Thai Banks To Start Charging For Atm Withdrawals ...

[Chaimai]

Also... PS.... my 35.06 baht rate ATM withdrawal from a BKK Bank ATM in BKK was made about 7 am this morning (Saturday). I too was interested to see the claim made above that Kasikorn was paying a 35.27 rate supposedly also on Saturday... I may give K a try later today, since I ought to withdraw some more funds before the fee policy starts kicking in...

jfc - I am not sure it is K Bank giving the rate, I believe it is the transaction agent for your card provider. The K Bank ATM is just the vehicle for the transaction.

[jfchandler]

I always thought the individual Thai banks that have ATMs set their own exchange rates for foreign currency transactions, but don't know that for certain.

Maybe we should ask Languan Man, what kind of card/US network he was using to make that withdrawal at Kasikorn...

I know when I passed an SCB exchange booth yesterday, their rate for U.S. dollars was about 35.10. So I wasn't surprised when I got 35.06 first thing Sat morning from a BKK Bank ATM using a U.S. MasterCard-based bank check/debit card operating on the Cirrus network.

[Chaimai]

I always thought the individual Thai banks that have ATMs set their own exchange rates for foreign currency transactions, but don't know that for certain.

Maybe we should ask Languan Man, what kind of card/US network he was using to make that withdrawal at Kasikorn...

I know when I passed an SCB exchange booth yesterday, their rate for U.S. dollars was about 35.10. So I wasn't surprised when I got 35.06 first thing Sat morning from a BKK Bank ATM using a U.S. MasterCard-based bank check/debit card operating on the Cirrus network.

They will set the rates for 'over the counter' transactions and this is what you see published in their branches. These are not the rates that apply to ATM withdrawals.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/25/travel/2...agewanted=print

[gmac]

Got bored reading through everyone's opinions about how they THINK it will work. Has anyone made a withdrawal since yesterday when the new charge was supposed to be introduced. Some information on what ACTUALLY happens would be nice.

[jfchandler]

GMAC, I guess you're just too bored to have read a couple of posts above today where I said I HAD made an ATM withdrawal from a BKK Bank ATM this morning (Sat.) and didn't get charged any fee, even though the bank's web site said the fee was to take effect Friday (the 17th). I wouldn't bet on that lasting much longer, though...

Hope you're not getting too bored reading this thread...

[Mali1964]

This topic has run on now for quite some time. Complaining and discussing it to death.

This thread needs to continue to run until it is clear which banks are charging this outrageous 150 Baht fee and which one's are not

We all cannot go to every bank and swipe our card to obtain this information, that is why we post on TV

It is also important to know HOW the charge is being implemented since if you do get reimbursed for the charge from a US Bank you will have to be able to SHOW the charge

And got a normal 35.06 baht rate for my withdrawal

Another poster mentioned that he received 35.06 per USD at Bangkok Bank, I received 35.27 at Kasikorn Bank today, so now I know to stay away from Bangkok Bank for my ATM withdrawals

When you figure that most ATM's limit you to 20,000 THB PER TRANSACTION, and if you need to get your (US Bank) daily limit you MAY have to do two transactions and that can add up

This is an handy website for those who haven't seen it before found thanks to reading boring threads

USD this morning all the banks bar 1 were at 35.3+

Very handy to check before you go to the ATM's

http://bankexchangerates.daytodaydata.net/default.aspx

[JimGant]

I always thought the individual Thai banks that have ATMs set their own exchange rates for foreign currency transactions, but don't know that for certain.

No, the exchange rates for network transactions are set by the networks (primary being Visa Plus and MasterCard Cirrus).

JF, you wrote back in August (see This Thread Post #13.)

The VISA site for Aug. 10 shows their U.S. $/Thai baht exchange rate as 33.70 baht to $1.

If VISA is typically taking a 1% fee....that would equate to a cut of about .34 basis points.

Thus the net cash received for ATM withdrawals (assuming no other bank fees are being added in) would be about 33.36.

And that's just what my various ATM withdrawals lately from BKK Bank have been netting, using any variety of VISA network ATM and debit cards....

And, it would appear, this is what you found this morning with your ATM transaction.

You'll never be able to discern exact fees, at least in aggregate, because you'll never know the exact exchange rate being used. Yes, it does approximate the daily published Interbank Exchange Rate (IER) -- but this is an average. For ATM transactions, it's the near real time exchange rate in effect at the time of your transaction, not the average. But if you're realizing about a 1% charge off the published IER, you're doing pretty good, considering so many banks are adding their own percentage mark-ups to the networks' 1% foreign transaction fee. And don't forget, somewhere amongst the aggregate fee you're being charged is something being paid to the owner of the ATM -- and I'm not talking about the new 150 baht charge.

