Thai Banks To Start Charging For Atm Withdrawals ...

[jfchandler]

Siam...I know the Golden One CU as a former CA state employee...

I think for regular accounts, they do charge for both incoming and outgoing wire transfers...and even for outgoing ACH transfers from your own Golden One account.

But...I know they have a checking account for folks 50 and above called Golden Prestige checking that talks about free wire transfers.... Is that what you're using to do free international wires with them???

And when you do wires with them when living in CA, do you have to make a branch visit??? Or can you request by phone??? I know Golden One doesn't have any capacity to order wire transfers from their online banking....

[namoo]

What about HSBC and Citibank ATM's in Bangkok. I take it they are not charging?

[SurfRider]

Can anyone confirm if a Visa Debit card is still working and fee-free in a GSB ATM? -- The last one I tried a couple of weeks ago was out of cash.

The following appeared today in a Pattaya ATM thread:

"The GSB no longer accepts cash withdrawals with VISA credit/debit cards. When you attempt the transaction it always fails."

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Fee-Free-Atm...93#entry2965893

.

[jfchandler]

I don't think that's correct... I did a cash withdrawal from a GSB ATM in BKK on Monday...same as always.... no fee and accepted Visa debit card just fine.

As we've heard reported before, however, it seems GSB does have problems from time to time in maintaining their ATM network and/or keeping their machines stocked with cash... particular in and about Pattaya, it has seemed.

[vagabond48]

I don't think that's correct... I did a cash withdrawal from a GSB ATM in BKK on Monday...same as always.... no fee and accepted Visa debit card just fine.

As we've heard reported before, however, it seems GSB does have problems from time to time in maintaining their ATM network and/or keeping their machines stocked with cash... particular in and about Pattaya, it has seemed.

I just withdrew money from GSB this afternoon 3PM. I got my shade over 34 baht/$1US, so no fee still.

Maybe there are a lot more people in Pattaya who are looking to save the insignificant sum of 150baht.

[SurfRider]

I just received a report from a friend in Pattaya:

He did a 20,000 Baht withdrawal from a GSB ATM at Tukcom ( August 25 ) using an E-Trade Visa debit card. No fee. Exchange rate: 34.00 THB / US$

So, it appears that GSB is still status-quo.

.

[SIAMBULL]

Branch visit everytime. Costs about $10 in gas for us to drive there (we live in the sticks) and of course we end up eating out on 'bank wire days', so the $30 we save from the Citibank utterly convenient online international wires gets spent nonetheless but we do get a meal out of the deal.

Not sure about the account. I am over 50 so maybe that's why international wires are free. I'll check and get back to ya.

Since my sister in law ripped us off, I send a lot less money every month. Happy about this in an odd mai pen rai sorta way.

BULL

[jfchandler]

Gotta be careful you don't become the local branch of Falang Bank... All withdrawals... No deposits....

[barhopper]

Can anyone post any info on whether their are any 'Fee Free' ATM's at the Suvarnabhumi Airport? and if so can anyone post on here their exact whereabouts/locations.

Regards Barhopper

Edited August 26, 2009 by barhopper

[jfchandler]

Good question re the airport...

Right now for fee-free...we're down to mostly either Government Savings Bank or AEON ATMs.... And I'm not sure about their presence at Suvarnabhumi...

Some TV members continue report fee-free Visa card transactions at Bank of Ayudhya....and I'm sure they have an ATM somewhere at the airport. But others, including myself in BKK, get the 150 baht fee notice any time we try an Ayudhya ATM... And I'm at a loss to explain what's going on with them... All I can say is... YMMV....

[barhopper]

Thanks jf chandler.Maybe there is a link to the airport Banks/money changers,i'll google it and post my findings if their are any.

[vagabond48]

I did call Schwab yesterday to get my 150b reimbursement but the rep said I had to wait until the end of the month just in case it posted by then. She said Visa sometimes posts the fees late. I think she wrong since I have never seen a fee posted on any of my cards, but I am willing to wait. Out of curiosity, I will call again to see if that is the official policy or was she just assuming or guessing the the rule (my experience from enough of low paid CRs).

As I said, I called Schwab again and the cust rep confirmed what I already knew, that their system, as well as Fidelity, does not receive a separate line for ATM fees from Visa, so a call is necessary to get the fee refunded. The cust rep was very helpful and without any hesitation, taking my word, quickly credited back to my account $159.49, . Just kidding, I gave them the amount of $4.41US to be refunded. I wonder how they would handle a customer's request to be refunded 150baht and have them figure out the rate for US currency.

