This topic inspired by yet another issue with a U.S. financial institution caused by living abroad.
In this case an account of about 1,000 dollars that has been frozen and requiring me to visit a branch in the U.S. to unlock. I have no plans to travel to the U.S. Without going in details of how this happened, how about this for an idea?
Could a wealthy entrepreneur open a U.S. bank with all the standard services dedicated to serving expats, digital nomads, etc.?
An account where U.S. nationals already living abroad could open new accounts with just a passport.
An account where living abroad doesn't make you a suspect and no need to create a fake U.S. residence with U.S. address and cell phone number?
A bank that could somehow finesse with clout and lobbying effort to still comply with "know your customer" laws even to the point of getting those laws changed to accommodate expats?
Can't they "know" us through different means, like Zoom calls, voice prints, official evidence of our foreign address, etc.?
Yes I know there are existing alternatives like State Department Federal Credit Union and that's great as far as it goes, but I'm talking about something even better and even more targeted at us.
It shouldn't be so hard for Americans to live abroad and still manage U.S. finances when needed, and many of us need to.
A pipe dream for sure but do you think there's a profitable market for this?
I do as Americans moving abroad becomes much more popular for both working age people and retirees.
I know I'm not the only expat who has experienced many nightmares over the years by being treated badly by U.S. financial institutions.
Know any billionaires?