My statement from Toronto-based Tangerine Bank arrived the other day. The first thing I noticed was the virtue-signaling message stating, “No trees are harmed in making of electronic statements.”

Um, Canada has billions of trees. I’m OK with harming a few of them for paper-based statements. And who’s kidding who? This “save the trees” pitch is really all about Tangerine trying to save on its own stationary and postal costs.

Anyway, I glanced over my statement. My balance as of January 2023 was precisely $307.80. That should pay for a week’s worth of groceries I suppose… would you believe a weekend’s worth?

But here’s what really commanded my attention: one line item noted I had earned a whopping $2.80 in interest during calendar year 2023. But all that interest – and a chunk of the principal, too – was wiped out with a $20 charge!

And the reason I was being dinged 20 bucks was due to a “Yearly Dormancy Fee.”

What the hell?

So, I reached out to Tangerine with some questions:

1. Given that my banking with Tangerine is exclusively done online, what is the cost (if any) that Tangerine is hoping to recoup with such a fee?

2. Years ago, the law was changed with regard to retailer gift cards charging so called "monthly maintenance fees." This is no longer allowed. Are similar fees being charged by banks allowed, and if so, what is the difference?

3. I never did open a Tangerine Bank account to begin with. My original relationship was with ING Direct. I understand the parent company of Tangerine Bank, The Bank of Nova Scotia, acquired ING Direct Canada in 2012. Did ING Direct charge its customers a Yearly Dormancy Fee as well?

I never really received tangible answers, but to Tangerine’s credit, a representative said they’d waive that $20 Yearly Dormancy Fee. But that would make for a one-off courtesy.

I don’t get it. Is Tangerine employing a legion of bookkeepers toiling over ledgers with fountain pens, manually going through customers’ statements?

My online banking exists as a nugget of computer code. It costs the bank nothing if I do not make a transaction. So, is this just a cash grab for no valid reason?

As previously mentioned, none other than the uber-woke Scotiabank owns Tangerine. Astute Rebel News viewers may recall a couple of our stories in recent years in which we exposed that Scotiabank cancelled two customers for making “insensitive” remarks about the bank’s diversity/equity/inclusion policy and the bank’s pride displays. Nice…

Toronto resident 'Jane' tells David Menzies that Scotiabank terminated her 20-year relationship with the company because she criticized its diversity, equity and inclusion policy.

Visit Rebel News for more on this story by @TheMenzoid: https://t.co/UoUPHaiHiV pic.twitter.com/zJx5dunj0U

— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) August 15, 2024

As well, let us never forget that Scotiabank was totally gung-ho with freezing the bank accounts of those Canadians who donated to the Freedom Convoy two years ago. That was equal parts shameful and disgraceful.

And now this: a $20 service fee for absolutely no good reason. Then again, Scotiabank paid an astonishing $800 million for the naming rights of the Toronto arena that used to be known as the Air Canada Centre. And that’s only for a 20-year term! Gracious, I’m certainly not a financial whiz, but where is the return-on-investment for such a lofty investment? (Or maybe Scotiabank covers such spending sprees by dinging its loyal customers one service fee at a time?)

Anyway, since Tangerine is so keen on me making at least one transaction in 2024 to avoid that $20 Yearly Dormancy Fee, I shall gladly do. Which is to say I’m going to borrow a strategy of that loveable loser, George Castanza, from Seinfeld fame. Remember that episode when George dumped his beautiful and talented girlfriend? He didn’t want to, of course, but he was so paranoid she would eventually dump him that he went ahead with a “pre-emptive breakup.” Incredibly, that had the effect of making his girlfriend totally beholden to him; George was now so much more desirable given that he was now akin to forbidden fruit.

So it is, I shall be closing my Tangerine account and sticking my moolah under my mattress. That way I’ll actually be ahead of the game. Because if I were to ignore my Tangerine account going forward, I would eventually have a balance of precisely ZERO dollars by 2039… assuming I’m still alive by then.

So, Tangerine, to quote Mr. Constanza, “I AM breaking up with YOU.”

I really have no choice. When the woke control freaks at Scotiabank see this report, they’d undoubtedly cancel my account because that’s how they roll. Thus, I shall “de-bank” myself from Tangerine as a pre-emptive strike.

And hey there, Scotiabank: how does it feel?

Donate Now!

Support Rebel News Field Reports! Your contribution helps our fearless journalists travel across the country to report on the stories mainstream media refuses to cover. Whether it's exposing government overreach, giving a voice to the voiceless, or documenting on-the-ground protests and events, Rebel News is dedicated to bringing you the unfiltered truth. With your help, we can continue to challenge censorship and provide Canadians with real, independent journalism. Please donate today to keep our Field Reports team on the frontlines!

Optional email code

Amount

$25

$50

$75

$100

$250

$500

$1,000

$2,500

Other

$

One-time

Monthly

DONATE