Investec Private Banking Reduced to Call Centre Experience – Ongoing Service Failures

Expressing my deep disappointment with the level of service we have experienced from Investec over time, which has now reached a point where the so-called “private banking” experience is indistinguishable from a standard call centre relationship, despite the premium fees we continue to pay.

Our designated private banker, Nthabeleng Shabalala, has unfortunately never added meaningful value to our banking relationship. To be candid, we barely know her, and our interactions with her over the years have been minimal and largely unhelpful. We previously raised concerns about the poor quality of engagement and lack of responsiveness, yet no improvement followed.

What made this tolerable in the past was the consistent and reliable support of Nicolene Vermeulen (support), who has been with us through multiple changes in assigned private bankers since 2016. In practice, Nicolene effectively acted as our main banker — responsive, helpful, and fami**** with our portfolio. We were comfortable with this arrangement and felt supported, even if the “named” private banker was ineffective.

Unbeknown to us, we were later moved to a different banking team. Since then, our relationship with Investec has deteriorated significantly. We are now effectively dealing with Investec on a call-centre basis, with requests being logged but not actioned, and follow-ups going unanswered.

Most recently, a request I made more than a week ago to Erik has still not been actioned — despite a follow-up (I don't even need the request actioned anymore). This lack of urgency and accountability is unacceptable, particularly in a private banking context.

At this stage, we are paying for a premium offering but receiving a service level that is no better — and sometimes worse — than standard retail banking. The value proposition of private banking has been completely eroded.

Given our history, I would like Investec to reassign us to Nicolene Vermeulen, with whom we have an established working relationship since some years ago. At the very least, we expect access to someone who understands our portfolio, responds to requests, and takes ownership.

Overall, the handling of our banking relationship and portfolio by Investec has been extremely disappointing. This is particularly disheartening coming from a bank that positions itself as a premium private banking institution. What we are experiencing now does not align with that promise in any way.