You remember the First City Bank of Change? It’s probably the most honest thing Saturday Night Live ever aired about finance.
Back in 1988, SNL dropped a fake commercial that was so simple it felt revolutionary. It didn't have high-concept CGI or a celebrity cameo. It was just Kevin Nealon standing in a wood-paneled office, looking directly into the camera with the kind of unearned confidence only a 1980s banker could pull off. He explains a business model that is, frankly, hilarious because it’s so literal.
They just make change. That’s it.
"We're First City Bank of Change," Nealon says. "We're not a bank in the traditional sense. We're a bank that makes change." If you walk in with a twenty, they give you twenty ones. Or two tens. Or maybe four fives. They don’t care. They don't make money.
Why the SNL First City Bank of Change Still Matters
It’s easy to dismiss this as just another "early seasons" sketch, but it’s actually a masterclass in satire. Written by the legendary Herb Sargent—the guy basically responsible for Weekend Update—the sketch taps into a very specific kind of consumer anxiety.
We’ve all been there. You’re at a vending machine or a laundromat, and you have a ten-dollar bill. The world might as well be ending. You need quarters. You need ones. You go to a "real" bank, and they treat you like you’re asking for a kidney.
"I’m sorry, sir, do you have an account here?"
The SNL First City Bank of Change removes the friction. It’s the ultimate customer-centric business. It’s also a total disaster from a capitalist perspective because, as the sketch points out, they lose money on every transaction. But they make it up in volume.
That joke—"we make it up in volume"—is one of the smartest lines in the history of the show. It’s a direct jab at the mindless corporate speak that dominated the 80s and, honestly, still dominates Silicon Valley today. How many tech startups have we seen in the last decade that literally lose money on every user but promise "scale" will fix it?
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The Logistics of Change
Let’s look at the actual math Nealon presents, because the writers clearly did.
If you bring in a five-dollar bill, you can get:
- Five singles.
- Four singles and four quarters.
- Three singles, four quarters, and ten dimes.
It sounds absurd. But the way Nealon delivers it—with that calm, rhythmic cadence—makes you almost believe it’s a viable service. He notes that if you have a dirty dollar, they’ll give you a nice, crisp one. They don't have to. They just want to.
There's a scene where a customer (played by Phil Hartman, the absolute GOAT of playing "Normal Guy") comes in with a sweater. He doesn't have money; he just wants to talk about change. Even then, the bank is there for him.
The sketch works because it mirrors the visual language of 1980s local bank commercials. You know the ones. The soft lighting. The "we’re your neighbors" vibe. The acoustic guitar track that sounds like it was composed in a basement. SNL nailed the aesthetic so perfectly that if you caught it mid-broadcast, you might have actually thought it was a real ad for a few seconds.
The Cast and the Vibe
Kevin Nealon was the perfect choice for this. He has this incredible ability to say the most ridiculous things with a straight face. He doesn’t "wink" at the audience. He’s not trying to be funny. He’s trying to sell you on the idea that a bank that doesn't charge interest or fees is a noble pursuit.
Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks show up in the background as customers. It’s a reminder of just how stacked that era of the show was. You have three of the best sketch performers in history doing a bit about nickels and dimes.
"How do we stay in business?" Nealon asks.
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"The answer is simple. Volume."
It’s a line that has been quoted in business schools for thirty years. It’s the perfect distillation of flawed logic. If you lose one cent on every sale, selling a billion things just means you lost ten million dollars. But in the world of the SNL First City Bank of Change, the logic holds because the confidence is so high.
What This Sketch Says About Today
Honestly, look at the 2026 financial landscape. We have apps for everything. We have digital wallets. We have "buy now, pay later" schemes that are basically just complicated ways of moving debt around.
In a world where everything is a subscription or a "fintech solution," the idea of a physical place where you can just swap a fifty for fifty singles feels almost nostalgic. It feels honest.
There’s a reason this clip still circulates on social media. It captures a moment in time before banking became entirely invisible. Back then, you had to go into a building. You had to talk to a person. And usually, that person made you feel small. First City Bank of Change offered the opposite: a place where your specific, tiny need (getting four quarters for a dollar) was the most important thing in the building.
Breaking Down the Satire
The sketch is a "parody of service." Most businesses try to hide the fact that they are trying to take your money. They wrap it in "customer experience" or "loyalty programs."
The Bank of Change doesn't have to hide anything because they aren't taking your money. They are literally just rearranging it.
It’s a commentary on the "Big Three" banks of the 80s that were starting to merge and become these faceless behemoths. It asks the question: What if a bank actually did what the commercials said they did? What if they actually just wanted to help you?
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The irony is that helping people with "change" is the least profitable thing a bank can do. That’s why the machines at the grocery store charge you an 11% fee just to turn your coins into a voucher. First City Bank of Change would never do that. They'd probably give you 105 cents for your dollar if they thought it would make your day.
The Legacy of the "Bank of Change"
You can find the video on YouTube or the NBC website. Watch it again. Notice the details. The way Nealon handles the coins. The font on the graphic at the end. It’s a perfect piece of television.
It also highlights a lost art in SNL: the "fake ad" that isn't about a gross product or a political scandal. Sometimes the funniest thing is just taking a normal concept—like a bank—and tweaking one variable until the whole thing collapses under its own weight.
What can we learn from this?
Maybe that we overcomplicate things. In business, we’re always looking for the "disruptor" or the "pivot." But the SNL First City Bank of Change was the ultimate disruptor. It provided exactly what people needed, for free, and went broke doing it. There’s something weirdly beautiful about that.
If you're a content creator or a business owner, there's a lesson here. Don't be the bank that "makes it up in volume." But do be the person who understands what the customer actually wants. Even if all they want is ten nickels for a fifty-cent piece.
Practical Steps for Revisiting Classic SNL Satire
If you want to understand why this sketch worked—or if you’re trying to write your own satire—start by analyzing the "straight man" performance.
- Watch the pacing. Notice how Nealon doesn't rush the punchlines. He lets the absurdity of "two fives for a ten" sit there for a second.
- Look at the set design. The 80s "wood grain" office is a character in itself. It screams "trustworthiness" while the dialogue screams "bankruptcy."
- Study the "Volume" argument. This is the core of the joke. It’s a logical fallacy presented as a business strategy. Identifying these in real life is the key to great comedy.
- Check out the other Sargent-written sketches. If you like this, look up "The Adobe." It’s another 80s fake ad about a car made out of clay. It uses the same deadpan delivery and "reasonable" explanations for an insane product.
Next time you’re struggling to get change for a twenty at a local coffee shop and they tell you "the drawer is low," just think of Kevin Nealon. Think of the wood-paneled office. Think of the bank that didn't care about margins, only about the satisfying jingle of coins in your pocket.
We don't have First City Bank of Change anymore. We just have apps that charge us for the privilege of seeing our own balance. Progress, right?
Actually, go find the clip right now. It’s only two minutes long. It’ll be the best two minutes of your day, mostly because it reminds you that sometimes, the simplest ideas are the ones that stay with us the longest. Even if they don't make any cents. (Pun intended, and I'm not even sorry.)