch.
 
Once debit freeze was removed from my acccount within 30 minutes of calling
may i ask why it was done in the first place?
those kind of action, unless you are not doing money laundering, and ED/CBI has raided you, its against basic human rights.
 
IDFC has serious hassles with account freeze. I too had experienced the same. They go nuts if you do UPI transactions completely within legal limits and freeze your account without any prior information or checks/verifications. And if it is a complete freeze, then you have no option but to go to the bank. That is an absolutely nonsensical stuff with them. But there is a lot to like about them. They usually don't give 0balance accounts unless you receive a preapproved offer. Many of their credit card users received one last year, I was one among them.
Their tech developer team sis pretty good, and they do listen to feedbacks.
Their app and websites are modern and feature-rich.
They don't have charges on even IMPS transactions.
They have a debit card rewards program.
The credit card onboarding process is one of the best in the country as far as my experience is concerned.
The interest rate is one of the best in the country for Bank FD accounts.
SB 7 percent is for not for the entire amount, but graded and isn't as attractive as it sounds. Still, decent enough.
The account freeze nonsense is rather rampant and absolutely pathetic though.
So if you can sort your major concerns, and if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick...
 
IDFC has serious hassles with account freeze. I too had experienced the same. They go nuts if you do UPI transactions completely within legal limits and freeze your account without any prior information or checks/verifications. And if it is a complete freeze, then you have no option but to go to the bank. That is an absolutely nonsensical stuff with them. But there is a lot to like about them. They usually don't give 0balance accounts unless you receive a preapproved offer. Many of their credit card users received one last year, I was one among them.
Their tech developer team sis pretty good, and they do listen to feedbacks.
Their app and websites are modern and feature-rich.
They don't have charges on even IMPS transactions.
They have a debit card rewards program.
The credit card onboarding process is one of the best in the country as far as my experience is concerned.
The interest rate is one of the best in the country for Bank FD accounts.
SB 7 percent is for not for the entire amount, but graded and isn't as attractive as it sounds. Still, decent enough.
The account freeze nonsense is rather rampant and absolutely pathetic though.
So if you can sort your major concerns, and if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick...
"Their tech developer team sis pretty good, and they do listen to feedbacks."

As in? If they do listen to feedbacks, I guess you have told them about this issue, then why it's not fixed yet?

" if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick..."

Really? Credit? or Debit?
 
IDFC has serious hassles with account freeze. I too had experienced the same. They go nuts if you do UPI transactions completely within legal limits and freeze your account without any prior information or checks/verifications. And if it is a complete freeze, then you have no option but to go to the bank. That is an absolutely nonsensical stuff with them. But there is a lot to like about them. They usually don't give 0balance accounts unless you receive a preapproved offer. Many of their credit card users received one last year, I was one among them.
Their tech developer team sis pretty good, and they do listen to feedbacks.
Their app and websites are modern and feature-rich.
They don't have charges on even IMPS transactions.
They have a debit card rewards program.
The credit card onboarding process is one of the best in the country as far as my experience is concerned.
The interest rate is one of the best in the country for Bank FD accounts.
SB 7 percent is for not for the entire amount, but graded and isn't as attractive as it sounds. Still, decent enough.
The account freeze nonsense is rather rampant and absolutely pathetic though.
So if you can sort your major concerns, and if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick...
Agree 👍 💯
 
"Their tech developer team sis pretty good, and they do listen to feedbacks."

As in? If they do listen to feedbacks, I guess you have told them about this issue, then why it's not fixed yet?

" if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick..."

Really? Credit? or Debit?

Think the freeze nonsense is more of a policy one rather than a tech glitch. Even the BM of my branch was suggesting me to use netbanking rather than UPI as they provide even realtime transfers without charges. The tech team has done decent work on both the website and the mobile app.
As for the freeze, it is UPI in rather than out transaction that usually make them lose it altogether!
 
So if you can sort your major concerns, and if you don't have too many UPI transactions planned from the account, particularly credit transactions, then do stick..
Thank you for the details. the person holding the account has no intention to use UPI.
Talks are going on to find a solution, which i don't have first hand information, but seem talk are on positive side.
Will update this post once we get updates from bank.
 
Hello All, I have an update in this topic.
Finally bank has provided what we have been promised earlier (except the MAB is 25k).

The entire episode and the all the inconvenience we faced, is due to human error/ negligence.
As a result of escalation, bank has changed the RM, and assigned a new one who seems to be better.
 
I had closed my IDFC Wealth SB yesterday using an online link generated by the bank

I discovered that even cluster managers in IDFC do not have much authority/power.

RM and BM have absolutely no power. Non home branch banking concept has made it worse as in no one takes responsibility for closure for an issue
 
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I discovered that even cluster managers in IDFC do not have much authority/power.

RM and BM have absolutely no power. Non home branch banking concept has made it worse as in no one takes responsibility for closure for an issue
i think their staff are not trained on handling customer in-person/call.
they heavily rely on online, and than, their half-trained executive will accidentally click a wrong button to keep you business for 10-12 days. 😀
 
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