Man Fumes After Bank Refuses To Let Him Withdraw $15k Of His Own Money

A fuming customer has spoken out against his bank, claiming he was told he couldn't withdraw a $15k sum from his account.

Richard Dargham told his TikTok followers that his bank had stopped him making the large withdrawal after he refused to tell the bank how he would spend the money.

In the video he said: "This is bull****, this is absolutely ridiculous. 'I'm the account holder. You can clearly see that. If I want to pay someone, you can't stop me."

Dargham, a Commonwealth Bank customer, had visited the Carnes Hill Marketplace, south-west Sydney branch on Thursday, when he was allegedly refused access to his money.

He explained his account had been flagged by the bank as possibly being hacked because of the large withdrawal request and was asked to provide additional documents to verify his identity.

Richard-dargham745/ TikTok

He said: "Their explanation was that they were trying to stop me from being scammed."

However, after sharing his Medicare card and his driving license, the bank still required Dargham to tell staff how he intended to spend the money, a request he was less than pleased about.

"You don't need to know the exact details of what the hell I'm using my money for. I could be using it for a strip club, I could be using it to buy drugs. It's none of your freaking business," he added.

The furious Aussie then told his followers he caused a 'massive scene' at the bank after refusing to disclose how the money would be spent.

He explained: "There is a very strong possibility that if you don't tell them, they won't give you your money, I said to them, I have got to give money to someone, and I said I've got to pay an invoice. 'They said: 'Do you have an invoice?' and then I lost my mind. I don't know what the hell this world's come too - it's getting to the point where it's getting ridiculous."

Last year, a Commonwealth Bank teller confirmed it is standard practice for the bank to ask customers a reason for withdrawing large sums of cash. 

Alamy

Despite the verification of identity checks being a legal requirement, Dargham was less than impressed by the request for ID.

He said: "I gave them all sorts of ID, like more ID than I need to get into a government building and become prime minister of this country."

In a statement to LADbible, a spokesperson for Commonwealth Bank explained: "The security of our customers’ banking remains a top priority for the Commonwealth Bank. We invest in state-of-the-art fraud prevention and detection technology and have a dedicated team who actively monitor unusual or suspicious activity. Another way we try to keep ahead of the curve is working closely with other banks to share information and understand potential threats.

 “We are always very concerned when we are made of aware of frauds and scams affecting customers and the wider community. Despite the commitment and best efforts of regulators, law enforcement agencies and the banking industry, such frauds and scams sadly still occur.

“In instances where we believe a customer may be a victim of a fraud or scam, we may take action to keep customers safe which may include blocking a transaction or withdrawal.”

“If a customer notices an unusual transaction on their account, they should contact us immediately to report it."

Shiala Mahmood