Banking fees set to rise?

The NBB says that Belgian banks' profitability is still too low and banks' costs are too high despite an increase in profitability levels from 3% to 5%.

At present Belgian banks entice customers with cheap, subsidised mortgages, while well above cost price fees are charged for other services. The NBB now wants banks to charge an accurate price for each and every product. This means that charges for electronic payments could soon rise. At present the cost of electronic payments in Belgium is cheaper than abroad.

The news comes as it has emerged that more and more Belgians are banking at several different banks. Only 43% of Belgians only have one banker. In 2009 when many consumers still had to react to the fall-out from the financial crisis over half of all Belgians still only had one bank.

A quarter of all Belgians have three banks. KBC, BNP Paribas Fortis, ING Belgium and Belfius still dominate with 84% of Belgians banking with one of these banks. Ten percent of Belgians have an online only bank and this share is expected to rise to 20% by 2020.