As I suspected, the rep I spoke to in the previous call I made was incorrect about having to wait until the end of the month before requesting any fee refunds.

Hopefully both GSB and Aeon will continue to be fee free, so I will not have to call too often.

Edit: I just checked my account online and the $4.41 has already been credited.

Edited August 26, 2009 by vagabond48

[jfchandler]

One thought about that Vagabond....

Even if the Schwab and Fidelity staff cannot see the Thai ATM fee as a separate line item, they can see the location of the withdrawal... being Thailand. So they'd certainly know it's a foreign country ATM withdrawal...

I suppose, if anybody was ever giving us a hard time about that, it'd be possible to bank email them a link to the TBA announcement, or one of the individual Thai bank announcements, about implementing the 150 baht fee...

But I'm in the same camp with you: I continue to try to use GSB or AEON ATMs whenever possible, and try not to overuse the fee refund feature....especially at the ridiculous Thai rate of $4.41 per withdrawal.

[vagabond48]

One thought about that Vagabond....

Even if the Schwab and Fidelity staff cannot see the Thai ATM fee as a separate line item, they can see the location of the withdrawal... being Thailand. So they'd certainly know it's a foreign country ATM withdrawal...

I suppose, if anybody was ever giving us a hard time about that, it'd be possible to bank email them a link to the TBA announcement, or one of the individual Thai bank announcements, about implementing the 150 baht fee...

But I'm in the same camp with you: I continue to try to use GSB or AEON ATMs whenever possible, and try not to overuse the fee refund feature....especially at the ridiculous Thai rate of $4.41 per withdrawal.

This may be only semantics but she wasn't saying that she or staff cannot see the ATM fee but that their system does not get a separate Visa transaction separating ATM fee. The few times I asked for a refund from Schwab, the cust rep freely refunded my money except for the previous rep who incorrectly said I had to wait until the end of the month. As I mentioned over a year again, one rep even voluntarily gave me an advance credit of $5 even though I told him my Schwab account was for emergency. Of course the ATM fee, for SCB was only 20 baht. That's trying to earn my service.

Fidelity on the other hand, at that time my main card for ATM withdrawal, can be hit and miss and some reps gave me a hard time. I embarrassed the last rep (telling him about Schwab's voluntary generosity) to give me an advance credit of $10 which he said he wasn't sure he could, but a day later, I found a $10 credit in my account which I haven't used yet.

Edited August 27, 2009 by vagabond48

[jfchandler]

Hahahaha... Good approach with Fidelity.... Shame them into it...

[jfchandler]

Since folks have been asking, here is a list of the Bangkok area ATM locations operated by AEON... You might consider printing out this list to save for future reference... It comes straight from the AEON web site...

