Thai Bank Deposit protection cut to 1 million THB

[userabcd]

1 hour ago, LivingNThailand said:

In case anyone else was wondering about joint accounts....I went to the bank yesterday and asked the manager.  One account, one Bank, One Million.  Period.  If it's a joint account it is not one million each person.  Just one million insurance per bank.   I could have opened another account in a different bank, but I just wired most of my money back to the US. I can get it back in 1-2 days if I need it.  

 

Joint accounts are  treated differently.

 

If there is 2 million baht in a joint account and there are no other accounts with that bank in the joint account holders names, then I understand that that the 2 million baht will be split between 2 depositors named on the joint account and each depositor will be covered for 1 million baht under the DPA.

 

See article 12 and the infographic  in the faq booklet issued by the DPA for joint accounts.

Edited August 12, 2021 by userabcd

[userabcd]

On 8/7/2021 at 1:51 PM, Neeranam said:

No, it was in Krung Thai. The woman was telling foreigners they couldn't get interest and pocketing it. I asked a former Minister of Finance(Khun Korn) to help; he sent his team and the bank started giving interest but they asked me not to press charges and ask for back payment as she would lose her job.

She still works there so might have an axe to grind.

The first port of call should have been a police station to report the obvious misdeed.

[LivingNThailand]

1 hour ago, userabcd said:

 

If there is 2 million baht in a joint account and there are no other accounts with that bank in the joint account holders names, then I understand that that the 2 million baht will be split between 2 depositors named on the joint account and each depositor will be covered for 1 million baht under the DPA.

We had just over 2 million in 2 accounts, one joint and the other my visa account.  Bank manager said one one million total.  Not two million.  Period.  Then we transferred the money and the manager didn’t stop us.  I would have thought the manager would want us to keep the money in the branch.  We asked for options and was pitched a saving insurance scheme.  No thanks.  
 

1 hour ago, userabcd said:

See article 12 and the infographic  in the faq booklet issued by the DPA for joint accounts.

Do you have a link?   I’ve been trying to find this out for weeks.   Too late now though I guess.  Thanks.  

[userabcd]

Just now, LivingNThailand said:

We had just over 2 million in 2 accounts, one joint and the other my visa account.  Bank manager said one one million total.  Not two million.  Period.  Then we transferred the money and the manager didn’t stop us.  I would have thought the manager would want us to keep the money in the branch.  We asked for options and was pitched a saving insurance scheme.  No thanks.  
 

Do you have a link?   I’ve been trying to find this out for weeks.   Too late now though I guess.  Thanks.  

Link https://www.dpa.or.th/en/file/download/khumux-tham-txb-phasa-xangkvs

 

Yeah I stay away from those saving investment schemes banks and other try to push. It ties one down, maybe offers some kind of insurance and the end result is no access to savings for a long time and a basic interest rate of return at the end period. May be suitable for some but in a savings account one has access to money all the time and the similar interest rates.

[Isaan sailor]

2 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Perhaps the finance ministry knows more than we do, about how dire the situation is here, and sees the possibility of Thailand becoming a failed state, and some of the banks collapsing. There are alot of rumors out there, and some may be true. 

 

There is no question the economy is teetering on the verge. Real unemployment is likely between 30 and 45% right now, tourism is utterly destroyed, and not coming back anytime soon, and foreign investors have lost all confidence in this nation, and it's horrific leadership. 

Something’s up.  The mighty Baht has miraculously risen over 1% in the last 24 hours.

[spidermike007]

I was just informed by a normally reliable source, that the one million baht in bank insurance DOES NOT apply to foreigners, nor ex-pats living here.

 

Does anyone have information about this? If that is the case, it sure is a well hidden secret, yet it would not surprise me in the least. 

[userabcd]

3 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

I was just informed by a normally reliable source, that the one million baht in bank insurance DOES NOT apply to foreigners, nor ex-pats living here.

 

Does anyone have information about this? If that is the case, it sure is a well hidden secret, yet it would not surprise me in the least. 

I doubt that. Foreign currency deposit accounts are not protected.

 

Who told you that the same branch manager or bank teller who tells foreigners they need a work permit to open a bank account?

[LivingNThailand]

1 hour ago, userabcd said:

Link https://www.dpa.or.th/en/file/download/khumux-tham-txb-phasa-xangkvs

 

Yeah I stay away from those saving investment schemes banks and other try to push. It ties one down, maybe offers some kind of insurance and the end result is no access to savings for a long time and a basic interest rate of return at the end period. May be suitable for some but in a savings account one has access to money all the time and the similar interest rates.

Thanks for the link. I had to do the math on item 12  because the example was for 15 mil. insurance.  If this is true I'd still have to move some money out, but not as much.  However the manager insisted it wasn't covered, only one million per bank,  so I just moved it.  It doesn't matter really.

