Two quick anecdotes from Japan:
The bank that I used for 15 years sent me a postcard saying that, because they guessed by my name that I'm a foreigner, they were required to have me travel X00 miles to the branch where I opened my account to present my papers in person for KYC.
The bank that I used for 15 years sent me a postcard saying that, because they guessed by my name that I'm a foreigner, they were required to have me travel X00 miles to the branch where I opened my account to present my papers in person for KYC.
Whereupon I called the bank and told the front line staff what the letter said.
"Mr. McKenzie*, I expect we'll need a moment. Could you please give me a callback number."
Five minutes later most senior person at the bank branch called me to apologize.
"Mr. McKenzie*, I expect we'll need a moment. Could you please give me a callback number."
Five minutes later most senior person at the bank branch called me to apologize.
For social reasons I won't recount their exact resolution of their compliance responsibilities, but it was a lot more reasonable than what the postcard suggested the policy was.
* She actually said Mr. Hattori but I've done telephone customer service before and can empathize.
* She actually said Mr. Hattori but I've done telephone customer service before and can empathize.
"But why Hattori?"
Because the Japanese pronunciation of my name, Patorikku Mikkenjii, sounds reasonably close and therefore gets confused a lot with Hattori Kenji (服部健二), which is a reasonable name for e.g. a Brazilian-of-Japanese-descent customer of that bank branch.
Because the Japanese pronunciation of my name, Patorikku Mikkenjii, sounds reasonably close and therefore gets confused a lot with Hattori Kenji (服部健二), which is a reasonable name for e.g. a Brazilian-of-Japanese-descent customer of that bank branch.