1 Carrefour Rangsit 2 nd Floor Carrefour Rangsit - - -

2 Carrefour Sukhupiban 3 1st Fl., next to main entrance - - -

3 Carrefour Bangyai 2 nd Floor Carrefour Bangyai - - -

4 Carrefour Bangkae 1 st Floor Carrefour Bangkae - - -

5 Carrefour Suwinthawong 2 nd Floor Carrefour Suwintawong - - -

6 Carrefour Cheangwattana 2nd Floor Carrefour Chaengwattana - - -

7 Carrefour Bangbon 2 nd Floor Carrefour Bangbon - - -

8 Fashion Island 3 2nd Floor Aeon Spot - Fashion Island - - -

9 Future Park Rangsit 1 2st Floor Future Park Rangsit Branch - - -

10 Carrefour Bangprakok 3rd Floor Carrefour Bangpakok - - -

11 Tops Ratchavitee 1st Fl Tops Ratchavithi - - -

12 Tops Sukhapibal 3 1st Floor Tops Sukhapibal 3 - - -

13 The Old Siam Plaza 1st Floor The Old Siam Plaza - - -

14 Carrefour On-Nuch 1st Floor Carrefour On-Nuch - - -

15 Central Ramindra 1st Floor Central Ramintra - - -

16 Carrefour Samrong 2nd Floor Carrefour Samrong - - -

17 Wonder Department Store 1st Floor Wonder Department Store - - -

18 Saha Farm 1st Floor Saha Farm - - -

19 Bangplee Industrial Estate Jun Mini Mart - - -

20 Siam Center 2 nd Siam Center - - -

21 Navanakhorn 1 st Lotus Navanakhorn - - -

22 Jusco Rangsit Klong 2 1 st Front Jusco Rangsit Klong 2 - - -

23 J Avernue 1 st Javernue Navanakhon - - -

24 SC Plaza 1 st SC Plaza - - -

25 999 Kaingkai Market Front 999 Kaingkai Market - - -

26 Lotus Rungsit Klong 7 1 st Zone food cout - - -

27 Max Valu Rama 3 ( Jusco Klong 2 ) 1 St Zone Sto - - -

28 The Mall Thapra 3 Aeon Spot The Mall Thapra - - -

29 Mabunklong Center 2nd Floor Mabunkron Center - - -

30 Carrefour Rattanathibeth 2nd Floor Carrefour Rattanathibet - - -

31 Hua-Lamphong 1st Floor Hua-Lamphong - - -

32 Jusco Bangbon 1 st Floor Jusco Bang Bon - - -

33 Big C Wongsawang 2nd Floor Big C Wongsawang - - -

34 THS Banglampoo 1st Floor Tang Hua Seng Banglumpoo - - -

35 Airport Donmuang 1 St Zone ATM - - -

36 Big C Ratburana 2nd Floor Big C Ratburana - - -

37 Big C Rama 2 1st Floor Big C Rama2 - - -

38 Big C Rattanathibeth 1st Floor Big C Rattanathibet - - -

39 Jusco Ratchada 3rd Floor Aeon Spot Jusco Ratchadapisek - - -

40 Tops Pracha-u -thit 1 st Tops Prachauthit - - -

41 Imperial Samrong BF1 Floor Imperial Samrong - - -

42 Carrefour Petkasem 2nd Floor Carrefour Petkasem - - -

43 Future AV 2nd Fl Zear Future AV shop - - -

44 Central Pinklao(2) 1 st Central Pinklao - - -

45 Central Rattana 2 nd AS Central Rattanathibet - - -

46 Central Rama 3 (2) 1 st Central Rama3 - - -

47 Evernew Plaza 1 st Evernew plaza - - -

48 Lotus Minburi 2nd Floor, Lotus Minburi - - -

49 Lotus Rama 3 2nd Floor Lotus Rama 3 - - -

50 Lotus Srinakarin 2nd Floor Lotus Srinakarin - - -

51 Lotus Prachachuen 2nd Floor Lotus Prachachuen - - -

52 Lotus Sukhapibal 1 1st Floor Lotus Sukhapibal 1 - - -

53 Lotus changwattana 1st Floor Lotus changwattana - - -

54 Lotus Rama 2 2nd Floor Lotus Rama 2 - - -

55 Lotus Fortune 1 st Floor Lotus Fortune - - -

56 Big C Donmuang BF Floor Big C Donmuang - - -

57 Big C Bangna BF 1 Floor Big C Bangna - - -

58 Big C Ladprao 1st Floor Big C Ladprao - - -

59 Big C Suksawad 2nd Floor Big C Suksawad - - -

60 Big C Ratchadamri 1st Floor Big C Ratchadamri - - -

61 Big C Daokaonong 1st Floor Big C Daokanong - - -

62 Big C Tiwanon 2nd Floor Big C Tiwanon - - -

63 Big C Chaengwattana 1st Floor Big C Cheangwattana - - -

64 Big C Bangplee 1st Floor Big C Bangplee - - -

65 Big C Rangsit 1st Floor Big C Rangsit - - -

66 Big C Sapankwai 2 nd Fl Big C SapanKwai - - -

67 Big C Aomyai 2 nd Big C Aomyai - - -

68 Lotus Wanghin 2 nd Lotus wanghin - - -

69 Lotus Bangprakok 1st Floor Opposite KFC - - -

70 Lotus Ladprao 1st Floor Lotus Ladprao - - -

71 Lotus Bangyai 1 st Floor Lotus Bangyai - - -

72 Bus Station Rachatevee Bus Station Front Rajwithee hospital - - -

73 Ngampee Front of 7 Eleven Soi Ngamdooplee - - -

74 Carrefour Ramindra 1st Floor Carrefour Ramindra - - -

75 Carrefour Ladprao 1 st Floor Carrefour Ladprao - - -

76 Future Park Bangkae BF1 Floor Future Park Bangkae - - -

77 The Ford (Sriyan) 1st Floor, Next to the Customer Service Counter - - -

78 H/O CCD 1st Floor Serm-mit Tower AEON H/O - - -

79 Mochit 1st Floor Mochit 2 - - -

80 Central Chidlom BF1 Floor Central Chidlom - - -

81 Robinson Ratchadapisek 1st Floor Robinson Ratchada - - -

82 Jusco Sukhumvit 71 1st Floor Jusco Sukhumvit 71 - - -