Actually, This Thread has some pretty good points on this subject. And article #45 (by none other than JFChandler ) has the following, timely observation:

The bottom line result: while the 20 baht ATM fee charged by SCB showed up on my paper ATM receipt, the ATM fee did not list separately when the withdrawal surfaced in my SalemFive acount. The 20 baht fee was just included as part of the overall single dollar amount withdrawal.

So, I ended up emailing SalemFive and just got the following answer: If the foreign bank ATM fee is listed/sent along separately, then their fee reimbursement should happen automatically. However, in a case like SCB where the fee amount is not listed/sent along separately, the customer needs to make a request in writing to SalemFive along with a copy of the ATM receipt.

In this instance, based on my bank email to SalemFive, they went ahead and credited my account for the 20 baht (58 cents).

The whole thread linked above is worth a re-look, as it's very relative to this ongoing thread.

[jfchandler]

Thanks for the web site reference, Mali. I will note, though, in looking at it in detail, that a lot of the Thai bank rates listed there as the latest for today are in fact rates that the web site says those Thai banks last updated one or two days ago (16th or 17th)... So you have to be careful in looking at what to make, of what you see.

It did seem, however, from looking at those comparisons, that both for notes and TT transactions, SCB seems to be showing lower exchange rates than their competitors. (And that's apart from the issue of SCB lately adding in their own 20 baht ATM fee (prior to the new 150 baht fee), which further lessens their de facto exchange rate.

Separately, Jim, thanks for the words of encouragement, and bringing back my own words to remind/haunt me...

As I mentioned above, I did the BKKB ATM transaction this morning about 7 am... I took out 6,000 baht using a MC check/debit card (Cirrus Network). And the amount debited from my U.S. checking account was $171.12. That equates to a de facto exchange rate of 35.06 baht as I mentioned earlier.

BKK Bank at present is not charging an ATM fee. My U.S. bank for that card is not charging me any ATM use fees. So the only other factor involved should be MasterCard taking a 1% cut, meaning my 35.06 ATM rate today ought to be about 99% of the actual exchange rate.

That all makes sense to me, except I'm wondering how Langsuan Man got a 35.3 rate from Kasikorn.... Maybe he'll tell us what kind of card he used... There are straight bank ATM cards that aren't VISA or MasterCard logo'd... I have a couple like that that are PLUS and/or STAR network ATM only cards... Would those type NOT be taking their 1% cut...unlike VISA and MC???

[Mali1964]

Yes Jim i have noticed that in the past i think its either been holidays or the weekend as i have definitely seen it with up to the hour rates, best try it Monday i think songran even confuses computer's as well as our Brains

Also i managed to find a site that converts Mastercard exchange rates as Mastercard official site doesn't appear to do the same as the Visa site.

It quotes a better rate for both USD & GBP being 35.57 for USD today compared to Visa's 35.40 & 53.00 for GBP to Visa's 52.00 but i don't see this 53 baht anywhere else

Which if you remove 1% it gets close to that rate of 35.3

But i'm UK & still confused as i have never found an exact rate to match even my Nationwide fee free card which leaves me to believe that all banks have a dabble with the exchange rate before they post it to your account its just to difficult to prove an exact rate & they know that even a few points over a few thousand customers per day must add up to a tidy some for the banks.

The link to the site

http://www.freedom-card.co.uk/currency-converter.aspx

[Mali1964]

Does any UK members know of any Banks that will refund this 150 baht fee the same as some US banks do i will give Nationwide a call to see what their policy is on this.

[Langsuan Man]

Definitive test Done at Tukcom lobby Saturday 18 April between 13:09 and 13:19 1,000 THB except for Kasikorn

E*trade Bank ATM card with the VISA logo, DEBIT. (Part of the Plus and Interlink networks)

SCB Bank, warning before finishing transaction, was able to cancel before 150 THB charge

Thai Military Bank, warning before finishing transaction, was able to cancel before 150 THB charge

Siam City Bank, 150 THB fee, NO WARNING Exchange rate 30.74 (35.34)

NOTE: In Process Credit ATM Refund 4.24

Kasikorn Bank, no fee, Exchange rate 35.34

Bangkok Bank, no fee, Exchange rate 35.34

Bank of Ayudhaya, no fee, Exchange rate, 35.34

Government Savings Bank, no fee, Exchange rate 35.34

Exchange rate a posted in the window of Kasikorn Exchange booth next to Tukcom 35.10

