<p>What is the best (most convenient / biggest presence) bank on campus?</p>
<p>PNC does a lot of partnering with Penn.</p>
<p>There’s also TD (which has the longest hours) and Bank of America.</p>
<p>Then there’s the student credit union, which has its benefits but I wouldn’t say is the most convenient.</p>
<p>USBank anywhere nearby?</p>
<p>The Penn Student Federal Credit Union was a huge disappointment. Whether my issues with them were specific or with respect to credit unions in general, I’m not sure, but I highly recommend TD Bank, as they’re everywhere in Philly. </p>
<p>Problems with SFCU:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>They don’t cash checks over $300. I came with a US Treasury check (tax return) that they refused to cash on the grounds that they had to make sure it cleared and wait three business days. Either the clerk was wrong, or the policy is idiotic: the check was obviously good given that it was endorsed by the full faith and credit of the federal government.</p></li>
<li><p>The clerks, though well meaning and very courteous, tended to be foreign students who didn’t speak English especially well. It made more complicated transactions very cumbersome.</p></li>
<li><p>They don’t have enough ATMs - I got slapped with fees everywhere. Biggest complaint, as the whole point of choosing a bank is to avoid fees and maximize convenience, for me at least.</p></li>
<li><p>They were frequently out of SEPTA tokens, one of the main reasons I would go there in person.</p></li>
<li><p>Max $500 withdrawal per day. Not usually a problem, but couldn’t ever buy airline tickets to go back home (West coast) with my debit card.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Bottom line: Go with TD Bank. They have a branch right near campus (right across Walnut from Huntsman, I think) and have ATMs all over the place. I reaped zero benefits from SFCU and have no idea why I banked there during my time at Penn.</p>
<p>PNC is the most convenient for my hometown as well. Are PNC ATM’s prevalent around campus?</p>
<p>I’d say PNC ATMs are more prevalent than TD Bank or BoA ATMs (at least around campus). You go to 7-11, WaWa, etc. and you’ll see PNC ATMs.</p>
<p>@ wayward_trojan</p>
<p>I just called SFCU today because of #5 - I couldn’t purchase airline tickets. They informed me that if I called them and notified them that I would be making a large purchase, they could raise that limit to whatever I wanted it to be. The $500 limit is just there to make sure no one who steals your card can do THAT much damage.</p>