Post: #1

For nomads constantly on the move.. skilled professionals that spend 2 years doing contract work in various countries.. for those that simply want their transaction fees returned to them at the end of the month.. I'm a bit surprised that no one brings up online-only banks

Partly inspired by recent threads about the best international phone services and whatnot, I think it's equally important to have an "international bank", preferably completely online-operated.

One of the coolest perks in my opinion is you those annoying fees banks charge because you withdrew from a different banking company, or because you withdrew from abroad, are completely eliminated with many online-only banks. This in addition to higher annual interest, 24-hour customer service (never closes), fewer overhead expenses on their part, and a no-string-attached attitude. For anyone considering the expat life, consider making the jump...

http://online-only-banks-review.toptenreviews.com/
http://dealnews.com/features/The-Best-Ba...80550.html

My 2 favorites:

http://www.evantagebank.com/ (con: no 24/7 customer service)
http://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/banking_lending (con: limited loan services)
.

Post: #2

I've heard schwab is really good, but you need to be an American citizen and have a Social Security Number...

Post: #3

It's not online only, but HSBC is the default expats bank. They have a presence, and in many cases physical branches, in many countries of the world. They also have a personal account that essentially follows you around. i.e. If you move to another country the local HSBC branch will consider your past relationship with the bank, and your credit rating when determining what products to offer you. Many banks don't do this and you must start anew in every country you move to.

Post: #4

Schwab: ATM fees rebated back to you (bye-bye $5 per withdrawl). Exchange rate close to or at market rate (none of that 2-4% charge crap). No minimum balance.

Worth it if you can get it.

Post: #5

CAPITAL ideas, Cyclone! Necessary and very helpful.

Post: #6

I've been using Schwab for my checking and may move into some CDs and bonds with them. The free ATM surcharge is great, it helps limit my spending and also refunds the fees on what I do spend.

Post: #7

Like everyone else, Schwab and HSBC are the go tos for banking.

Then be sure to get a good rewards credit card with no international fees. There are probably numerous, but I have the Chase Saphire Preferred. Pretty sure it has no international fees, but haven't tested it. It's consistently rated one of the better go-to rewards cards. And it's super heavy and durable, which is baller and makes baristas wet.

Post: #8

according to my research HSBC and UBS ask the least amount of questions and have a well defined global presence.

Post: #9

Good tips yall
HSBC definitely did have a huge presence in Hong Kong, and probably the rest of Asia as well (i can't remember about surrounding regions). Not to mention they seem to have more services than Schwab, there are certain loans that I'd love to utilize... to top it off though, Schwab not only returns ATM fees, but also the "foreign withdrawal" fee, which some banks ignore refunding.
.

Post: #10

My Schwab card somehow got skimmed in Romania and about $500 of charges made in a Bangkok gas station. Two calls and one fax later, I had a new card FedEx'd to me in Romania and the fraudulent charges dropped. Good experience.

Post: #11

@Roosh
That is good to hear you were able to get your money back. I have heard it is much harder to get banks to repay you on debit card fraud compared with credit cards. I just opened a Schwab account because of this thread.

Post: #12

(05-04-2013 12:18 PM)Roosh Wrote:  My Schwab card somehow got skimmed in Romania and about $500 of charges made in a Bangkok gas station. Two calls and one fax later, I had a new card FedEx'd to me in Romania and the fraudulent charges dropped. Good experience.

I find Schwab is great in general. No charges for use of foreign ATMs or money exchanges.

Post: #13

My experience so far signing up with Schwab...

Tried signing up online but when I submitted the form it said I needed to call a number to complete the sign up. Was not impressed with that. I didn't call but the next day I got a call from Schwab asking if they could help complete the sign up process. The guy on the phone was really nice and helpful and clearly american and not a call center in India of the Philippines. After about 5 mins everything was set up.

Next I needed the debit card and some checks. This required that I print off a few pages, sign it, and then mail it in. That was a bit tedious as I mail something about 3 times a year, but not to big of a deal. I also needed to set up Moneylink which is their way of sending money from a different bank account to your schwab account, similar to how paypal does it. Got 2 small deposits in my account about 2 days later and entered that online, then again had to call in for confirmation.

I think at this point I am all set up. While the process was not seamless and took several days to get set up I was pleased that every time I called the person was pleasant and helpful, also I never had to wait more than 1 minute to talk with some one.

Just thought that info might be helpful if anyone is thinking about signing up.

Post: #14

(05-08-2013 10:57 AM)DirectDanger Wrote:  My experience so far signing up with Schwab...

Tried signing up online but when I submitted the form it said I needed to call a number to complete the sign up. Was not impressed with that. I didn't call but the next day I got a call from Schwab asking if they could help complete the sign up process. The guy on the phone was really nice and helpful and clearly american and not a call center in India of the Philippines. After about 5 mins everything was set up.

Next I needed the debit card and some checks. This required that I print off a few pages, sign it, and then mail it in. That was a bit tedious as I mail something about 3 times a year, but not to big of a deal. I also needed to set up Moneylink which is their way of sending money from a different bank account to your schwab account, similar to how paypal does it. Got 2 small deposits in my account about 2 days later and entered that online, then again had to call in for confirmation.

I think at this point I am all set up. While the process was not seamless and took several days to get set up I was pleased that every time I called the person was pleasant and helpful, also I never had to wait more than 1 minute to talk with some one.