Here is the detail from E*trade online bank page (in case anyone thinks I would fudge the figures )

In Process Credit ATM Refund 4.24

In Process ATM XSCIB PATTAYA BRANCH (O... -32.53

In Process ATM XGSB TUEKCOM PATTAYA FL... -28.29

In Process ATM BAY COM BUILDING PATTA... -28.29

In Process ATM X002299000018 BANGKOK B... -28.29

In Process ATM XTHAI FARMERS BA PATTAY... -56.58 (2,000 THB)

What interests me is the annotation from E*trade about the ATM refund which brings Siam City Bank exchange rate up to 35.34 like the rest. E*trade Bank has never before offered ATM refund on International transfers. Will have to check this out and see if it applies to all Thai Banks

The rate has obviously gone up slightly since I got my money this morning since Bangkok Bank and Kasikorn Bank are now the same but my test surprised me since when I was raising money for a condo deposit there was a wider swing between banks, but then again I was using the E*trade card and a CitiBank card so the differences I noticed may have been due to the US banks

Respectfully submitted to bolster whatever argument you want to make,

LSM

[Mali1964]

Does any UK members know of any Banks that will refund this 150 baht fee the same as some US banks do i will give Nationwide a call to see what their policy is on this.

Just spoke to a very nice lady at Nationwide & as i thought its a no but she was astonished how large the fee was & suggested a petition to the banking association in protest maybe that would need Thai Visa backing but still i feel if they were reminded how much this as upset the ex pat & tourism community's maybe they would at least rethink the size of the fee.

[eek]

Thanks so much for such a detailed post LSM!

---

Mali, that sounds interesting. Wonder if a petition could work? ( Hosted by ThaiVisa? *hint* )

[JimGant]

E*trade Bank has never before offered ATM refund on International transfers.

Yeah, nothing on the flyerguide site shown a few posts back (HERE) about e*trade refunding ATM owner charges. But, this would be an e*trade policy, not a Siam City Bank policy, so refunds should apply anywhere the ATM owners are tacking on fees. I just wonder what their monthly limit is --

Also, interesting the rate you're getting, as you're getting pretty much the TT rate, indicating most, if not all, the foreign transaction fee is being absorbed by e*trade. Again, from the flyguide site, in the note next to e*trade:

Confirmed [the 1% fee] August 2008. One user disagrees. According to secure communication, ETrade "reserves the right to charge 1% but currently does not."

I guess you would be the second user to disagree. (Oh, the flyerguide site encourages user input changes -- you might want to input the ATM owner fee reimbursement policy.)

Assuming their monthly reimbursement limit fits the number of trips to the ATM, I'd say you're sitting pretty.

Edited April 18, 2009 by JimGant

[Mali1964]

Yes great post Langsuan Man & good work for the benefit of others thank you.

In the football forum a few months ago a few members got together to politely complain to the FA in the UK for the fact that the FA cup was not shown on Thai tv even though lots of people had paid subscriptions to UBC expecting it to be shown,very interestingly they were reporting reply e mails from top brass in the FA within hours if i remember correctly which helped launch an enquiry into the affair by the FA.

My point being that we have nothing to loose if we politely e mail the banking association to make them aware of the effect & resentment this obscene fee as had, maybe they haven't thought it through as to how they got to that figure other than our bulging wallets will not care atall for a measly 150 baht fee how wrong they are.

Also a copy to the tourism authority would do no arm as they may not be aware of this fee or its impact in Thailand's current times.

Back up from Thai visa themselves would give greater impact if its possible for them to get involved?

Advise please mods on this idea/issue as we don't want to break any rules here Thank you

[JONTY]

I have just heard from a friend who lives in hua hin read a article fron swat magazine 10april that the thai banking association are going to charge all foreigners 150 bhart to use a A.T.M.CARD EACH TIME if this is true yet another kick in the boll****s for falangs.

Can any one confirm if this is true???

[jfchandler]

Re ETrade, I'm pretty familiar with them and use them, but don't have/use their ATM card...

It's interesting to note... they do offer unlimited ATM refunds, but say it is "nationwide." Their policy also says they will charge 1% for foreign currency transactions on their cards... but whether they do in practice???

Here is their policy on ATM refunds....

