Can you open a Citibank checking account on visa exempt ?

[dj230]

6 hours ago, Caldera said:

From the very first time I visited Thailand, you could make instant money transfers from an ATM. That only got better as time progressed, with internet banking and apps. All this with basic savings accounts. 

 

Who would want to write or accept a check in such an environment? There might be some B2B use cases, but an individual really doesn't need a checking account.

Interesting, I wasn't really looking to accept or write cheques, but in Canada a checking account was a typical bank account for frequent transfers, i.e debit card, payments, etc. 

With a savings account in Canada theres usually high fees associated transfers/payments. 

[marin]

9 hours ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

Ah, I remember some years ago seeing a Citibank billboard around Asok, with a Thai superstar on it. She was out shopping or traveling or something, and thrust out in her hand, a Citibank credit card. On it you could clearly see her name, Thai first name, English surname. She's got the farang husband, farang credit card. The dream of many Thai ladies.

Her father is a farung. Sorry to burst your bubble. 

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

19 hours ago, elektrified said:

Citibank Thailand is not an "American bank". It is a Thai banking company.

Citibank Thailand is an American bank.

 

Citibank's operation in Thailand is actually a branch of Citibank US and not a locally-incorporated entity. The official name of Citibank in Thailand is "Citibank N.A.", with the "N.A." signifying that it is a national bank within the US banking system.

 

Depositors at Citibank Thailand have the full balance sheet of Citibank's US bank as security. It is truly a shame that Citibank is selling its retail operations in Thailand as I believe it was the only foreign branch bank that was offering retail banking services.

 

Citibank Thailand does have to follow all Thai banking regulations in addition to those of the US.

 

 

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

8 hours ago, dj230 said:

I guess their only real customers would be foreigners

I think I read somewhere that Citibank is the largest issuer of credit cards in Thailand. This is where their main revenues come from.

 

As a branch of a foreign bank, Citibank is limited to having only one retail outlet in the entire country. Can't compete against the local banks when that's the case.

 

Citibank will be keeping their banking license in Thailand, so I assume they will continue to be active in corporate banking here.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

8 hours ago, dj230 said:

anyone know of any American banks doing business in Thailand, mainly for holding funds/transfers, UOB seems like my only other option if not for a Thai bank 

 

 

Both Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase have branches in Thailand, but they do not offer retail banking services.

[CANSIAM]

I joined Citibank BKK 4 years ago, 1 million baht deposit to also have a USD account opened. Got their Visa credit card after a 6 month wait. At the time, had to show salary slips. Possibly by November it will be UOB transfering customers straight across my RM tells me. At the first news of Citibank leaving Thailand and no one had any information on who's taking over or if foreign currency accounts were available, I opened with Citibank Singapore and got some money out of here........ 

[Liverpool Lou]

On 7/5/2022 at 8:30 AM, donmuang37 said:

If all Thais had checking accounts, can you imagine the number of bad checks that would be written each day??

No, not really, since issuing bad cheques in Thailand is a criminal offence and can result in a jail sentences.

 

"If all Thais had checking accounts..."

Shameful to suggest that all Thais are fraudsters.

[Liverpool Lou]

On 7/5/2022 at 11:13 AM, dj230 said:

That is unfortunate...I was hoping to open a bank account here but I don't really trust thai banks to hold any large amount of funds, was hoping to open one at an American bank. 

Hard cheese.   Citibank Thailand is a Thai bank!

[Liverpool Lou]

11 hours ago, dj230 said:

20 hours ago, elektrified said:

Citibank Thailand is not an "American bank". It is a Thai banking company.

What? It’s an American company lol 

No, it is not, Citibank Thailand (the only Citibank in Thailand) is a Thai bank.

[Liverpool Lou]

9 hours ago, dj230 said:

anyone know of any American banks doing business in Thailand, mainly for holding funds/transfers, UOB seems like my only other option if not for a Thai bank 

 

 

There are none.   Why is UOBT any more trustworthy in your eyes than all the other Thai banks?

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

20 hours ago, elektrified said:

Citibank Thailand is not an "American bank". It is a Thai banking company.

Citibank Thailand is an American bank.

Citibank Thailand is a Thai bank.  All retail banks with a Thai operating licence are Thai banks.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

10 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Citibank Thailand is a Thai bank.  All retail banks with a Thai operating licence are Thai banks.

Citibank operates as a branch of the US bank and is not a locally-incorporated entity. It is subject to the Thai banking regulations regarding foreign bank branches and is licensed as a branch of a foreign bank. This is why it only has one retail banking outlet in the entire country.

 

Here is a partial screenshot from the Bank of Thailand's website. There is a separate drop-down menu item that lists Thai banks.

 

 

[jaywalker2]

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

No, not really, since issuing bad cheques in Thailand is a criminal offence and can result in a jail sentences.

 

"If all Thais had checking accounts..."

Shameful to suggest that all Thais are fraudsters.

 

28 minutes ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

Citibank operates as a branch of the US bank and is not a locally-incorporated entity. It is subject to the Thai banking regulations regarding foreign bank branches and is licensed as a branch of a foreign bank. This is why it only has one retail banking outlet in the entire country.

 

Here is a partial screenshot from the Bank of Thailand's website. There is a separate drop-down menu item that lists Thai banks.

 

 

It's not really a branch, though. Citibank Thailand was independent from Citibank US and so if you had any problems with the your US Citibank account, ATM cards, etc. they couldn't help you. So they were affiliated but separate.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

4 minutes ago, jaywalker2 said:

 

It's not really a branch, though. Citibank Thailand was independent from Citibank US and so if you had any problems with the your US Citibank account, ATM cards, etc. they couldn't help you. So they were affiliated but separate.

