Continental Bank Customers

negativenick


Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 6023

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 05:57

Just wondered how many Continental Bank customers will be rushing up to their local branch to withdraw all their money this morning ??





Any predictions as to who will be next ??

vincent1


Joined: 20/07/2009
Posts: 212

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 06:51

Do you get some sort of morbid pleasure from gloating over peoples' misfortunes ?

catalkoykid


Joined: 15/02/2009
Posts: 1190

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 07:19

most thai banks lol

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 08:13

Whose misfortunes - the bank's, or its customers?



Surely, negativenick's question is perfectly valid - if not, why not?

fiendishpaul


Joined: 18/05/2008
Posts: 1720

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 08:18

I had heard a rumour that Continental might be in trouble. What has happened ?? Have they gone bust ???

AlsancakJack



Joined: 14/08/2008
Posts: 5762

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 08:22

Paul

Read this:



http://www.cyprus44.com/forums/27688.asp

loulou



Joined: 14/05/2008
Posts: 785

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 08:31

no they aint gone bust,spoke to tyra yesterday,the central bank has taken them over bussines as usual

cyprusjoker


Joined: 29/08/2009
Posts: 1107

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 08:34

A Load of rubbish then.!

fiendishpaul


Joined: 18/05/2008
Posts: 1720

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 09:10

AJ



Thanks



Paul

loulou



Joined: 14/05/2008
Posts: 785

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 12:56

been in this morning expected it to be packed no one in,central bank now owns continental bank and yesilada bank, tl rates 10% and stirling 5%

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 13:06

Its good news to read that depositors have acted sensibly and did not rush to withdraw their deposits. However, the shareholders are the owners of the these two banks at the moment and the CEntral Bank through its agent TMSF have taken over the control and administration of these banks. You may say "Same Difference" and for all intends and purpose you may be right.

ismet

susiesusie


Joined: 09/03/2009
Posts: 337

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 13:31

Anyone any input into where to put my savings for the time being. /

Credit west ?????? Is anywhere safe/

Baydweller


Joined: 26/01/2009
Posts: 78

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 13:32

Well I`m afraid this depositor didn`t act sensibly.

I went in this morning & closed my accounts.

Yes I know, probably totally wrong, but at the end of the day it is my money & I now feel a lot better.

I would just like to say thanks to elko2 for the reasurance he has given but this was a pure gut feeling on my part & as I say feel better now.

MarkVPiazza


Joined: 14/08/2008
Posts: 530

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 13:46

I reckon all the TRNC banks are technically insolvent, and just keep going by their pyramid schemes of offereing stupidly high interest rates to mug punters.



How many of these can the TRNC Government afford to take over?



Mark

negativenick


Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 6023

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 15:38

mess 15 - does make you wonder......

Chicken


Joined: 29/06/2009
Posts: 190

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 17:34

Very confusing - does anyone know the true facts - we didn't rush and take our money out of the Northern Rock when that was in trouble, but things could be different here. Is our money safe in the Contientnal (or whatever it may be called now).



Any advise would be very much appreciated. Thank you

Hector


Joined: 26/08/2008
Posts: 2352

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 19:05

What reason(s) if any have been given for the government/Central Bank taking this action? It's all very well saying 'business as usual' but what guarantees are there that ones money is safe? If these banks have gone under, presumably because they have run up too much debt, what about the others?

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 19:07

elko2, on another thread, and not wishing or attempting to misquote him, has, I recollect, already warned people that most TRNC banks are involved in mortgage lending to landowners/developers/builders on properties already bought and paid for.



This makes any affected house buyers unwitting guarantors for these loans.



In my book, not only does this constitute gross negligence on the part of the banks - it is tantamount to fraud, whether, or not, lawful in Cyprus - North and South.



We hear that the construction and real estate industries are, to all intents and purposes, at a standstill - therefore it doesn't take a Philadelphia accountant to work out the huge rate of liability, which surely must reflect the real solvency of these banks.



'The chickens haven't yet come home to roost'...........



Not so many years ago, a wise man told a group of us:



'Never put a cent into a Cyprus bank that you aren't prepared to lose with a smile!'

MarkVPiazza


Joined: 14/08/2008
Posts: 530

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 19:26

I believe the "assets" that most local banks hold are mortgages on land & property.



Many of these loans are in default



I have heard how relatively small loans quickly turn into 100,000s or millions based on some crazy interest rates that are applied.