We will not charge you a fee for withdrawing funds from any ATM nationwide, but the owner/operator of the ATM may. E*TRADE Bank will refund the amount of that owner/operator's fee for all Max-Rate Checking account customers; or for customers with an average monthly balance of $5,000 or more in either their E*TRADE® Money Market Account or Independent Checking Account or for customers who maintain a combined balance of $50,000 or more in linked E*TRADE Securities, E*TRADE Bank, and employee stock plan accounts (including vested in-the-money options, stock option plan shares, ESPP shares, and released restricted stock); or who execute at least 30 stock or options trades during a calendar quarter in their E*TRADE Securities account. E*TRADE Checking Account ATM withdrawals are not eligible for ATM fee refunds. In the event E*TRADE Bank in its sole discretion determines that there has been either fraudulent or excessive use of the feature on a given account, E*TRADE Bank reserves the right to remove this feature and not refund the ATM fees. E*TRADE Bank does impose a charge equal to 1% of the transaction amount (including credits and reversals) for non-U.S. currency transactions. For additional information and important details about how the ATM fee refund will be applied, please visit www.etrade.com/atmrefundpolicy.

And specifically, regarding ETrade's Max-Rate checking, which is a pretty easy way to get their ATM card, though the account pays virtually no interest....

With Max-Rate Checking, E*TRADE Bank will not charge you a fee for withdrawing funds from any institution's ATM nationwide but the owner/operator of the ATM may. These fees will automatically be credited to your account. E*TRADE Bank does impose a charge equal to 1% of the transaction amount (including credits and reversals) for non-U.S. currency transactions. In the event E*TRADE Bank in its sole discretion determines that there has been either fraudulent or excessive use of the feature on a given account, E*TRADE Bank reserves the right to remove this feature and not refund the ATM fees. For additional information and important details about how the ATM fee refund will be applied, please visit www.etrade.com/atmrefundpolicy.

[Jiu-Jitsu]

It's true. Existing threads to be found throughout the forum. Took effect from yesterday.

[Mali1964]

Wow & theirs us Brits with this fee free Nationwide account that you Americans would loved to have had but seems the table's have turned in your favour now.

I won't hold my breath for the English bank's to refund ATM fee's

[jfchandler]

Re Etrade and their ATM fee refunds (whether they are domestic or foreign)... I should have added... they have some not insignificant account requirements in order to avoid their own $15 monthly charge for their Max Rate Checking account... though they appear to refund the ATM fees on the account whether or not you meet the requirements below.

* $5,000 average monthly balance in the account required to avoid a fee (their own $15 a month fee). See other ways to avoid this fee below.

* Set up and maintain a direct deposit of $200 or more per month (A combination of direct deposits totaling $200 does not satisfy this requirement)

* Maintain a combined balance of $50,000 or more in linked E*TRADE Securities, E*TRADE Bank, and employee stock plan accounts (including vested in-the-money options, stock option plan shares, ESPP shares, and released restricted stock) accounts

* Execute at least 30 stock or options trades during a calendar quarter in a linked E*TRADE Securities account

ETrade also explains further how they handle the refund transactions:

Two transactions will appear on your statement. There will be a transaction for the total withdrawal (ATM fee plus withdrawal amount) and a second transaction for the refund of the ATM fee. Note that the online transaction history and the new available balance may not appear updated until the following morning.

[Rooo]

It's true. Existing threads to be found throughout the forum. Took effect from yesterday.

Discussion can be found here.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Thai-Banks-S...it-t255263.html

Merging topics.

[thecatman]

Wow & theirs us Brits with this fee free Nationwide account that you Americans would loved to have had but seems the table's have turned in your favour now.

I won't hold my breath for the English bank's to refund ATM fee's

Mali1964, It's still not clear whether the Nationwide cash card will suffer the ATM charge or not as it's not a Visa or Mastercard, (I'm not sure what a JCB card is) so this is a possible way out for us UK Nationwide users.

International Cards – ATM Withdrawal Announcement

The Thai Bankers’ Association has announced a new regulation

permitting banks to charge a surcharge for ATM withdrawal

transactions on VISA, MasterCard and JCB cards issued by banks

in foreign countries or any other bank or financial institution not

an ATM Pool member (e.g. AEON card). The surcharge will be 150Bt

per transaction and will be in effect from 17 April, 2009.

[Mali1964]

Wow & theirs us Brits with this fee free Nationwide account that you Americans would loved to have had but seems the table's have turned in your favour now.

