It could be a very subtle AML tactic. BofA asked me if I remembered the name of the staff member who set up my business account prior to letting me make a wire transfer. Of course, since they can't tell you it's AML you think they're insane until you catch on and give the standard answers.

Really? That reaction strikes me as quite odd. Do you not chit-chat with tellers at your bank in person?

No, I've never chit-chatted with tellers, nor would I want to.

You may be the odd one out then. I've spent a fair amount of time in lines at the bank and most people are quite chatty.

Even still, there's a difference between random chit-chat and the bank representative looking into your transaction history and making comments on it.

Cultural behavior differs widely even between regions. Whats true at your bank could be entirely different 500 kilometers down the road.

I do not chit-chat with my teller about items they see in my transaction history.

Neither do I, but they almost always mention my employer -- that's what we're talking about.

But they figure out your employer by looking at your direct deposit?