Teller Point Of Sale Transaction

[buadhai]

We went to the Bangkok Bank branch in Korat to inquire about teller point of sale transactions as a means of transferring funds from an overseas account to a local account. We were told that it is possible, but that the Korat branch doesn't have a point of sale terminal, so we'd have to go to Bangkok to do it. Inconvenient, but at least we know it is possible and an alternative to wire transfers.

We also deposited a US dollar Cashier's (Bank) Check. This was easy. There is a 400 baht fee and a 30 day wait for credit; neither of which was a surprise.

[lopburi3]

Interesting but it may not be that attractive as more banks now seem to be charging for any overseas use of visa type cards so you are likely to be hit with the normal 1 or 2 percent exchange loss plus the new 2 percent or so overseas use charge. If you try this please keep track of charges so we can check it out.

My last wire transfer was Monday and called my US bank at 10:30 PM Thai Time and when I withdrew baht from an atm on Tuesday at 12:30 PM Thai time money was already in account so SWIFT does work well from US.

[buadhai]

I withdrew 5000 baht cash from my US bank account at a Bangkok Bank ATM today. The rate was 39.55. No fee on either end.

[lopburi3]

But I suspect that was ATM - not POS. It is the use of visa for POS that my bank has just informed new fees and most banks never give the full exchange rate using POS (usually spelled out as minus 1 or 2%).

The no fee here is true - but don't speak too loud we don't want them to get ideas.

[buadhai]

But I suspect that was ATM - not POS.  It is the use of visa for POS that my bank has just informed new fees and most banks never give the full exchange rate using POS (usually spelled out as minus 1 or 2%)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I asked my bank and they said that the exchange rate is set by the bank doing the transaction, not by them. They don't add any fee or use a different exchange rate.

I made a POS purchase yesterday with the same card and got the same exchange rate: 39.55. No fees.

[lopburi3]

It must be a rare card you have then. Was this an Internet bank you were using (can't remember that well). In most cases the exchange rate is set by the clearance system used such as Cirrus or Plus or Visa and is not the full TT rate. So it appears you did get a good rate if no other charges appear between now and your next statement.

[buadhai]

I'm using Bank of the Internet, a US Internet bank. I have a "senior" checking account: no fees, no minimum balance, free checks, 2.25% interest, no ATM fees (and they reimburse up to $8 a month for other banks' fees), free bill pay, etc. I've been with them a year and am quite satisfied. The only thing they will not do is a foreign wire transfer, hence my interest in the teller point of sale transaction.

I've used the ATM/debit card from them before while in Thailand and never saw any post-transaction fees appear.

[JimGant]

Mike,

Interesting. I've always paid a 1% foreign exchange fee with my ATM card and had thought this was levied by the owner of the ATM machine (which 90% of the time is Bangkok Bank for me). And this seemed reasonable, as they're not providing ATM transactions for free.

But from your experience, it would seem my Stateside bank (Suntrust) is pocketing this fee -- and Bangkok Bank must then get its payment by the foreign exchange 'buy/sell' spread. Somebody might be getting .2%, which is the difference between the interbank exchange rate (39.63) and your 39.55. But as Lop says, this might not be the exchange rate used by your exchange service (Cirrus/Plus/Star), so hard to tell. But whatever the case, sure beats paying 1%.

Besides not being able to wire transfer, any other downside to Bank of the Internet? And which exchange service do they use (my ATM is Cirrus -- but I don't think that's where the 1% goes, at least in total).

Miss those salty Saipan breezes yet?

[buadhai]

My Bank of Internet ATM/debit card has a Visa logo on front and Plus and Star logos on the back.

They pride themselves on being a "no fee" bank. They respond to inquiries (via a web form) within 24 hours and have always been very helpful at solving problems. (Like when I closed the account my paycheck was going to before I told my employer to change.... )

No other drawbacks I can think of. But, you do need a US address to open an account.

And, yes, it is bloody hot in Korat these days and I do miss our nightly walks down to the beach.

But, I'm very happy to be retired and living in LOS.