The savings scheme was insane.  12 years.  First of all I'm too old to invest for 12 years in one thing and when I was younger I was too young to invest in one thing for 12 years (except my mortgage).  The interest didn't compound and they said the interest would be 19%, which wasn't true.  Then the final nail on the coffin was that they claimed I would make 424% on 400,000 THB over 12 years yielding 424,427 THB.  Even if you don't compound the interest 424% on 400,000 is 1,696,000 THB.  Who makes up these things.  After I saw this I wired the money out and keeping the bare minimum in the bank.

[LivingNThailand]

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

I was just informed by a normally reliable source, that the one million baht in bank insurance DOES NOT apply to foreigners, nor ex-pats living here.

 

Does anyone have information about this? If that is the case, it sure is a well hidden secret, yet it would not surprise me in the least. 

My understanding regular savings accounts are insured for everyone but foreign currency accounts are not insured.  You can read the link that userabcd posted.  There is a lot of information.  I didn't read the whole thing because I've already made my decision.  

[Neeranam]

3 hours ago, userabcd said:

The first port of call should have been a police station to report the obvious misdeed.

You obviously haven't lived here long.

[Neeranam]

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

apply to foreigners, nor ex-pats living here.

What's the difference?

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, Isaan sailor said:

Something’s up.  The mighty Baht has miraculously risen over 1% in the last 24 hours.

I suspect Thailand is using reserves to buy baht.

[userabcd]

26 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

You obviously haven't lived here long.

Only since 1994 and somehow miraculously have not had any problem with bank accounts anywhere.

[Neeranam]

3 minutes ago, userabcd said:

Only since 1994 and somehow miraculously have not had any problem with bank accounts anywhere.

Have you found the police helpful when going to the station in cases like this?

 

Are you saying I am to blame somehow for the bank stealing my money?

 

 

 

 

Edited August 12, 2021 by Neeranam

[spidermike007]

On 8/6/2021 at 6:03 AM, Scrotobike said:

I think most Thais (certainly in Issan) are not affected - only the HiSo and other of their ilk. They dream of 1m Bhat.

In the past, I have been in car dealerships, when a very humble looking couple driving a very old truck walks in and sets a million baht cash on the desk, in a paper bag, for a cash purchase of a new vehicle. Hi-so is such a ridiculous term. There is a vast gap between the lower income folks, middle income earners, and the so called hi-so. 

[userabcd]

27 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

Have you found the police helpful when going to the station in cases like this?

 

Are you saying I am to blame somehow for the bank stealing my money?

 

 

 

 

Good gracious no, what you write was not insinuated at all.

 

Please just ignore my comment, if it is wrong and I accept that.

Edited August 12, 2021 by userabcd

[bkkcanuck8]

On 8/5/2021 at 2:13 PM, Roy Baht said:

There's a moral hazard argument to be made (which I am sure no one in this forum will like) that runs like this: the more that banks are insured against losses, the more likely they are to behave recklessly or take unnecessary risks--because they know they will be bailed out. (The classic example of moral hazard is the "too big to fail" financial institutions in the United States.) On the other hand, if bank insurance is kept to a minimum, then banks are incentivized to behave responsibly--and not fail. Or if a bank does behave irresponsibly, it is allowed to fail. No government bailout. As for the people who lose money in that bank, well, they chose the wrong bank to put their money in. Caveat emptor. That is the theory at least--just putting it out there.

BS, if the depositor loses savings is irrelevant to the CEO if he is going with a more risky strategy ... more likely to be driven by his bonus plan or by the need to impress the board so that he is seen as too valuable to lose.   The deposit insurance has no benefit to the bank itself, other than they can say their deposit accounts are insured.  In fact it would be an expense for the bank, since the insurance rate would be tied to the amount being insured.   If you want to reign in the banks behavior to protect depositors, you have to put up restrictions on what a deposit taking institution does... so the more risky financial industry in one institution and the "bank" being a more staid institution.  Or more strict oversight of the risks that institutions take, which would then force the risk based financial industry into other separate businesses naturally.  That said, Thai Bank Insurance was higher than many western countries insurance limits, now it is going to be less.

[JimGant]

Why lower insurance rates on bank deposits? Read this article re US FDIC insurance:

 

Quote

https://hbr.org/2009/10/fixing-the-fdic

"By raising the maximum insurance limits from $100,000 to $250,000, Congress has more than doubled the amount they can deposit in the weakest FDIC-insured banks offering the highest interest rates."

And that's what's going on here in Thailand -- the multimillionaire bank depositor could deposit with risk impunity his millions in weaker financial institutions paying much higher rates of return. Now, with insurance on these weaker financial institutions lowered, he'd better cut his risk (and returns) by putting his millions in one of the big banks, i.e., Bangkok Bank, KBank, etc, which are  "too big to fail." and would have the gov't, printing baht, if needed, to reimburse losses above insurance payout (with the IMF riding herd). However, his 'weaker financial institution" paying high rates of return -- ain't too big to fail, and just might not be bailed out by the gov't. So, risk adverse millionaires will be moving their money to less risky financial institutions. Makes sense.