Many of us have one or two credit cards issued by a bank
without having a savings or current account at the same bank. As such, we
resort to a monthly “exercise” of queuing in front of an ATM to make
payment. Since the number of credit card users is increasing, the time taken to
complete this monthly routine task at an ATM is also taking longer. An
alternative method is needed to save time, enter Giro Interbank money transfer.

Luckily, Bank Negara has asked our bankers to provide
cheaper interbank services to customers. We can now make credit card payments
via our current online banking system, with a fee as low as RM0.10 per
transaction.

To do a Giro Interbank (IBG) money transfer, the cost is
RM0.10 but the payment must be made earlier. This is because it normally takes
1-2 working days to reflect in your
account. For example, if your credit card due date is on Sunday; you should
make your payment by Tuesday. The payment should be credited by Thursday. In case
of any errors, you still have an extra day to take any necessary steps to avoid
late payment.

For “emergency” cases, you should use the instant interbank fund transfer (IBFT) option
to avoid any late payment penalty and to maintain your credit status. However,
instant transfers cost more: RM2 per transaction.

Advantages

The cost of RM0.10 is reasonable. We also do not run the
risk carrying large amounts of cash from one bank to another. Lastly, we save
time and cost traveling to a particular bank to use the ATM.

Security concerns

Many of us still worry about the security of online
transactions. However, with highly encrypted pages and the requirement of a Transaction
Authorisation Code (TAC) makes bank websites some of the most secure on the web.
Most fraud cases reported tend to be due to carelessness and trusting third
parties with our logins and passwords. For
your part, never reveal our TAC to anyone and ensure your computer is free from
viruses or any malware and your registered mobile is always with you. It is
quite difficult for someone to “steal” your money via the internet if you take
due precautions.

This is a guest post by Xaivier
Chia who regularly blogs his value investing and financial/money related
experiences and insights at http://xaivierchia.blogspot.com. Readers can contact the author via his personal
blog.

*Picture courtesy of
Jomphong at Freedigitalphotos.net.

 

• TAGS:
• Bank Transfers
• Credit Card Payment
• Giro