Best Bank to Put My Money Into Outside the USA.

[NCC1701A]

I am really getting tired of the USA banks shutting my accounts down or allowing me to open new accounts because I don't have a physical address and a valid Drivers License or State ID card in the USA anymore.

 

Is there a Bank somewhere on this planet that is safe as a big American Bank with something like FDIC insurance where I can open a account on line without living in that country?

 

Thanks in advance.   

 

 

Edited January 10, 2019 by NCC1701A

[Fab5BKK]

You still have plenty of choices:

* In Thailand (if you live here) = onshore banking (onshore banking = a bank that is located in your country of residence).

or

* Somewhere else = offshore banking (offshore banking = a bank located in a foreign jurisdiction that has obtained offshore banking legislation license).

 

Onshore / Offshore Banks: Citi, HSBC, Standard Chartered, to name a few.

 

PM me if you need more specific info / help

[KittenKong]

2 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

Is there a Bank somewhere on this planet that is safe as a big American Bank with something like FDIC insurance where I can open a account on line without living in that country?

In what currency and for what amount?

 

Many countries offer deposit protection up to a certain sum, but you also need to ask whether the guarantees are really backed by anything or are just hot air.

[Oxx]

10 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

safe as a big American Bank

 

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

 

Forgotten 2007-8 already?

[gk10002000]

1 hour ago, Oxx said:

 

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

 

Forgotten 2007-8 already?

Very few regular cash deposits of an nominal amounts were lost by customers.  The investment firms were hard hit as they were caught with their hands in the cookie jars and people should be careful about turning over their investment monies blindly to those institutions. 

[KittenKong]

52 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

Very few regular cash deposits of an nominal amounts were lost by customers.

"Very few" is far more than I would be happy with.

[NCC1701A]

 ok. please lets not go in this direction about the safety of USA banks.

 

i am taking about cash in a savings account.

[KittenKong]

20 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

i am taking about cash in a savings account.

Still waiting to hear in which currency and in what amount. Without knowing that is is impossible to give any valid advice.

 

And do you want a government guarantee or just one that looks good on paper but isnt really backed by anything?

[Srikcir]

21 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

 ok. please lets not go in this direction about the safety of USA banks.

 

i am taking about cash in a savings account.

Without a lot of research:

Swiss bank account-you get what you pay for

https://www.swiss-privacy.com/faq/#basics1_a

 

[PatOngo]

I would trust a jam tin account buried in the garden more than I would trust any banks these days!

[Palmeiras]

There are many leading banks have branches in Channel Islands and/or the Isle of Man. I have accounts in both locations myself which were opened without any difficulty (UK national). Deposit protection is GBP 50,000 per depositor per bank in each location.

[Mavideol]

Was in the same situation as you, no longer a physical address in the USA banks were giving me the turn around. Started banking with Macau biggest bank BNU but sometimes had to travel there and it was not practical, thus decided to visit Singapore and made the mistake of using a US bank (Citi) after 1 years problems started, went there and met with DBS treasures people, great service, secure deposits, great rates, easy to fly there, overall extremely happy, if you need a contact there PM me and will assist and provide additional details. I did try HSBC offshore as well but had bad or very bad experience with them in Macau, thus not recommending

[NCC1701A]

4 hours ago, KittenKong said:

Still waiting to hear in which currency and in what amount. Without knowing that is is impossible to give any valid advice.

 

And do you want a government guarantee or just one that looks good on paper but isnt really backed by anything?

sorry. US dollars. $150,000

[AgMech Cowboy]

Singapore: 1st choice-UOB, 2nd choice-DBS, 3rd-HSBC.  You need to go there to open the account, but that's it.

 

I know the online thing is the now thing or so I've heard, but I'm not that trusting.

[neeray]

I can accommodate you. I have a couple of CDN accounts with very little in them. Lots of empty space available.

[how241]

Thai banks are safe and offer deposit insurance.  Spread the money around into the major banks,  Kasikorn,  SCB, Krungsri, Bangkok Bank, etc.  If you change into Thai Baht you need to think about the exchange rate risk.  it can go good or bad for you.  Some offer 'dollar' accounts if you want to stay in US dollars.

[KittenKong]

2 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

sorry. US dollars. $150,000

That is more than the EU protection limit of 100,000EUR per bank, and when Cyprus had problems even that per bank rule was waived as far as I remember.

 

Also I'm not sure that what extent deposits in non-EU currencies are even covered by EU deposit protection. Certainly in Thailand the deposit protection only extends to THB accounts.

 

If you can find two EU countries in which USD deposits are covered, then splitting the cash into one account in each country could cover it.

 

Another option might be US government bonds bought via an ETF and a broker. The money would be ring-fenced and the base investment is likely to be sound. Of course there could be capital value movement in case of changing interest rates.

