Retirement Deposit

[huski]

ATM Withdrawal  From  BANGKOK BANK BANGKOK -$155.50 USD  Jan. 16, 2004  Pending

using the same credit card to withdrawl 6000 baht this is at an ATM machine today.

Total Amount: 

-$155.50 USD 

Fee Amount: 

-$1.00 USD 

Net Amount: 

-$156.50 USD

the details of the transaction in paypal. with the $1.00 fee factored in the withdrawl was really $156.50, giving me an exchange rate of 38.3 . ATMs are money makers thats why they are put everywhere.

But please check your PayPal statements for hidden fees, and let us know what you find, if anything.

No hidden fees, i copied and pasted right from the online statement.

of course the ATM has fees and thats why the exchange rate was 1.3 lower, they usually hide them in the exchange rate. i also have another VISA that charges $3.00 extra "international fee" at ATMs shown on the statement and still reams you on the exchange rate. but i can take it to a bank/exchange and it will get a good rate with a human.

The only thing I can think of is that you're both the 'buyer,' thus getting the 1.5% cashback, and the 'seller,' paying PayPal's transaction fee of 2.2%, for a net cost of .7%.

just the buyer, the cash back bonus shows up, but the amount of the sellers fees that you are correct about doesn't show up in the transaction details.

Date  Type  Status  Details  Gross  Fee  Net 

Jan. 15, 2004  Debit Card Cash Advance  To  LANDMARK PLAZA EXCHANG BANGKOK  Pending  ... -$384.42 USD  $0.00 USD  -$384.42 USD 

Jan. 15, 2004  Cash Back Bonus  From  PayPal Inc Debit Card  Pending  Details $5.77 USD  $0.00 USD  $5.77 USD 

 

this is the details of yesterday's cash advance/purchase transaction and the fees show $0.00 USD

[JimGant]

huski,

Well you obviously have a great deal going. If PayPal can't find a 'seller' to match your 1.5% 'buyer' cashback, they're losing money, particularly since they're not even playing the 'spread' on foreign currency conversion. This is just too stupid by them to even qualify as some kind of 'loss leader.'

Anyway, enjoy -- until some auditor picks this up. Meanwhile, if you have any stock in PayPal, SELL!

[JimGant]

Tried to find out if my bank in the States would allow me, like Kevin, to use a debit card to transfer cash to my bank in Thailand. Here's what they came back with:

01/16/2004 12:49:00 PM

Subject: Re: Transfers (Sent 1/15/2004)

Thank you for contacting SunTrust.

This message is in reference to your Premium Banking

Interest Checking account number xxxxxxxxxxxx. You

cannot transfer funds to and from a foreign account

with your checkcard. However, we do wire transfers.

The wire transfer fee for an International wire

transfer is $50.00. Please contact us if your are

interested in making a wire transfer, so that we may

further assist you.

I hope this information proves helpful. If you have

any additional questions or comments, please feel free

to contact us. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days

a week and look forward to satisfying your financial

needs.

Sincerely,

In other words, stick it in your ear! We're a big bank, and our bottom line is money. If you want service as a bottom line, find a small bank, like maybe in northern California.

This really sucks. The electronic pipeline already exists, as do the necessary protocols. Suntrust bank is intentionally staying in the 'telegraph' era just to make a buck. Too bad it's such a pain in the butt to change banks, what with direct deposits and direct debits to redirect. (I never did ask Bangkok Bank if they would accept a debit card money transfer -- maybe they too are not a 'full service' bank(?).)

[KevinN]

Jim; Sounds like your bank is in florida,anyway if you are interested I can line you up with my bank,free checking and ATM use,, no charge except for the paper checks you order,I got the email addys of some of the gals that work there.

And as to PayPal, they would do no business with me cause my computer addy was Thailand and so no more business,even with a US credit card as long as I used a Thai ISP,so I told em to stuff it and close my acct. they refused to do that til I returned to the USA,I gave them a talking to and told my lawyer to write em a letter and they finally deleted my stuff from the web.

Does your ATM/CHECK card have a VISA logo on it,I know the ones I have had in the states have all had that logo on em?

[JimGant]

Hi Kevin,

Yeah, the card has the Visa logo on it -- they swapped out my plain vanilla ATM card a few months back with this one.

Thanks for the offer, but I'm afraid I'm stuck with Suntrust -- too many irons in the fire. Plus, they are only two blocks away, so face-to-face is easy. Hopefully Internet money transfers will soon be a reality. Meanwhile, I'll just wire 'big chunks' at wide intervals -- just wish my last wire, when the bt was 42 to 1, was bigger. But George Soros, I ain't.