Therefore, Mehmet A with some land hooks up with Ahmet B a "builder" who put a few dodgy houses on the family land, buy mercs & 4x4s all round, followed by a mortgage when the next wedding/new car/holiday is due. £100k mortgage doesn't get paid for a couple of years, load now £500k



Bank now has "assets" of £500k, which in reality is a few concrete frames on some scrub land



Bank has to offer stupidly high interest rates to greedy and gulible punters in order to pay the wages and to pay the ridiculous interest rates it has promissed to earlier greedy and gullible punters



At the end of the day, it's a pyramid scam that can only end in tears - can the TRNC Governement afford it?



Mark

Hector


Joined: 26/08/2008
Posts: 2352

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 19:31

"At the end of the day, it's a pyramid scam that can only end in tears - can the TRNC Governement afford it?"



That's highly unlikely. Will (or can) Turkey bail them out?



It all seems very laid back at the moment. Calm before the storm or storm in a teacup?

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 19:48

Msgs. 19 and 20,

I am no banker but I believe that if any debtor defaults on payments for three months, they have to report the relevant sum to the Central Bank as insecure or doubtful credits i.e. the Central Bank assumes that the bank involved will not be able to collect it and therefore it cannot show it in their balance books. If ths is the case, those builders/developers who took out huge mortgages and stopped payment are already taken into account and therefore all the banks are solvent despite those losses. I hope I am not wrong. Would some accountant or banker (except the one who knows nothing but claims to know all) shed some light on this please.

ismet

jacko99


Joined: 26/06/2009
Posts: 52

Message Posted:
14/12/2009 20:23

and yet the greedy demented suckers still leave there money on deposit with some of these banks and i dare say deposit more, the shareholders and management of these banks are all pissing in the same pot as the lawyers and builders who have ripped off all the inocent ex pats and with that track record they think the state gaurentee is secure god help them!!!

eager


Joined: 23/02/2007
Posts: 1272

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 00:39

jacko 99, is your medication wearing off ?

negativenick


Joined: 10/11/2008
Posts: 6023

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 05:58

and they laughed when i said i was buying off plan in the TRNC......

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 12:02

MarkVPiazza has 'coined it' much better than I dıd - mine was a broad assessment - his describes the true facts with startling frankness and reality.



elko2 - excerpt from Msg 22: 'If this is the case, those builders/developers who took out huge mortgages and stopped payment are already taken into account and therefore all the banks are solvent despite those losses'



Knowing how nepotism is rıfe, one can only wonder whether all defaulters on this iniquitous loan system are, in fact, reported to the Central Bank?



The upshot is that it cannot be denied that, ın the case of many defaulters, all this loan money has disappeared, as many of them have, 'like snow on a summer's day', with the defaulters safe in the knowledge that they are protected by the law, thereby leaving little incentive to make any restitution to the mortgagers, whatsoever. This leaves the mortager no alternative but to initiate litıgation against the 'kocan-less' owner of what should be a fre

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 12:09

Cont'd from Msg 26: by rights, a freehold property.

Jayne


Joined: 01/12/2008
Posts: 499

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 12:17

If anyone would like some information about investing money with Turk Bank, one of the oldest banks, please call into see me between 8.15am and 12.30pm Monday to Friday. Good service guaranteed!

I am based towards the top of Girne High Street on the left hand side.

Address is Polan Palas Apt, Ziya Rızkı Avenue, Girne or you may telephone me on 0392 815 1360.



Many thanks

Jayne

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 12:30

Is Turk Bank a wholly owned TRNC bank, Jayne?

stellasstar1



Joined: 02/07/2008
Posts: 1519

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 12:41

When I moved most of my money (which isn't a lot) from HSBC about 6 months ago, the manageress said she understood why I was moving but be careful where I was going to move to. She said not to move to a bank owned purely by the TRNC, make sure it is Turkish owned.

ricky


Joined: 26/01/2009
Posts: 294

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 13:09

Hello everybody,

I said many times : be carefull, this is Madoff and Co!!!!!!!!!!!

eager


Joined: 23/02/2007
Posts: 1272

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 13:26

Has anyone been in to Continental this week What's the feedback from the bank ?

MarkVPiazza


Joined: 14/08/2008
Posts: 530

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 13:40

Ismet, ref message 22



I admire your faith in the TRNC's institutions.



In the UK a debt is recorded as bad after 1 year, and written off after 2.



