BoT declares May 4 special holiday for financial institutions

[Lite Beer]

BoT declares May 4 special holiday for financial institutions

BANGKOK: -- The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has issued an announcement declaring May 4 an additional holiday for financial institutions to allow a five-day holiday between May 1-5 in line with a cabinet resolution.

According to the announcement, the BoT said the long holiday is intended to promote tourism-related businesses and enhance the country’s economic growth.

Since the announcement on the special holiday is made long before the month of May, the business sector is expected to be able to make adjustments and the country’s financial and economic systems should not be significantly affected, the BoT said.

Moreover, during the long holiday, financial institutes can still open some of its branches such as at department stores for public service.

May 1 is Labour Day, May 2-3 Saturday and Sunday, and May 5 Coronation Day. With May 4 having been made a special holiday, the people can enjoy a five-day holiday.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/bot-declares-may-4-special-holiday-financial-institutions

-- Thai PBS 2015-02-11

[jaltsc]

"Since the announcement on the special holiday is made long before the month of May, the business sector is expected to be able to make adjustments and the country’s financial and economic systems should not be significantly affected, the BoT said."

If the Thai business sector needs to make adjustments to avoid a significant negative affect as a result of one extra day of holiday time, what message does that send out to the international business community? Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

[Pib]

According to the announcement, the BoT said the long holiday is intended to promote tourism-related businesses and enhance the country’s economic growth.

Or said another way, increased number of Bt180 ATM fees supporting the economy (bankster's profits) since tourists/farangs will be unable to do a bank teller withdrawal with their foreign cards which allows them to avoid the Thai bank ATM foreign card fee of Bt180.

[Sviss Geez]

According to the announcement, the BoT said the long holiday is intended to promote tourism-related businesses and enhance the country’s economic growth.

Or said another way, increased number of Bt180 ATM fees supporting the economy (bankster's profits) since tourists/farangs will be unable to do a bank teller withdrawal with their foreign cards which allows them to avoid the Thai bank ATM foreign card fee of Bt180.

unless they can go to the branches in shopping centres which will be open where they will be able to avoid that bankrupting fee..

[angiolo]

I have been told,ages ago, that Thailand has more holidays that any western country.. Can anyone tell me if this is correct ,and how does an extra holiday improve the Thai wealth ?

[NongKhaiKid]

According to the announcement, the BoT said the long holiday is intended to promote tourism-related businesses and enhance the country’s economic growth.

Or said another way, increased number of Bt180 ATM fees supporting the economy (bankster's profits) since tourists/farangs will be unable to do a bank teller withdrawal with their foreign cards which allows them to avoid the Thai bank ATM foreign card fee of Bt180.

Ehmm, hope this doesn't cause problems but i use an international ATM card regularly to access my account in Hong Kong which i have to maintain in compliance with pension regulations.

For quite some time now my local ATM charge is Bt 50 plus HK$ 25 at the other end.

[Pib]

For quite some time now my local ATM charge is Bt 50 plus HK$ 25 at the other end.

Since I think you are saying the Thai bank ATM charges you BT50 vs Bt180, then I expect it's an American Express or Union Pay logo card which incurs a Thai bank Bt50 ATM fee versus the Bt180 ATM fee for Visa/Mastercard....or at least at Bangkok Bank ATMs AmEx and Union Pay cards incur a Bt50 fee.

I would do a cut and paste from the Bangkok Bank web site regarding this ATM fee in English like I've done quite a few times before, but I can no longer find it in English...seems over the last month or so some select fee related info/docs which use to be available in English and Thai--and I have easily found in English on their website for years--is now in Thai only or just not there anymore.

Either I just can't find the English related info now or Bangkok Bank is now beginning to act like other Thai banks in providing selected fee info in Thai only or wanting you to call to find out the fee info. Then again maybe they are losing some of their English translation capability and desire to do so for non-Thai language folks...I don't know. I think it's the later because the particular fee info I was looking for which provides a lot of Bangkok Bank's "Other" type fees is in this Thai language document which use to be provide in English and Thai but now in Thai only. Here's the link to the Thai language document and at para 22.8 ( include a snapshot below) it talks the Bt50 ATM fee for AmEx and Union Pay logo cards.

http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBankThai/Documents/Site%20Documents/Interest%20Rates/Rates_Table3_BOT_060315.pdf

[NongKhaiKid]

For quite some time now my local ATM charge is Bt 50 plus HK$ 25 at the other end.

Since I think you are saying the Thai bank ATM charges you BT50 vs Bt180, then I expect it's an American Express or Union Pay logo card which incurs a Thai bank Bt50 ATM fee versus the Bt180 ATM fee for Visa/Mastercard....or at least at Bangkok Bank ATMs AmEx and Union Pay cards incur a Bt50 fee.

I would do a cut and paste from the Bangkok Bank web site regarding this ATM fee in English like I've done quite a few times before, but I can no longer find it in English...seems over the last month or so some select fee related info/docs which use to be available in English and Thai--and I have easily found in English on their website for years--is now in Thai only or just not there anymore.