I won't hold my breath for the English bank's to refund ATM fee's

Mali1964, It's still not clear whether the Nationwide cash card will suffer the ATM charge or not as it's not a Visa or Mastercard, (I'm not sure what a JCB card is) so this is a possible way out for us UK Nationwide users.

International Cards – ATM Withdrawal Announcement

The Thai Bankers' Association has announced a new regulation

permitting banks to charge a surcharge for ATM withdrawal

transactions on VISA, MasterCard and JCB cards issued by banks

in foreign countries or any other bank or financial institution not

an ATM Pool member (e.g. AEON card). The surcharge will be 150Bt

per transaction and will be in effect from 17 April, 2009.

I catman sorry i was referring to the new UK charge of 1% in July on the Nationwide Debit card, i've applied for & i'am aware the Cash card does not have this UK 1% fee hence why i've applied for it but as for the Thai fee the Debit card will most certainly be charged as that is run by Visa, the Cash card however & i get your point is Cirrus if i'm correct, but it seems to me that Cirrus & Mastercard are one of the same & will still charge i hope i'm wrong but as i said we will have to wait an see.

The post was more to do with the fact the Americans seem to have 1 up on us as regard to US banks refunding this fee as a little joke to lighten this Topic a bit

I'm in the UK & will send out this cash card once received to the misses, but that will take a few weeks if in the meantime you or any fellow Brits have a cash card i would be interested to see how they go with it.

I doubt the cash card can be used in branch as it as no visa or mastercard logo & is meant for ATM only with no overdraft facility so if you still have the Debit card then the in branch route may be the answer, that's why i posted a point on how to apply for the cash card & still keep your Debit card earlier in this thread as you can only have one or the other, this can be left with the wife for example to top up for her back home with only this 150 fee to worry about which is still far cheaper than any pre paid or western union for that matter,& you stay in full control as she can not over spend on it as most lady's love to do when they have their man's cards

[Langsuan Man]

I don't want to sound like a shill for E*trade but despite the pittance interest in their checking accounts they do advertise that their Savings accounts pay 8 times the national average, it's not their fault that the national average is sh.....

Keeping a $5,000 average balance, combined within a checking and savings account, qualifies you for free interest checking, this ATM card, unlimited electronic bill pay (if your biller is not on electronic transfers E*trade will mail them a check), free interbank transfers (US banks only) and full internet banking

They charge a flat $25 for international or domestic wire transfers which I have found to be one of the lowest for US based banks

A friend had a credit union debit card and he was paying 3% every time he used it here in Thailand so he went with E*trade and has never looked back

I don't want to be a bearer of doom and gloom but those of you that are thinking of changing banks to circumvent this new ATM fee should be very careful on whether or not an online bank is available via the Internet here in Thailand

I had a bank in Florida, Virtual Bank (a part of Lydian Private Bank), that suddenly stopped letting me connect from Thailand. When I "Skyped" them to find out why I could not connect they advised me that if I provided them with my IP address they would let me access my account from Thailand

A few key strokes later and E*trade had all my money

[jfchandler]

Langsuan Man... I appreciate your posts here... Don't get me wrong about ETrade... I AM an ETrade customer via their Complete Savings account, which has no minimum balance requirement, but also unfortunately doesn't come with any ATM card for access. I like ETrade generally speaking, particularly because they have fairly fast ACH funds transfers.

It's just not entirely clear to me how they are handling their international ATM transactions. I see what they say in their policies... that they do charge a 1% fee for all foreign transactions. And their policy seems to say nothing about reimbursing foreign ATM fees.

But then you seem to be saying that they are NOT charging you any 1% fee, giving you very good exchange rates and that they are now reimbursing you for Thailand's new 150 baht ATM fee scheme.

If in fact, they're operating contrary to their stated policy and doing what you say, I'd certainly consider plunking down $5K with them and opening a new checking account with them to use their ATM card here and gain those benefits...

Any other ETrade customers out there who can chime in one way or the other on using their ETrade ATM cards here in LOS???

[jfchandler]

I had a bank in Florida, Virtual Bank (a part of Lydian Private Bank), that suddenly stopped letting me connect from Thailand. When I "Skyped" them to find out why I could not connect they advised me that if I provided them with my IP address they would let me access my account from Thailand

I had the same thing happen this year with my Rhapsody MP3 music downloads account. It had always worked fine here, and then suddenly stopped working. I could order music online, but the downloads always stalled. After a lot of troubleshooting, the Rhapsody people finally said their system was blocking downloads to non-U.S. IP addresses...