I guess the TRNC government want's to keep the cat-in-the-bag until a Cyprus settlement is reached, which would undoubtably increase property prices and alleviate the crisis.



Mark

MartinM


Joined: 03/10/2009
Posts: 166

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 13:57

Is Bankasi



Lousy interest rates but the largest private bank in Turkey. So far so good.

flightholiday


Joined: 19/07/2007
Posts: 3217

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 16:11

Stella Msg 30 - I guess that this was Julie at HSBC - she is straight speaking and her advice would have been that it would be more secure. (It is still my prefered bank as it is a branch of HSBC Turkey so less likely to fall foul of problems .)

Hector


Joined: 26/08/2008
Posts: 2352

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 18:51

Surely this is a major event with potentially disastrous consequences for the TRNC economy, yet it's all seemingly being swept under the carpet? Am I wrong?

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 19:46

msg. 36, Hector,

I think action was taken in time by the Central Bank and a disaster has been avoided.

I know some of the major shareholders of Yeşilada Bank and I think they were reluctant to put more capital into the venture to cover their losses. The situation with Continental bank is a little different. My information is that it has two major shareholders and they have been at loggerhead for some time. So something had to be done before things got out of hand.

ismet

scruff


Joined: 15/07/2008
Posts: 1070

Message Posted:
15/12/2009 20:21

Hector, although I can see your point to some degree, I think you are wrong in suggesting that it is being swept under the carpet. What you really mean is that is is not being plastered all over the Newspapers day after day like the bank failures (or near failures) & subsequent credit crisis was in the UK. You are correct that back in 1999 & 2001 - I hope I have the dates correct, there was a severe banking collapse in Turkey & here as well. They were obviously linked. Despite what you may think, I'm sure that lessons have been learned here. I'm not sure that I can say the same about the situation in the UK. where the Financial Services authority was clearly not doing it's job properly. I have no confidence that lessons have been truly learned. The Brits are still obssessed about house prices (theirs) & greed is still paramount in the UK. Have lessons been learned in the UK.? Answer. Not from what I can see.

newscoop


Joined: 23/12/2007
Posts: 2197

Message Posted:
16/12/2009 00:10

Hector;



your negativity on North Cyprus is well known but why don't you do a little research on this particular subject?



Start with Hurriyet. (Turkish daily available on line)

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
16/12/2009 11:51

newscoop/Msg 39:



Hector's so called, by you, 'negativity' is, in fact, sad reality. And if it is 'well known', so much the better; because it might help to dissuade the 'fools rush in' and 'it can't happen to me' brigade to pause and assess the reality and viability of their aspirations.



So, is outright and blatant corruption acceptable to you, newscoop?



When so many people have been deliberately cheated and mislead under the guise of a 'lawful system' - do you consider such a system ethical?



'Permission to Purchase' is a 'mere formality', is it?



Perhaps it is YOU who should be doing a little more research, 'newscoop' - not Hector.

nurseawful



Joined: 06/02/2009
Posts: 5934

Message Posted:
16/12/2009 11:54

susiesusie,

Creditwest Bank wins it for me if you look in Cyprus Today today(Wednesday) you will see that they have just won an award. Figen Kaymak the branch manager of both Catalkoy and Karoglanoglou branches is excellent and both she and her staff are English speaking and bonus is that you always seem to be in and out in no time unlike the last bank we were with. (you could have took a picnic and left the place starving they took so long).



Chris

zcacmxi


Joined: 30/11/2008
Posts: 388

Message Posted:
16/12/2009 12:20

In this day and age, it seems that the wisest will spread their cash deposits between banks, and also diversify to other assets (Equities, Property, Gold, etc).



In the UK, Northern Rock, Bradford & Bingley, Halifax, RBS Natwest, Lloyds were all technically insolvent and had to be bailed out by the UK Government.



In this climate, where the likes of Halifax, Lloyds, Natwest are all MAJORITY owned by the UK government, I'd personally be extremely careful about putting large deposits in any bank with a limited history and which very little is known about it.



Good customer service/ english speaking / award in cyprus today ultimately will not pay bills in the worst case scenario... At best you will get a shoulder to cry on.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
16/12/2009 12:35

msg. 42,

"Good customer service/ english speaking / award in cyprus today ultimately will not pay bills in the worst case scenario... At best you will get a shoulder to cry on. "

The most sensible statement of the day. 100% in agreement.

ismet