In 2007, BancoEstado introduced the CuentaRUT, a debit account free of monthly fees for which all Chileans and resident foreigners are automatically eligible, just for having a RUT (linkme). You get a debit card and can manage your account online, including making online payments.
In a land where banks charge checking account holders a yearly/semesterly/monthly fee for every conceivable service available and/or action they perform on your behalf, and where many foreigners, self-employed and recently-employed workers are deemed unworthy of the privilege of handing over their money and being charged all of these fees (i.e. can’t get a checking account), the CuentaRUT seemed something of a godsend.
So what’s the catch? The CuentaRUT charges a number of per-transaction fees, most significantly the 600-peso ATM withdrawal fee. On the whole people don’t like to carry a lot of cash around, so you’ll often see acquaintances taking out as little as CH$7.ooo at one time. That’s an 8% fee for that transaction. Brilliant play, BancoEstado!
So while personal banking in Chile continues to be costly, it is no longer an activity reserved for the elite. When it was introduced, I asked my kids’ nanny to open an account, and I added CH$2.400 to her net pay to cover 4 withdrawals per month. A small price to pay to be able to eliminate all of those semimonthly cash payments.