83 Jusco Srinakarin 1 st Floor Jusco Srinakarin - - -

84 Central Bangna 1 st Floor Central Bangna - - -

85 Jusco Sukhapibal 1 1 st Floor Jusco Sukhapiban 1 - - -

86 Central Pinklao 1 st Floor Central Pinklao - - -

87 Central Silom 1 st Floor Central Silom - - -

88 Central Ladprow BF1 Floor Central Ladprao - - -

89 Jusco Pracha-U-Thit 1 st Floor Jusco Pracha-uthit - - -

90 Aeon Spot Big C Ramkhamhaeng (CCD) BF Floor Aeon-Spot Big C Ramkhamheng - - -

91 The Mall Bangkapi 2 nd Floor Themall Bangkapi - - -

92 The Mall Ngamwongwan 1 st Floor The mall Ngamwongwan - - -

93 The Mall Bangkae 1 st Floor The Mall Bangkae - - -

94 Central Rama 3 1 st Floor Central Rama 3 - - -

95 The Mall Ramkhamhaeng 1 st Floor The Mall Ramkhamheng - - -

96 Major Cheangwattana 1 st Floor Major Chaengwatana

[jfchandler]

I don't have a good list of Government Savings Bank ATM-only locations... But here is a list from the Thai English-version Yellow Pages phone book showing GSB Branch locations around BKK... A bit hard to read, but you can make out the area and street references... My suggestion is to download and save the file to your computer, then open it in your photo viewing software and enlarge the viewing size to what works best for you...

[altmtl]

I was taken by surprise by UOB's change the other day!

Here are a couple of useful links that may have been posted earlier:

AEON ATM locations

GSB Branches

Unfortunately the GSB link is only available in Thai, so, if you don't read Thai yourself you will need some help from your long-haired dictionary.

I saw that GSB has a 20,000 withdraw limit & AEON 7,000! Is this correct?

Also, any update's about these ATM's at the airport?

Thanks

[jfchandler]

Now that GSB is a bit more in our spotlight...I found this 2009 summary of their network and locations.... They've got a lot of branches and even more ATMs....if you can find them...

Today, GSB offers a wide variety of financial products to customers. It now has 599 branches nationwide, 164 service outlets, 32 mobile units, 1,169 ATMs and 3 foreign exchange booths. The Bank is further improving and developing its services and operations as it adapts to the current business climate to provide fully-fledged services and access to finance for all segments of customers.

[jfchandler]

The list I posted above shows two different AEON ATMs around Don Muang (the old airport).... but I didn't find any mention of Suvarnabhumi.... Still looking re GSB.

Unfortunately, as best as I can tell, the GSB web site in Thai allows you to search for their branch office locations, but it doesn't appear to allow you to search in Thai for their ATM-only locations. If anyone knows better about that, please correct me.

I saw that GSB has a 20,000 withdraw limit & AEON 7,000! Is this correct?

Also, any update's about these ATM's at the airport?

Thanks

Edited August 28, 2009 by jfchandler

[Steve2UK]

I saw that GSB has a 20,000 withdraw limit & AEON 7,000! Is this correct?

Also, any update's about these ATM's at the airport?

Thanks

Don't take that AEON 7,000 figure as an absolute limit. From my experience with a couple of Aeon machines (in Chiang Mai), the "Quick Cash" (or similar wording) screen's highest figure offered is 7,000. When you continue to further screens, you get the option to enter other amounts. What I have found is that I often (but not always) got declined when I tried, say, 10/12/14,000 (which should be comfortably inside the baht equivalent of my UK bank's GBP 300 per day per card limit). Re-trying on those occasions with the same card but selecting the 7,000 option has always worked. That experience suggests to me that there was maybe some glitch in the authorisation process for the higher selected amounts - i.e. it doesn't indicate a "fixed" or absolute limit of 7,000 for AEON machines.

[SurfRider]

"I saw that GSB has a 20,000 withdraw limit & AEON 7,000! Is this correct?"

According to earlier posts in this thread, GSB has been tested up to 25,000.

I've taken as much as 25,000 in one transaction from AEON, but you need to drill down through several menus to the screen where you can enter a specific amount.

Of course, there's always the issue of your card's transaction limit and your card's daily limit, as well as how much cash the ATM has on hand. Any of those could limit the amount that you can withdraw.

.

