On 8/30/2019 at 7:46 PM, Pib said:

Thai banks have much better domestic transfer systems than ACH in the US.  You can transfer funds between Thai bank instantly for free or very low cost a variety of way.  I do it frequently between my Thai bank accounts. 

 

The US is really behind the money transfer curve with the ACH system.  The ACH system is improving with a slow move toward "same day" payment....but that is still just same day vs immediate.

 

Agree.  Transferring funds between Thai banks is painfully easy.  I've been doing it for years and as you say, it's typically free or very inexpensive and instantaneous.  I've transferred funds between US banks and for some odd reason, it still takes days. 

4 minutes ago, Berkshire said:

Agree.  Transferring funds between Thai banks is painfully easy.  I've been doing it for years and as you say, it's typically free or very inexpensive and instantaneous.  I've transferred funds between US banks and for some odd reason, it still takes days. 

Might have a bit to do with the number of independent banks involved (although no real excuse in the internet age):

Thailand - 36

USA almost 5,000

23 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

Might have a bit to do with the number of independent banks involved (although no real excuse in the internet age):

Thailand - 36

USA almost 5,000

And actually, I don't think that 5,000 "bank" number includes credit unions....there are approx the same number of credit unions in the US.  Let's just say around 10,000 total banks and credit unions in the U.S....and all of them using ACH to move money around.  Truely a humongous system of financial institutions.  And we are still not talking/counting other types of financial institutions like brokerages, etc.  Hopefully the move to same day processing within U.S. ACH system will make money movement much faster....but it's going to take several more years to get to that point....and it still will not be instant transfers like we can get in Thailand....just same day/within 24 hrs.

 

https://www.gobankingrates.com/banking/credit-unions/difference-between-community-bank-credit-unions/

Quote

When you compare a credit union versus a bank, the two institutions seem similar on the surface. They both offer a variety of financial services, like accepting deposits and providing loans. Credit unions are plentiful like banks, too: Currently, there are 8,341 commercial banks and 5,696 credit unions operating in the U.S.

 

https://www.nacha.org/rules/expanding-same-day-ach

Same Day Processing.