Just thought that info might be helpful if anyone is thinking about signing up.

Good recap.

To the best of my knowledge, I had to go thru the exact same thing.

The one thing that was really lame is they are not clear about funding. I funded my brokerage account instead of my checking, so it wasn't set up in time for a recent trip to Mex.

But they are pretty good on the phone.

Post: #15

Yes. The sign-up process is indeed rather annoying, though it is worth the benefits.

Another annoying thing was that I applied for Mobile Deposit with the intention to fund my account. However, I my application for Mobile Deposit was rejected.

Why?

Because I need to have account activity of $1000 in order to get approved (the other option: a hard credit inquiry, though you need to call in for this).

Um... hello? I signed up for Mobile Deposit IN ORDER TO have account activity (deposit money). The other annoying thing is that you can't get approved to do Electronic Transfer without having to mail in some forms, so the only other logical option was to go through that before I can start taking pictures of checks.

Luckily, I have an OptionsXpress brokerage account, which is linked to Schwab AND does not have annoying electronic transfer mail-in requirements (or maybe they do; it's been a while since I've used OptionsXpress).

My mission was to transfer money to my OptionsXpress brokerage account. Then, transfer from OptionsXpress brokerage to Schwab brokerage. Then, transfer from Schwab brokerage to Schwab checking (yup, I couldn't transfer directly to checking.)

Then, the guys told me that my funds in OptionsXpress has to be held for 10 business days before I can move them to Schwab.

Oh. And my max deposit per day for Mobile Deposit is $1000. They say they set the limits based on account activity. I don't mind such a per-day limit, but this is another thing to keep in mind perhaps.

Post: #16

bumpin this up....came across a GE capital link last week and they have money market accounts that are well above the current CD rates, especially Schwab's "high yield" checking

Post: #17

(05-08-2013 10:57 AM)DirectDanger Wrote:  My experience so far signing up with Schwab...

Tried signing up online but when I submitted the form it said I needed to call a number to complete the sign up. Was not impressed with that. I didn't call but the next day I got a call from Schwab asking if they could help complete the sign up process. The guy on the phone was really nice and helpful and clearly american and not a call center in India of the Philippines. After about 5 mins everything was set up.

Next I needed the debit card and some checks. This required that I print off a few pages, sign it, and then mail it in. That was a bit tedious as I mail something about 3 times a year, but not to big of a deal. I also needed to set up Moneylink which is their way of sending money from a different bank account to your schwab account, similar to how paypal does it. Got 2 small deposits in my account about 2 days later and entered that online, then again had to call in for confirmation.

I think at this point I am all set up. While the process was not seamless and took several days to get set up I was pleased that every time I called the person was pleasant and helpful, also I never had to wait more than 1 minute to talk with some one.

Just thought that info might be helpful if anyone is thinking about signing up.

I don't think this has anything to do with Schwab - it has more to do with Federal "Know Your Customer" banking regulations, which are only getting tighter and tighter.

Does anyone else have the same problem I do, always having issues getting money/making charges because of fraud protection? I've made a lot of irate phone calls over the last year.

Post: #18

Well, looks like neither CS or HSBC are offering international student loans.
This is bullshit

Post: #19

Evantage would be the recommended choice for an international traveller, not originating from the U.S.?

Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.

Napoleon Hill

Post: #20

HSBC I found sticks to the bigger cities, so if you're doing a lot of travel to more remote places, I find they aren't so useful. Gave them thought as I spend a lot of time between Canada/US, and the lion's share of time in Indonesia, but they simply had no even ATMs near where I would be working most of the time. I'm from Canada but go with TD Canada Trust Select Service. Free if you keep $5k there, unlimited free Int'l withdrawals, no fee currency exchange, better rates, free traveler's checks, and a bunch of other perks too.

Post: #21

Is Schwab good for non-us citizens as well? Are they treated differently in terms of charges, conditions, etc.?
Is this the one? http://www.schwabbank.com/index.do

Thanks

Post: #22

moneybookers / skrill is great with their mastercard. It's not really a bank account, but you can transfer your money in there for free and withdrawal fees are low. there is 0 charge on mastercard purchases. I've used abroad in Thailand and in Korea. I'm from the UK and withdrawals back to the bank account are 1.50

Definately good imo

Post: #23

Just an update - for those planning to open an account with Charles Schwab, it appears that if you live abroad for 1 or more year your account is compromised. Do NOT plan to live abroad even if you'll still have a permanent address here. The guy just cancelled my account yesterday.

HSBC might be the way to go for me here. Even if their ATMs don't pop up off the beaten path, I can just stock up in the bigger cities which I'd be focusing on anyway.

Post: #24

How do they know you live abroad? Seems pretty easy to say you travel often for work or something. There must be something more to the story maybe?

Post: #25

HSBC Premier...you actually don't need to put in the $100,000 minimum for an account...you will pay a moderate fee if your balance is less than that amount but if you travel often, the benefits are more than worth it. Nearly every major city that you'd want to travel to in Europe or Latin America has an HSBC somewhere, many with premier. The normal HSBC service is terrible, but premier you do get your money's worth. Also, it's super easy to transfer money as well if you are living somewhere. For example, if you have an account in USA and are living in Czech Republic and earning money there, you can open an account in Prague and transfer money to your US account with no fee and almost at the bank rate. Most banks charge you exhorbitant fees. I'd look into it for those of you planning on living for extended periods of time.