[donx]

Just so folks know, here's what Schwab Bank says about their ATM fee reimbursements...

Unlimited ATM fee rebates apply to cash withdrawals using the Schwab Bank Visa® Platinum Check Card wherever it is accepted. ATM fee rebates do not include currency exchange fees; fees imposed by merchants for POS transactions; or fees for stamp purchases, balance inquiries, or any transactions other than for an ATM cash withdrawal from your Schwab Bank account. Schwab Bank makes its best effort to identify those ATM fees eligible for rebate, based on information it receives from Visa and ATM operators. In the event that you have not received a rebate for a fee that you believe is eligible, please call a Schwab Bank Customer Service Representative for assistance at 1-888-403-9000. Schwab Bank reserves the right to modify or discontinue the ATM fee rebate at any time.

I certainly don't believe the Thai banks' 150 baht ATM fee would be considered a "currency exchange fee" under the Schwab policy. So presumably Schwab's ATM reimbursements policy would cover Thai banks' 150 baht ATM fees.

If anyone else has direct personal experience with how Schwab handles the 150 baht fee, please do chime in...

I just checked my Schwab Money Market account and happily found that $4.41 were refunded to me today and listed as an ATM Fee Rebate! This is fantastic! I didn't have to do anything. It all happened automatically. I presume this is done at the end of every month. There may be a maximum rebate, but certainly a fee from one withdrawal will be reimbursed.

I keep a minimum amount of money in the account and my in-laws can withdrawal from any bank and I won't have to pay the 150 baht fee. The only thing I don't like about the account is that money transfers can only be performed via telephone call or via sending a check in a postage prepaid envelope. Not much of a disadvantage considering all the advantages.

[vagabond48]

I just checked my Schwab Money Market account and happily found that $4.41 were refunded to me today and listed as an ATM Fee Rebate! This is fantastic! I didn't have to do anything. It all happened automatically. I presume this is done at the end of every month. There may be a maximum rebate, but certainly a fee from one withdrawal will be reimbursed.

I keep a minimum amount of money in the account and my in-laws can withdrawal from any bank and I won't have to pay the 150 baht fee. The only thing I don't like about the account is that money transfers can only be performed via telephone call or via sending a check in a postage prepaid envelope. Not much of a disadvantage considering all the advantages.

Wow. They fixed the problem. That's great. Thanks for the heads up.

May I suggest that you advise your in-laws to try to use currently fee free GSB or Aeon machines, if the machines aren't too far from them. We don't want to abuse this gift horse too much. I can see them taking out only 500 or 1000 baht (I do) if the 150baht fee doesn't come out of their pocket.

I ,too, am a little disappointed with their online system limited transfer capability on their banking side. Even an internal transfer on money between the HY checking and HY savings requires a call. My solution was to setup an ACH link from my external bank account to Schwab.

[jfchandler]

Don... thanks for your update re Schwab... Glad to hear it's worked out as a solution for your in-laws....

Don and Vagabond...I think there is a solution around your money transfer issue about Schwab... Yes... I'm familiar with this limitation....

I believe one solution is... if you have a companion Schwab brokerage account, you can use that to do online ACH transfers in or out to linked external accounts... And then use Schwab's internal system to move funds, in real time, back and forth between your Schwab brokerage and bank accounts...

Why have a Schwab brokerage account? Schwab is offering a great VISA credit card deal... 2% back on all purchases without limit, refunded monthly, and no foreign currency fees. As part of applying for that card, they will automatically open a brokerage account for you, and waive all monthly fees/minimums associated with having it. So then, when you use the credit card, they put your rebates into the brokerage account. Once there. you can use it or move it anywhere you want, including to your Schwab checking or savings accounts.

So, with this package, you get no foreign currency fees, rebates on all ATM fees, a 2% rebate credit card, and more. Can't beat it....

[lomatopo]

I don't have a good list of Government Savings Bank ATM-only locations... But here is a list from the Thai English-version Yellow Pages phone book showing GSB Branch locations around BKK... A bit hard to read, but you can make out the area and street references... My suggestion is to download and save the file to your computer, then open it in your photo viewing software and enlarge the viewing size to what works best for you...

Thanks for posting this but no matter what I do it is still too blurry to read.

Other than the GSB ATM at the Asoke BTS station are there any other GSB ATM's/branches convenient to the BTS/MRT (Silom, Siam, Chit Lom, etc.)? Thanks.

