●  Discrimination in Warszawa

A Belarusian citizen was refused a consumer loan application by a Santander bank after asking to continue a verification phone call in English instead of Polish. According to the reported message from the bank, the application was rejected because the bank serves customers only in Polish. The applicant had already submitted documents online and, according to the account, met the formal lending requirements.

The case triggered a public debate over whether the refusal constituted discrimination against a foreign customer or resulted from legal and regulatory requirements. Some commenters argued that banks must ensure customers fully understand credit agreements and comply with anti-money laundering (AML) obligations, while others pointed out that some Polish banks provide services in English and questioned why language support was unavailable for a relatively small loan. Santander Bank Polska also provides some documentation in English, although the reported interaction concerned a Polish-language customer service process.