Poland's Alior Bank reviews / ING / Millenium

what do you think about Alior Bank vs ING vs Millenium, is it reputable in Poland and secure enough ?

I wouldn't call them reputable. It's a new brand.

I'm in the process of moving from Alior to Millenium, basically because their fee free account which I have has over the last two years slowly been getting extra fees added to it, last month I got charged 28PLN in fees which was enough to get me to move.

I found their staff to be exceptionally helpful in most cases. Nonetheless I also closed my account when the fees came in though I'd always paid for the debit card. The fees started to come to a lot unless its "a main account" with the criteria they stupulate. I'm looking round for a free account at a newcomer bank, but I reckon they will all bring fees in sooner or later.

Thanks all for replies, do you have any experience about ING bank. as i did my search i found that ING and Alior are the most suitable banks for me.

ING is very good, I had an account there, and no complains, it's reliable bank in Poland.

I have ING internet account. It's ok, moved there because it's free under certain conditions.

Hi looker and majkel,

do you know the fees for debit and credit cards ?

and also the fees for transfer money to my account in my country ?

The fee for debit card in ING is 0 or 7 PLN, I think it depends on the account type, but usually it should be free.
Credit card (VISA) - free if average monthly payment with this credit card is more than 200PLN, if less than that - the fee is 35PLN for a month then (the average is calculated for an annual period divided by 12 months)

I don't know however the fees for the transfer money abroad - it depends mostly on the particular country and a destination bank. Ask somebody on the place - the fee may be high though and the different options for sending $$$ may be worth to consider.

ING credit card minimum per month is now 300PLN I was told when I inquired (but I don't know, I didn't open an account). It's same for the debit card (fee 7PLN a month)

As for the credit card 35PLN fee every month you mentioned if someone does not put 300PLN of retail transactions on the card, sure about that? Sounds huge.

I use Alior for business (since 2012) and ING for personal banking (since 2011).

Alior has some English speaking staff catering to business customers in some branches. Their web interface is also in English & Polish. However, The fees are adding up. I can't complain about their service otherwise.

ING has been good too - no complaints. Also, English & Polish web interface. But not many English speaking staff.

I also previously used Raiffeisen & PKO for business - and today I avoid both like death. Had horrible experiences with both banks.

I see on their fee chart, that it is 200PLN for a private individual


Sorry, it was my mistake, the fee is 35PLN per year

Check it yourself here - go to 'karty kredytowe' (credit cards) and 'karta debetowa' (debit card)
ingbank.pl/_fileserver/item/1000192

Ooh 300 PLN per month for credit card !

@monde - it's not the fee per month - it is the amount you need to use with your credit card monthly to not pay the fee for it. And it's actually 200 PLN as I see.

@Looker, thanks for clarification so if i didnt use it i will pay 35 PLN per year right ?

Yes. It's per year fee.

it's strange for me to pay monthly fees for the debit card (7 PLN) i see it's free for all banks !

You should ask them about it, I'm not sure 100% but it seems, you would not have to pay the fee for the debit card if the amount of transactions monthly on this card would be more than 300 PLN.

I have it for free in Bank Zachodni, but I have only two types of ATM's where I can withdraw my money for free (B.Zachodni & PKO), for the rest I need to pay 5 PLN every time..

monde, I only have debit card with ING and like others said, if you use your card for 300 pln worth of transactions per month it's free.

Take care.

I would certainly call them reputable, not just because they've won European Retail Bank of the Year twice in a row bit also because all retail banks operating in Poland are 'reputable' since they have the same financial tests and protective compliance as each other. the largest holdings in the bank are held by large international institutions too.

The post above is about Alior, by the way. A very good bank however I'd recommend a third option, Nordea. I used them for several years and found them excellent.

I would avoid Citibank; I used them and found their staff to be dishonest. I'd ask why a transfer hadn't gone through or whatever and they used to just say the first thing that came into their heads. Ask a day later why it still hadn't and something completely different, all without actually looking at a computer screen or trying to find out a truthful and accurate answer in another way.

Merged:

Bank Millennium vs Bank ING

Hello folks,

I am confused where i should open my bank account .. bank millennium or bank ing ?

Any suggestions ?

Thanks
V

I am with ING and I cannot think of anything negative about them...

ING does not lend to non-EU citizens, that also means you can not get a credit card from them if you are not EU. I would imagine Millenium isn't so strict as they are smaller.

Alior is good. Millennium are popular with expats. I use Nordea, who have always been excellent.

Fresh off the press re Millenium Bank: seems they are being fined 20M PLN for misleading customers
businessinsider.com.pl/finanse/kara-dla-banku-milennium-od-uokik/nx986we

I guess Alior has few actual physical locations in Poland (but it may not be needed if you use online banking).