Either I just can't find the English related info now or Bangkok Bank is now beginning to act like other Thai banks in providing selected fee info in Thai only or wanting you to call to find out the fee info. Then again maybe they are losing some of their English translation capability and desire to do so for non-Thai language folks...I don't know. I think it's the later because the particular fee info I was looking for which provides a lot of Bangkok Bank's "Other" type fees is in this Thai language document which use to be provide in English and Thai but now in Thai only. Here's the link to the Thai language document and at para 22.8 ( include a snapshot below) it talks the Bt50 ATM fee for AmEx and Union Pay logo cards.

http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBankThai/Documents/Site%20Documents/Interest%20Rates/Rates_Table3_BOT_060315.pdf

Capture.JPG

if it helps the card was issued by the Standard Chattered Bank, Hong Kong. iIt was replaced recently with an all singing, all dancing ' chip ' version and the only ATMs that don't accept are Aeon which say the card isn't ' recognised '. No problem with any of the others except of course when there's no money and they refuse to pay out.

[Thaddeus]

Star Wars Day

May the fourth be with you.

[Pib]

if it helps the card was issued by the Standard Chattered Bank, Hong Kong. iIt was replaced recently with an all singing, all dancing ' chip ' version and the only ATMs that don't accept are Aeon which say the card isn't ' recognised '. No problem with any of the others except of course when there's no money and they refuse to pay out.

What card network logo is on the front of the card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Union Pay?

[udongolf]

Used aeon arm today with visa debit barclays 150 fee [emoji5]️[emoji3][emoji562]

Edited February 12, 2015 by udongolf

[tif]

Where other countries believe their economy is boosted by their citizenry actually working the General's sole idea for boosting GDP is ever increasing idleness. What with this brilliant idea and everyone on their smart 'phones all day, it's a wonder anything gets done at all.

[NongKhaiKid]

if it helps the card was issued by the Standard Chattered Bank, Hong Kong. iIt was replaced recently with an all singing, all dancing ' chip ' version and the only ATMs that don't accept are Aeon which say the card isn't ' recognised '. No problem with any of the others except of course when there's no money and they refuse to pay out.

What card network logo is on the front of the card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Union Pay?

It's Union Pay and thanks for making me look as I wasn't aware of it before as previous cards have had logos that I knew in Hong Kong but had no application elsewhere so I never bothered.

My only thought every time is that the card is accepted as over the years I've had my fair share of problems and it takes about 4 weeks to get a new one sent and operational.

Excuse my ignorance please but what effect does Union pay etc have ?

[Pib]

if it helps the card was issued by the Standard Chattered Bank, Hong Kong. iIt was replaced recently with an all singing, all dancing ' chip ' version and the only ATMs that don't accept are Aeon which say the card isn't ' recognised '. No problem with any of the others except of course when there's no money and they refuse to pay out.

What card network logo is on the front of the card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Union Pay?

It's Union Pay and thanks for making me look as I wasn't aware of it before as previous cards have had logos that I knew in Hong Kong but had no application elsewhere so I never bothered.

My only thought every time is that the card is accepted as over the years I've had my fair share of problems and it takes about 4 weeks to get a new one sent and operational.

Excuse my ignorance please but what effect does Union pay etc have ?

I can't say for sure why AmEx and Union Pay only incur a Bt50 ATM withdrawal fee, but I expect it's the agreement/contract between the banks and card networks regarding max fees which can be charged in combination with interchange fees, not to imply card networks are solely setting the fees.

As for this ridiculously high fee Bt150-180 fee Thai banks charge on foreign Visa and Mastercard cards that is just pure farang price-gouging in my book. With so many tourists coming to Thailand which far, far outnumber the number of farangs who live here and since tourists on a brief holiday usually just submit to any fee charged (don't want to think card fees which most don't understand anyway, just want to have a good holiday/vacation), I expect Thai banks are greedily taking advantage of this tourist attitude.

And I'm guessing again, but I'm going to guess the current AmEx and Union Pay "interchange" fees which occur between the card-issuing bank and the ATM bank provide a higher interchange fee than Visa/Mastercard back to the ATM bank to where the ATM bank makes up for that lower Bt50 upfront fee with the higher interchange fee they get.

But a higher interchange fee can possibly be bad for the card customer if the card-issuing bank decides to increase any foreign transaction fees they may apply and pass through to the customer. On a slow day, google "card interchange fees" and read some of the info which will probably be in Visa/Mastercard card network fee documents...it can hurt your brain trying to understand the smoke and mirror fee talk they use in the documents.

For a while Thai banks charged both Visa and Mastercards a Bt150 fee....then for around 6 to 12 months Mastercard logo cards started incurring a Bt180 fee while Visa logo cards stayed at Bt150. Then the Thai banks edged the Visa fee up to Bt180 also. Maybe it was just the Thai Bankers Association grand plan to stagger the raising of the fee from Bt150 to Bt180.