manaomaiminam Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 Just a heads up for you people exchanging money at ATM's. Yesterday, I went to an ATM, Bangkok Bank, and tried to get out 15,000 baht (I keep the amount high because of the 150 baht charge per transaction). At first the ATM was going to give me the money, but then, it did not have enough bank notes, (holiday, end of the month syndrome, etc), so it reversed itself and reversed the debit with a credit giving me a message that it could not give me the money because it did not have it. Anyway, I was able to see the exchange rate later in my account, and the cost of 15,000 baht was $469.25 US dollars. So, I needed the money and I went to the Kasikorn Bank ATM next to it and got my 15,000 baht. The exchange rate was 30.25 on the dollar, and it cost me 497.69 (including the 150 baht surcharge). This was literally 1 minute after the attempt on the Bangkok Bank. Giving you this low, low exchange rate just baffled me, as I live in LOS 6 months of the year for the last 8 years, and up until now, the difference in exchange rates between the different banks has been minuscule. It just amazes me sometimes how f**king greedy the banks can be, and they still want us to visit and spend money in this country. But beware, and stay away from Kasikorn. Maybe your mileage will vary, but you have been warned. Incidentally, my GF got money out for her dollars schooling today from a Bangkok Bank account and the exchange rate was normal, so the anomaly is Kasikorn. I have posted this on other forums just to get out a heads up, so people don't waste money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelseafan Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 On my last trip to Pattaya I made it a point of going to the tesco Lotus to use the free machine there...50 baht to get there, 50 baht to get back so saved myself 50 baht Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Use Aeon ATMs. Good exchange rate, was 32.17 on 19 May. Yahoo was showing the USD vs Baht at 32.33 that day, so not too bad of a rate and no fees! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mekong Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 I live in LOS 6 months of the year for the last 8 years, and up until now, I have posted this on other forums just to get out a heads up, so people don't waste money. I find it rather ironic that someone who has had a presence in Thailnd for such a long period is still drawing funds from an overseas account and there getting the Onshore Exchange rate rather than the Offshore rate. Maybe you should learn how to stop wasting money on FOREX before preaching to others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 Cash is still king. Siam Exchange was offering 32.55 vs USD today, better then you can get from any ATM! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilli13 Posted June 3, 2010 Report Share Posted June 3, 2010 cav, cash may still be 'king', but it's rather impractical unless you can plan well how much you gonna use or got no issues carrying a shitload over just in case? it's amazing how some folks still believe each individual ATM (in any country) sets the exchange rate when in fact it's the designed 'institution' by the card issuer doing so sure one may be able to get a 'better' rate during the same day between 2 different banks ATM in LOS, but that's as much pot luck/chance since there may be several daily rates set/fixed/used by the 'institution' and/or some atm's banks taking longer (several days) than others to report the transaction & rate being 'reported date/time'... got it? but surely as mekong said having a local account beats international atm cards in LOS since only eon (and few other atms) offer no fee withdrawals these days & interbank/TT rates tend to beat most other 'rates' out there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted June 4, 2010 Report Share Posted June 4, 2010 For sure, if you plan to return to LOS, setup a bank account in LOS. Play the exchange rate game, load up the bank account and enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dumsoda Posted June 4, 2010 Report Share Posted June 4, 2010 To the OP, ALL Banks are thieves... Just need to find the one with the bluntest "claws" This site can be helpful... but bear in mind things change day by day....hour by hour http://bankexchangerates.daytodaydata.net/default.aspx Cheers DS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelgianBoy Posted June 4, 2010 Report Share Posted June 4, 2010 nice link, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robaus Posted June 5, 2010 Report Share Posted June 5, 2010 >>Maybe you should learn how to stop wasting money on FOREX before preaching to others. ... I am getting 6.35% on my money back in an Oz bank, and draw down completely fee free from Aeon with my completely fee free Wizard Mastercard. Can you get that rate in Thailand? Perhaps, Mekong, you should learn how to handle your finances better before pontificating to others about FOREX. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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