Old Hippie Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 Some banks charge a fee for using a forign ATM card...some get charged at both ends...some ATMs I have used, tell you the exaCT exchange rate, and any fees involved...others do not. Just wondering if the 33 exchange rate included these fees...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 The last time I took money out of the ATM at Citibank in bangkok, they printed out how much they would deduct from my account and then they also charged the 3% ATM fee! So if I would have taken out the cash today, 20,000 Baht they would have deducted $606 from my account plus the 3% ($18.18). I went in to Bangkok Bank but they didn't have any exchange rates posted. I will try my Bank of America ATM card tomorrow and see what rate I can get. Someone earlier posted that they got money from the Citibank ATM and got the "in Thailand" rate of 35.5 Baht...how was that working??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palatkik Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 I wire from my Citi's web site to Kasikorn bank now and get USD converted to baht by Kasikorn at onshore rates, solves the offshore rate rip off with Citicards now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 Understand. ...but, you must pay the cost for the wire xfr...$25 ~ 35 USD? Better then squeezing the cash from the ATM but still not the most cost effective solution. For sure, the banks will always be making the $$$ and we have to figure out how to do the best we can! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mongatu Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 In the U.S., Washington Mutual Bank last year was offering a no minimum balance free checking account that offers free wire transfers and no fee for atm withdrawals. I am maintaining an account with them just for the free wire transfers. For my next trip, I'm planing to electronically transfer money as needed into the Wash Mutual account, then wire transfer it to BKK Bank with no WT fee. Haven't actually tried it yet so not sure how the logistics will work out though. I suppose I may have to fax WM a letter of authorization to get them to wire the funds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evel_Penivel Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 I don't know if it is universally true, but I've heard that ATM cards issued through Mastercard (Cirrus) give you the offshore (bad) rate, while Visa cards (Plus) give you the onshore (better) rate. Which rate you get isn't determined by which bank you use, but by whether the ATM card is branded Visa or MasterCard. However, different banks can place different charges for foreign withdrawals via ATM cards, like 2.5% or 3.0% commission on the amount withdrawn. Others will head fake by saying they don't charge a commission, but then tack on a transaction fee. There's no universal solution for every punter, particularly U.S. citizens with their home bank in the U.S. Different banks offer different terms, depending in which state you live. Do your research to try to find the best terms for your needs. Some accounts demand that you keep a certain minimum level on deposit to get the best terms. Keep in mind that a bank account you use for foreign withdrawals should be totally separate from your main account, preferably in a different bank. That way if the "foreign withdrawal" ATM is compromised in any way, the most you can lose (usually temporarily) is the amount you've set aside for your trip to Thailand. Evel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orangutan Posted March 8, 2007 Report Share Posted March 8, 2007 I don't know if it is universally true, but I've heard that ATM cards issued through Mastercard (Cirrus) give you the offshore (bad) rate, while Visa cards (Plus) give you the onshore (better) rate. Which rate you get isn't determined by which bank you use, but by whether the ATM card is branded Visa or MasterCard. Evel Not true, see my earlier post. The ATM card I was using is a MasterCard. I believe the rate is determined by the the bank ATM. -O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted March 8, 2007 Report Share Posted March 8, 2007 Looks like the banks and ATMs are making things as confusing as possible! Let me try my Bank of America card at an ATM, just for giggles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palatkik Posted March 8, 2007 Report Share Posted March 8, 2007 In the U.S., Washington Mutual Bank last year was offering a no minimum balance free checking account that offers free wire transfers and no fee for atm withdrawals. Likewise, my Citibank account allows free wire transfers internationally, thought their ATM's cost me 1% - so I now wire to Thailand. Takes a day online web banking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nordicman Posted March 8, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2007 The daily flucuations have increased to 3 baht, almost 10%! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.