Why do I mention this in a banking thread? The answer is, I solved the Rhapsody problem by later signing up for a $6 a month service like Go Trusted, which gives you a private VPN tunnel Internet connection with a U.S. IP address whenever you need it... I've never had Langsuan Man's problem with online bank access here... But if I did, an approach like Go Trusted certainly would resolve it.

Also, I know from personal experience, the bank accounts I mentioned earlier in this thread - like SalemFiveDirect and Charter Bank - work fine here in Thailand for online banking. Likewise with Schwab, based on the glowing reviews Schwab has gotten from quite a few TV members here. And ETrade online banking works fine here as well...

[jgm005]

According to the Thanchart website, The Thai Bankers Association has decided that cardholders of foreign banks will be charged 150 Baht for each withdrawal by debit or credit card, effective April 17th.

Not good news.

I was at MBK today, 18/April. I tried the following ATM machines using a foreign ATM card and was notified there would be a 150 bt surcharge.

Krung Thai

TMB

Siam Commercial

I then tried Kaskikorn and there was NO fee. Again as of today the 18th of April.

[thecatman]

I was at MBK today, 18/April. I tried the following ATM machines using a foreign ATM card and was notified there would be a 150 bt surcharge.

Krung Thai

TMB

Siam Commercial

I then tried Kaskikorn and there was NO fee. Again as of today the 18th of April.

but......todays the 19th

Still, it seems like we've got at least another days grace. Tomorrow (Mon April 20th) will be the real test I guess.

[Mai Krap]

I got hit at Siam Commercial Bank yesterday, 150 TB extra for a 10,000 TB withdrawal. I think they were going to charge a extra 20 Baht for a receipt.

This really sucks as we were getting screwed by the exchange rate, Visa, and now this, What a load of horse manure.

[Langsuan Man]

Langsuan Man... I appreciate your posts here... Don't get me wrong about ETrade... I AM an ETrade customer via their Complete Savings account, which has no minimum balance requirement, but also unfortunately doesn't come with any ATM card for access. I like ETrade generally speaking, particularly because they have fairly fast ACH funds transfers.

It's just not entirely clear to me how they are handling their international ATM transactions. I see what they say in their policies... that they do charge a 1% fee for all foreign transactions. And their policy seems to say nothing about reimbursing foreign ATM fees.

But then you seem to be saying that they are NOT charging you any 1% fee, giving you very good exchange rates and that they are now reimbursing you for Thailand's new 150 baht ATM fee scheme.

If in fact, they're operating contrary to their stated policy and doing what you say, I'd certainly consider plunking down $5K with them and opening a new checking account with them to use their ATM card here and gain those benefits...

Any other ETrade customers out there who can chime in one way or the other on using their ETrade ATM cards here in LOS???

I am not saying anything. Look at my post and the figures are there. I have lived here for over 3 years and have used my E*trade ATM card exclusively and have never paid an ATM fee, nor have I paid 1%. THAT I KNOW OF

Maybe E*trade has the 1% hidden but if in three years my exchange rate has always been better than the published rate in the Bangkok Post, the rate listed in the exchange booth or counter, and the SCB rate on the web, then I am pretty safe in declaring they are not charging me 1%

If you have an E*trade Savings account then obtaining a FREE checking account is a no brainer so long as you have the $5000 to avoid any fees. You have the added advantage of being able to open it up online since you are already a customer so won't have to put up with all that Patriot Act nonsense

I think you are getting too wrapped up in what they say on their web site. I think that they are just giving themselves room to charge you 1% if they find it necessary. But for all I know I could be grandfathered into not paying the 1% but I doubt that since most banks will charge what the market will bear

signing up for a $6 a month service like Go Trusted, which gives you a private VPN tunnel Internet connection with a U.S. IP address whenever you need it.

Not being able to sign into a music service is a lot different than not being able to log into a bank in the midst of a banking crisis. I did the only prudent thing to do and that was to vote with my feet and move my money..... my example was just a warning and to show how easy it was to get the money out of one bank and into E*trade

I would prefer to have a bank that has sufficient security that they will not be fooled by a VPN for access

Mai Krap Posted Today, 2009-04-19 15:34:29

I got hit at Siam Commercial Bank yesterday, 150 TB extra for a 10,000 TB withdrawal. I think they were going to charge a extra 20 Baht for a receipt.

This really sucks as we were getting screwed by the exchange rate, Visa, and now this, What a load of horse manure.

Surprising since in all three SCB ATM's I tried yesterday a very visible warning of the 150 THB charge was given and an option to cancel the transaction followed