 

Apart from that it may be tricky. I'm not aware of any non-US countries outside the EU that have government-backed deposit protection for such sums. Places like the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands only have lesser protection, and even that isnt government backed. It's just backed by the banks themselves.

[KittenKong]

2 minutes ago, how241 said:

Thai banks are safe and offer deposit insurance.

Only on THB deposits.

[how241]

3 minutes ago, KittenKong said:

Only on THB deposits.

Yes, true.  I see nothing bad about holding Thai baht.  The exchange rate is always a gamble. 

[KittenKong]

1 minute ago, how241 said:

I see nothing bad about holding Thai baht. 

Nothing intrinsically bad, but the OP didnt say that he was happy to switch currencies.

 

Besides which the Thai protection does not go high enough as far as I know, even for THB accounts. They keep fiddling with the amount of cover - or threatening to.

[ChipButty]

I'll send you my bank details I'll take good care for you

[how241]

18 minutes ago, KittenKong said:

Only on THB deposits.

Yes, true.  I see nothing bad about holding Thai baht.  The exchange rate is always a gamble. 

http://www.dpa.or.th/ewt_news.php?nid=320&filename=index___EN

[Lacessit]

On 1/11/2019 at 11:36 AM, NCC1701A said:

 ok. please lets not go in this direction about the safety of USA banks.

 

i am taking about cash in a savings account.

Australian banks are government guaranteed, 250,000 AUD. As are approved credit unions,  Deposits higher than that level can be split between accounts with different banks.

What's called the big 4 - Commonwealth, Westpac, ANZ and NAB - weathered the GFC very well.

Sorry, can't help you with the process of opening an account.

The other option is to buy shares in those banks. Their share prices are quite cheap at present due to the current Royal Commission. Yield is 5-6% pa currently, although as a foreigner you would not get the franking credits on dividends, which are paid twice a year. With an online broker, you would get your money back at the click of a mouse.

Edited January 12, 2019 by Lacessit

[how241]

11 minutes ago, KittenKong said:

Besides which the Thai protection does not go high enough as far as I know, even for THB accounts. They keep fiddling with the amount of cover - or threatening to.

The OP has around 5 million baht so he can easily be covered . After 2020,  he should spread his money around 4-5 of the major banks and he will still be totally covered. Thai banks are very well capitalized and they don't easily give out risky loans.  That's what could the USA problems .

http://www.dpa.or.th/ewt_news.php?nid=320&filename=index___EN

[Kurtf]

Pick almost any bank in Singapore. Safest in the world.

[Oxx]

14 minutes ago, Kurtf said:

Pick almost any bank in Singapore. Safest in the world.

 

Deposit protection up to S$50,000 - roughly US$37,000.  Compare with Thailand's current 10 million baht (US$313,000) protection.  Not sure how you can reasonably conclude "safest in the world".

 

https://www.sdic.org.sg

http://www.dpa.or.th/ewt_news.php?nid=1139&filename=index___EN

[vinegarbase]

You can set up this online account based in Dominica without having to visit. I have a corporate account with them. They have a private crypto currency selling option for direct deposit into your account if you need that as well. No FDIC or anything like that because it is not a US bank.

 

[geriatrickid]

On 1/10/2019 at 8:18 PM, Oxx said:

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

Forgotten 2007-8 already?

Believe it or not, but 2018 is the first time since 2006 that a bank has NOT failed.

Summary by Year
(Approximate asset dollar volume based on figures from the press releases)

Year	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018
Bank Failures	4	11	3	4	0	0	3	25	140	157	92	51	24	18	8	5	8	0
Total Assets (Millions)	2,358.6	2,705.4	1045.2	163.1	0	0	2,602.5	373,588.78	170,867.0	96,514.0	36,012.2	12,055.8	6,101.7	3,088.4	6,727.5	278.8	6,530.7	0

 

[LongTimeLurker]

On 1/12/2019 at 11:16 AM, AgMech Cowboy said:

Singapore: 1st choice-UOB, 2nd choice-DBS, 3rd-HSBC.  You need to go there to open the account, but that's it.

 

I know the online thing is the now thing or so I've heard, but I'm not that trusting.

Will they open accounts for visitors?

[KittenKong]

On 1/12/2019 at 5:10 PM, Oxx said:

Deposit protection up to S$50,000 - roughly US$37,000.  Compare with Thailand's current 10 million baht (US$313,000) protection.  Not sure how you can reasonably conclude "safest in the world".

Presumably "safest in the world" based on the likelihood of one of them failing, rather on what sort of deposit protection may be paid out if one fails.

 

US banks, for example, are relatively unsafe by the first criteria as a number of them fail every year, but they are safe if you are talking about the guarantees.

 

Thailand offers high protection on paper, but I often wonder whether it would actually pay out if the doodah hit the fan one day.