Well let me be blunt, this is because of the terrorists. Before 911, it was very easy to open a bank account but once the government started to crack down on unscrupulous elements, they overhauled the entire system. Now the banker is more likely to NOT open you account than to open it and the procedure to open an account is more of a harassment than an inquiry.
I am pretty surprised that the bank manager yelled at you. I mean, aren't they not allowed to do that to their clients? I'm also curious as to why they are asking the details of your past bank account when in fact you are going to make a new one. It doesn't make sense really and I suggest that you report that bank manager to the upper ups so that they can provide a solution regarding the arrogant manager. It'll be bad for other customers to experience what you experienced.
Hmmm, I have to say, I've never heard of that happening before. I work for a bank and while we do want to know who our applicants bank with currently or who they banked with previously, we certainly wouldn't harass anyone that couldn't remember. In fact, we get a lot of people where my bank is their first bank. There are some other requirements that make it difficult though, like two forms of ID required and the opening deposit. Many times individuals that just turned 18 only have a State ID and very little funds.
