Spanish Banks??!!

Hi

Can anyone out there recommend a decent bank in Spain that doesn't legally rob you a minimum four times per year?  At least that's how it feels!  

Many moons ago we were spoilt when we held a Halifax bank account in Spain, with no charges whatsoever because we banked with them in the UK. But as per usual all good things come to an end and when it did we were transferred to Sabadell.  They are currently charging us approximately 260+ euros per year!  We don't live there and so only use our debit card to pay Spanish bills online and we use it when we visit once, maybe twice per year.

We used to have a debit card each, but when we realised we were being charged 'maintenance charges' every year per card, we cancelled one and we are currently charged 30 euros for the one card 'maintenance.'  I'm still to be advised of what the actual card 'maintenance' consists of!

Are there any banks in Spain that are a little less greedy, or are we, as long as we hold a bank account there, to be constantly held to ransom? ( Dick Turpin constantly flashes through my mind!!)

Any helpful advice would be much appreciated!

Many thanks,

M&M

Welcome to Spain.Think you will find all banks in Spain  have charges, is it free banking in the UK now (many years since i held a UK bank account) don´t know any bank that gives free banking these days  

There was a thread on here a few years ago about using Transferwise, or Wise as they are now called. You can get a virtual account to set up your direct debits, debit card and stuff, with a Spanish IBAN. I keep meaning to change over to it, but haven't got all my direct debit beneficiaries details handy.We are with Sabadell at the moment and our fees are 40€ per quarter.

Openbank, which is Santander's online bank. There are no bank charges because everything is done through an app on your phone or laptop. We have been with them for 4 years and no bank charges. The app has a lot of functionalities in order to manage your finances. I either email or whatsapp them if I have any questions.

Thank you for the guided post share.

Tellthebell