Under both US and Thai banking regulations, Citibank's Thai operation is a branch of the US bank.

 

I don't know enough about banking regulations or Citibank's internal protocols to comment on why Citibank's Thai operation can't help with US-based account issues.

[scorecard]

On 7/5/2022 at 9:12 AM, new2here said:

here in thailand, individuals purely in the retail space, rarely have a “checking” account - that is the ability to write paper drafts against their account. They do exist, but for the traditional retail consumer, they are very uncommon and not usually something that’s actively promoted or discussed.

 

Many banks will also have higher account opening standards- such as B10,000 minimums, the mandate you have a work permit or similar “long stay” type of immigration status etc .. it’s up to each bank to set these minimums.

 

I was offered one as a part of my banks “suite” of services… but i declined despite being eligible, only because my personal experience was that few of the places that I do regularly to businesses with would accept a paper bank draft as payment or if they did accept it, it would incur processing delays/fees.  Simply i didn’t see it to my advantage to have one… but that’s me and how and who i do business with.

 

As noted, Citi’s Thailand retail division is being sold, so i wouldn’t be surprised to see  some changes in what Citi offers from now until the actual date of sale effect and, if you do have one or get on with Citi, I also wouldn’t be surprised to see the new owner of their retail arm changes the product offering or eligibility either.

"...but i declined despite being eligible, only because my personal experience was that few of the places that I do regularly to businesses with would accept a paper bank draft as payment or if they did accept it, it would incur processing delays/fees..."

 

Further, many people in Thailand (Thais and foreigners) now have internet banking on their PC or notebook and on their smartphone, and the number of such users is growing every day.

 

Eletronic transfer of payments is so simple, the funds are in the receivers account instantly and all concerned can see/check the details in real time. 

 

No brainer...

 

[scorecard]

9 hours ago, Caldera said:

From the very first time I visited Thailand, you could make instant money transfers from an ATM. That only got better as time progressed, with internet banking and apps. All this with basic savings accounts. 

 

Who would want to write or accept a check in such an environment? There might be some B2B use cases, but an individual really doesn't need a checking account.

Even for B2B electronic transfer of payments is very attractive. 

[scorecard]

2 hours ago, dj230 said:

Interesting, I wasn't really looking to accept or write cheques, but in Canada a checking account was a typical bank account for frequent transfers, i.e debit card, payments, etc. 

With a savings account in Canada theres usually high fees associated transfers/payments. 

Do you mean now or historically?

[elektrified]

13 hours ago, dj230 said:

I wouldn't transfer that much but if I did I'd probably choose a company like Credit Suisse or an American bank. 

Are you American? If so, you can not open an account at Credit Suisse. They closed all accounts held by American citizens about 6 years ago. I banked with them for more than 20 years.

[elektrified]

5 hours ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

Citibank operates as a branch of the US bank and is not a locally-incorporated entity. It is subject to the Thai banking regulations regarding foreign bank branches and is licensed as a branch of a foreign bank. This is why it only has one retail banking outlet in the entire country.

 

Here is a partial screenshot from the Bank of Thailand's website. There is a separate drop-down menu item that lists Thai banks.

 

 

That is not what Citibank USA told me. Same when I lived in the Czech Republic and tried to get assistance at a branch there. I was told there was no affiliation whatsoever with Citi Thailand and Citi C.R.

 

We had a Citibank branch here in Chiang Mai. It closed about a year ago or maybe 18 months. They are very popular with Thais as they give lots of credit cards.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

8 hours ago, elektrified said:

That is not what Citibank USA told me. Same when I lived in the Czech Republic and tried to get assistance at a branch there. I was told there was no affiliation whatsoever with Citi Thailand and Citi C.R.

 

We had a Citibank branch here in Chiang Mai. It closed about a year ago or maybe 18 months. They are very popular with Thais as they give lots of credit cards.

From a legal and regulatory standpoint, Citibank's operation in Thailand is a branch of the US bank. There may be regulatory or internal Citibank reasons why a branch in Thailand or in another country is unable to assist with issues relating to accounts in the US or other countries. 

 

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

17 hours ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

17 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Citibank Thailand is a Thai bank.  All retail banks with a Thai operating licence are Thai banks ... it only has one retail banking outlet in the entire country.

Citibank operates as a branch of the US bank and is not a locally-incorporated entity.

Citibank Thailand is a Thai-registered company, Thai-licenced by the Bank of Thailand, it is not "a branch" of Citibank NA.  It is a member of Citigroup.

 

Citibank has three retail branches in Bangkok, Interchange, Silom and The Crystal  

https://www.citibank.co.th/en/static/AboutUs.htm

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

4 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Citibank Thailand is a Thai-registered company, Thai-licenced by the Bank of Thailand, it is not "a branch" of Citibank NA.  It is a member of Citigroup.

 

Citibank has three retail branches in Bangkok, Interchange, Silom and The Crystal  https://www.citibank.co.th/en/static/AboutUs.htm

According to the Bank of Thailand's website, Citibank's local banking operation is listed as a branch of a foreign bank. It would therefore be licensed as such by the BoT.  Correspondence I receive regarding my account at Citibank's Thai branch is signed "Citibank N.A.". and not "Citibank Thailand" or similar.

 

My apologies for not keeping up with Citibank's branch openings. I was advised in the past that foreign bank branches were limited in their ability to open branches. Either that has been liberalized or the restriction wasn't as narrow as I thought it was.

 

The BoT's website can be found here: 

 

https://www.bot.or.th/English/FinancialInstitutions/WebsiteFI/pages/instlist.aspx#&&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

[dj230]

Lots of people were wondering why I wanted to only keep my funds in an American Bank.

https://www.forexlive.com/news/china-bank-run-chinese-security-arrest-those-who-lost-their-deposits-20220711/