FNB Private Wealth — 2 weeks for a simple TFSA question, still no answer

FNB Private Wealth -- 2 weeks for a simple TFSA question, still no answer

Case Reference: CAS-***-K0H0S3 (CRM:***)

We are FNB Private Wealth clients paying premium monthly fees for what is marketed as dedicated, personalised service. What we have received instead is 2 weeks of being ignored, redirected, and given incorrect information -- for a simple question about our Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA).

WHAT WE ASKED

On 25 March 2026, my wife Beverley emailed our assigned Private Wealth Advisor asking a straightforward question: "How much money can I still deposit into my TFSA for this financial year -- including the tax-free shares account and tax-free savings account?"

That's it. A basic account query. The kind of thing a Private Wealth Advisor should be able to answer in minutes.

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED -- A TIMELINE OF FAILURE

Day 1 -- 25 March 2026: - Beverley emails our advisor, Ntombi Moremi (nee Bungane), with the question. - Ntombi responds with generic copy-paste instructions on how to download a statement from the FNB app. This does not answer the question. - I follow up asking if she can just send us the statement. No reply. - I follow up again that evening: "Kindly respond." No reply.

Day 2 -- 26 March 2026: - Ntombi finally replies the next morning -- but talks about the cost of ordering a statement and attaches a pricing guide. Still not answering the actual question. - I clarify again: "Just tell us how much we can still pay in for this year not to exceed the R46K limit." - Ntombi provides partial figures (R36K contributed, R45K remaining for this year) -- but only for the savings account, not the shares account. - I tell her: "This doesn't seem correct, please go and double-check everything." - She then redirects us to a phone number for the Share Invest team, telling us to call them ourselves. - I reply: "Please stop redirecting us, we want the correct information presented here. TFSA can be shares and normal savings and withdrawals can also occur. We want the entire picture without having to run around and sit on calls or login etc." - Ntombi apologises, says she has "sent through the request" and will provide feedback once received. - She never follows up. Ever.

Day 3 -- 27 March 2026: - I acknowledge her message and wait for the promised feedback. - Nothing comes.

Days 4-6 -- 28-30 March 2026: - Silence. No update. No follow-up. Nothing.

Day 7 -- 31 March 2026: - After a full week of silence, I email Ntombi demanding a manager be included in the discussion: "I need to understand why it takes 7 days to get a basic answer like this." - Ntombi is now apparently out of office. Her auto-reply is not even properly set up -- it literally says "please contact (insert name) and (insert email)" with the placeholder text still in place. Completely unprofessional. - I escalate to the FNB Private Wealth Service Suite (***), CC'ing Victoria Hardie (the second advisor listed on the team) and Lytania Johnson. - Lytania Johnson's email bounces -- "550 Address rejected." So they gave us a contact person whose email doesn't even work. - The Service Suite sends an automated acknowledgement: "One of our advisors will be in touch with you shortly." Case number CAS-***-K0H0S3 is created. - Nobody gets in touch.

Day 10 -- 3 April 2026: - I follow up on the case with "???" -- hoping someone, anyone, will respond. - No response.

Day 11 -- 4 April 2026: - I post publicly on LinkedIn: "FNB South Africa we've been waiting 9 days for a response from you. CAS-***-K0H0S3." - No response from FNB.

Day 14 -- 7 April 2026 (today): - I try emailing again, asking "Can someone please explain to me why nobody is helping?" -- CC'ing Victoria Hardie and Ntombi Moremi. - Ntombi Moremi's email now bounces -- "not authorized to send to recipient because the sender isn't on the recipient's list of senders to accept mail from." So now our own assigned advisor's email rejects our messages entirely. - Still no response from Victoria Hardie. - Still no response from the Service Suite. - Still no response to the LinkedIn post. - Still no answer to the original question.

THE BOTTOM LINE

- Simple question asked: 25 March 2026 - Days elapsed: 14 and counting - Answer received: None - People who were supposed to help: 3+ (none did) - Escalation attempts: Email, Service Suite case, LinkedIn -- all ignored - Emails that bounced: 2 (Lytania Johnson's doesn't exist; Ntombi Moremi's now blocks us)

This is not a complex request. This is not a dispute or a complaint about a transaction. We asked our Private Wealth Advisor how much contribution room is left on a TFSA. That's it.

We pay premium fees every month for this service. FNB Private Wealth markets itself as offering "dedicated advisors" and "personalised service." What we got was:

- Copy-paste app instructions instead of actual answers - Incorrect and incomplete information - Being told to phone other departments ourselves - A promise to follow up that was never kept - An out-of-office auto-reply with placeholder text still in it - Bounced emails to people who supposedly work there - Total silence from the Service Suite after opening a case - Zero response to a public LinkedIn post

We are evaluating whether FNB Private Wealth offers any value whatsoever for the premium we pay, and whether it's time to move our banking elsewhere.

PEOPLE INVOLVED

1. Ntombi Moremi (nee Bungane) -- Private Wealth Advisor, FNB Private Wealth Email: *** Phone: +***9 (also listed as +***9 in some signatures -- inconsistent) Outcome: Assigned advisor. Gave incomplete/incorrect answers, redirected us to phone numbers, promised to follow up and never did. Email now bounces when we try to contact her.

2. Victoria Hardie -- Private Wealth Advisor, FNB Private Wealth Email: *** Phone: +***6 Outcome: Listed as secondary contact on the team. CC'd on multiple emails. Has never responded to a single message.

3. Lytania Johnson -- FNB Private Wealth Email: *** Outcome: CC'd on escalation. Email bounces -- address does not exist.

4. FNB Private Wealth Service Suite Email: *** Phone: +***0 / International: +***0 Outcome: Sent automated case acknowledgement on 31 March. No human has responded since.

Case Number: CAS-***-K0H0S3 CRM Reference: CRM:*** Date Opened: 31 March 2026 Status: Unresolved -- no human contact since case was opened