Choosing the Right Bank

[Guest]

Fellows,

 

I am moving to bangkok pretty soon (December) from Singapore when I have been working for the last 3 years.

I'd like to get some feedback on what would be the best bank to open an account in bangkok.

 

My criterias are the following,

Easy access to ATM

Small fee for Debit / Credit Card

Convininent Internet Access for Services (Bill Payment...)

Low fees

Saving account

Possibility to manage Stock portfolio

Of course English speaking staff & friendly

 

Thanks for the advise...

 

Cheers

 

Seth Davis

[Pom Michael]

I would recommend :

 

1. Bangkok Bank

2. Siam Commercial Bank

 

>>>Easy access to ATM

>>>Small fee for Debit / Credit Card

>>>Convininent Internet Access for Services (Bill Payment...)

>>>Low fees

>>>Saving account

 

I don't believe that you will get this one at any bank :

 

>>> Possibility to manage Stock portfolio

 

Maybe try Semico if you are talking about Thai stocks. They have a very nice web based account.

 

Use a branch office that is in the major farang areas to have a better chance for this one :

 

>>> Of course English speaking staff & friendly

 

Cheers !

[Guest]

For that stock portfolio one, would Bank of America or Kongkong Bank be any better?

 

Once you've lived here for a while, at least it's been this way for me, you tend to accumulate bank accounts. Just sort of happens. I have accounts at the 2 you mentioned, and I've also had good luck with Thai Farmers Bank.

[think_too_mut]

Bangkok Bank has introduced Internet banking not too long ago. It's a joke, absolute shit! I am ashamed to belong to the same profession as the asshole who developed it.

 

All you can do is - see the latest state of your account. No transactions, no history. One line.

 

In fact, yes, you can "request transaction report" and then go in 4 days to a branch for a hard copy.

 

Other things you can do - cancel your cheque, see if the cheque has gone through...and, from the next year pay 500 Baht for the convenience of using the Internet with BKK Bank!

 

Maybe board members can advise on how comprehensive TFB's Internet site is.

 

Queues in the branches can be really nasty, may take you 1 hour or more of waiting for something.

[think_too_mut]

Another old thread popped up, could be that the moderators nudget it.

 

I may have gotten spoiled with iBanking here in Farangland or what my user id with BBL lets me do is only a limited functionality edition.

 

Don't understand how can BBL's Bualauang iBanking be rated so high in that thread.

 

Still, if TFB's ibanking is only in Thai...what can you do..go BBL, I guess.

[Pom Michael]

TTM,

 

You are describing Krung Thai's internet banking system exactly.

 

But, if this is what you have for Bangkok Bank, then you are not using the same system that I am. BKK Bank Internet Banking

 

Bangkok Bank's site has four main sections :

 

A. My Accounts has the summary info about all of your accounts with Bangkok Bank (savings / current / time deposit / loans / credit card).

 

Account Number, Type, Your own personalized nickname for the account, and realtime balance.

 

From these links you can get your activity in EACH of the accounts in the following manners :

 

a. Not yet in your bank book

b. Current month

c. Previous month

d. Any date range that you ask for (up to 2 months back)

 

You can print or download as a text file the output.

 

B. Transfers. This section allows you to transfer between your accounts, or to third party accounts (must be pre-registered). All accounts allow you to make up your own Nickname to all actions. The transfer is made immediately.

 

You can automate the transfer to do it daily, weekly, or monthly at no charge. You can also specify the date to transfer in advance, and then it will action on the date specified.

 

This is a list of all transfer made, kept for at least three months.

 

There is a pending transfer list, for all the transfers that you have requested in advance, but the date hasn't arrived yet or if you have activated a daily / weekly or monthly transfer they will show here.

 

C. Payments. This section allows you to do the following :

 

Bill Payment

Credit Card Payment

Payment History

Pending Payments

Personal Payee List

Add Payee

 

You can pay many bills, from mobile phones, internet, insurance, newpapers, etc... This list includes about 250 different companies, and grows monthly.

You set up each bill once, give it your references and it remembers all the data, so that the next time you want to pay the bill, you only need to add the REF2 number and the amount. The payment is done on a batch basis so you have the ability to cancel before it is executed - normally overnight.

 

D. Services. This section allows you to do the following :

 

Deposited Cheque Return

Issued Cheque Return

Stop Single Cheque

Stop Cheque Range

Hold Lost Passbook

Statement Request

Balance Investigation

Transaction Investigation

 

The other sections include a preferences where you can change the maximum amounts that you authorize to transfer, add/edit your account nicknames, etc.

They have a secure email section to send/receive bank message. Finally a session summary gives you a complete listing of your actions and a Help/FAQ section.

 

In my opinion, this is the best banking site in Thailand, followed closely by Siam Commercial Bank.

 

Cheers!

[think_too_mut]

Tried to pay mobile phone bill but the company was not registered yet. Whatever I tried, I hit the wall.

 

They may have gotten better, going there now to check again.

 

If that's the best Thai banks can offer, so be it.

 

I'll edit my post after that.

 

Edited, after checking the BBL site:

 

Yes, I went through, still unreliable and poor. For example, "My account" for date range

9 September - 9 November, reverted to

1 October - 9 November.

 

Anyways, this is not the only thing in Thailand that is not to our liking. Let's keep up with what we like there.