[donx]

I just checked my Schwab Money Market account and happily found that $4.41 were refunded to me today and listed as an ATM Fee Rebate! This is fantastic! I didn't have to do anything. It all happened automatically. I presume this is done at the end of every month. There may be a maximum rebate, but certainly a fee from one withdrawal will be reimbursed.

I keep a minimum amount of money in the account and my in-laws can withdrawal from any bank and I won't have to pay the 150 baht fee. The only thing I don't like about the account is that money transfers can only be performed via telephone call or via sending a check in a postage prepaid envelope. Not much of a disadvantage considering all the advantages.

Wow. They fixed the problem. That's great. Thanks for the heads up.

May I suggest that you advise your in-laws to try to use currently fee free GSB or Aeon machines, if the machines aren't too far from them. We don't want to abuse this gift horse too much. I can see them taking out only 500 or 1000 baht (I do) if the 150baht fee doesn't come out of their pocket.

I ,too, am a little disappointed with their online system limited transfer capability on their banking side. Even an internal transfer on money between the HY checking and HY savings requires a call. My solution was to setup an ACH link from my external bank account to Schwab.

Yes they normally use GSB, but at least I now know that if they can't use it that I should be able to get the ATM fee refunded. I did notice that what I have is the Schwab Money Market account. According to the website, they will only refund up to $9/month. At the current exchange rates, that equates to 2 non GSB/AEON withdrawals. The Swab Savings Account has unlimited ATM fee refunds per month.

[donx]

Don... thanks for your update re Schwab... Glad to hear it's worked out as a solution for your in-laws....

Don and Vagabond...I think there is a solution around your money transfer issue about Schwab... Yes... I'm familiar with this limitation....

I believe one solution is... if you have a companion Schwab brokerage account, you can use that to do online ACH transfers in or out to linked external accounts... And then use Schwab's internal system to move funds, in real time, back and forth between your Schwab brokerage and bank accounts...

Why have a Schwab brokerage account? Schwab is offering a great VISA credit card deal... 2% back on all purchases without limit, refunded monthly, and no foreign currency fees. As part of applying for that card, they will automatically open a brokerage account for you, and waive all monthly fees/minimums associated with having it. So then, when you use the credit card, they put your rebates into the brokerage account. Once there. you can use it or move it anywhere you want, including to your Schwab checking or savings accounts.

So, with this package, you get no foreign currency fees, rebates on all ATM fees, a 2% rebate credit card, and more. Can't beat it....

I have already created both a Schwab brokerage account and a corresponding Schwab Investors Checking account with the intension of using the checking account as an alternative withdrawal method as well as a conduit to the Schwab Money Market account. I have been discouraged with how long a transfer takes from my normal bank account into a Capital One account. It takes at lease a week. I was glad to see that money is available for withdrawal much faster from the Schwab account. Unfortunately the set up process is not complete because I accidentally provided the wrong social security number (the last digit was typed in wrong). Hopefully once I have it set up, I should be able to move money from my bank into either the brokerage or checking account. Hopefully from there the money market account is also accessible.

I'll have to look into the visa card associated with the brokerage account when I get a chance.

[vagabond48]

Don and Vagabond...I think there is a solution around your money transfer issue about Schwab... Yes... I'm familiar with this limitation....

I believe one solution is... if you have a companion Schwab brokerage account, you can use that to do online ACH transfers in or out to linked external accounts... And then use Schwab's internal system to move funds, in real time, back and forth between your Schwab brokerage and bank accounts...

jfc, I have their brokerage account and I investigated that option and found it also limited to HY checking and unavailable for the HY savings so you still have to make the call to transfer from checking to savings. Their internal transfers must be done before end of business day or you have to wait until next bus day so, if you are in a hurry and your timing is off you lose another day. Of course all this may be mute, since their HY savings dropped from 1.75% to 1.05% which is now pretty close to their HY checking (.75%).

At this time, it is a lot easier and faster to ACH my funds from my bank directly into my HY savings account. I am not sure if Schwab also allows future scheduling of funds.

[jfchandler]

Here is the link to the Schwab web site page with info about their 2% back VISA signature credit card.... no foreign use or annual fees... rebates refunded monthly to your Schwab brokerage account. You can apply for the credit card if you already have a Schwab brokerage account, and they'll link the two. Or, if you apply for the credit card first, they'll automatically create a no-fee brokerage account for you as part of the process. All of this, for the most part, you can initiate online....

The only downside to this credit card, I believe, is it has an interest rate of around 13% for unpaid balances. So I don't carry balances with it, but I do love getting 2% cash back every time I use it for airline ticket purchases and such...and no foreign use surcharge...