The news that the local HSBC branch in the super-rich Canford Cliffs area of Dorset is to allow only ‘premier’ customers to get face-to-face financial advice.

Canford Cliffs, near Poole, is apparently one of the four most expensive places to live in the world, with the cheapest house on the market currently going for £330,000.

To use HSBC’s personal services from June, customers must have £50,000 in savings, a £200,000 mortgage, or a £100,000 mortgage and £75,000 annual salary. Ahh, but wait, you can pay £19.95 per month for the ‘privilege’ of being an elite customer.

Yes, you can either BE rich, or pretend to BE rich, in order to access HSBC’s overpriced, biased financial services.

Maybe this will be the start of something bigger. We can simply shut all these rich snobs up in a big cage on the cliffs and let them be self-sufficient. Money will get you everything, after all, right?

“The world’s local bank”. Sure it is, but only if you’ve got the cash.