Bank in Chiang Mai

[mirko]

Hey guys.

Any advice on a good bank in Chiang Mai.

With a good exchange rate. I would be exchanging canadian dollars to THB.

Also, I guess this would need to be a Thai bank as I would need to keep money in it to keep my Marriage Visa going.

Thanks guys.

Cheers,

Mirko

[chiang mai]

It doesn't have to be a Thai bank, it just has to be a bank in Thailand.

 

The exchange rates at banks in Thailand are broadly all the same albeit they are all different at any point in time, trying to pick a bank based on the best exchange rate is impossible, you need better or different criteria.

 

I like UOB which is a Singaporean bank with 200 branches in Thailand, very good internal processes and the bank is consistently rated in the top ten safest banks in the world.

 

Bank of Ayudhya (sp) is also OK, it's effective owner is the Japanese bank Mitusbishi which has 2.5 triliion dollars in assets.

[Dante99]

No need to wait for replies, search banks then search exchange money and you will get all the information you need.

[mirko]

Dante,

I am not in a big rush so I don't mind waiting for replies.

I understand I could search google for pretty much any answer, but call me old fashioned, I still prefer to have a good old conversation with people. I would love if I could sit with someone in person, but since I don't know anyone in Thailand in similar situation, this forum is the next best thing :)

Either way, thanks for the reply. Cheers.

 

[CMBob]

You ask for a bank with "a good exchange rate" and, as all the banks' websites show their daily exchange rates, hopefully you can quickly do the research yourself.  

[KhonKaenKowboy]

UOB Thai Public Company is a Thai Bank, which is a requirement for visa extensions.  It took over Radanasin Bank in 1999.

[Bill97]

Go to CEC for a good old fashion conversation.

[LannaGuy]

Bangkok Bank Kad Suan Kaew branch

[Nowisee]

How do you intend to exchange the CD's into thai baht?
ATM?
ACH transfer?
SWIFT?

 

Thai bank?  Are there other country banks in Chiang Mai?  

[Dante99]

22 hours ago, mirko said:

Dante,

I am not in a big rush so I don't mind waiting for replies.

I understand I could search google for pretty much any answer, but call me old fashioned, I still prefer to have a good old conversation with people. I would love if I could sit with someone in person, but since I don't know anyone in Thailand in similar situation, this forum is the next best thing :)

Either way, thanks for the reply. Cheers.

 

Ok but do understand that there are people that are just not interested in repeatedly providing the same information for every new person that comes to town.  

 

Some might even consider it appropriate that before asking a question a person makes some effort to answer it by themselves but that may be too radical.

 

Good luck in finding a real old fashion conversation.

[KhunBENQ]

37 minutes ago, Nowisee said:

How do you intend to exchange the CD's into thai baht?
ATM?
ACH transfer?
SWIFT?

 

Thai bank?  Are there other country banks in Chiang Mai?  

Indeed important to know which way of transfer will be used.

For SWIFT transfer you can find approximate rates here:

https://daytodaydata.net/

Select "CAD" to "THB" and "TT" rates.

Personally I always use Bangkok Bank (the biggest bank) as a benchmark.

26.37 today.

 

"Other country banks": there are banks in Thailand which are subsidiaries of foreign banks (CIMB is an example).

Legally they are still Thai banks with a Thai banking license and can be used for proof of funds at the immigration office.

 

The most interesting question to be answered by locals:

which branches are "foreigner friendly" when it comes to opening an account. Some are not and try to get rid of you.

[KhonKaenKowboy]

Any bank in Thailand offering Thai accounts is going to be a Thai Bank.  Even CITI  is a Thai Bank.  I had an HSBC account in the US.....it didn't mean squat at HSBC Mexico.  I think there is a JPM Chase presence in BKK, but no account services.  CIMB is regionally friendly, but just applies to ATMs in ASEAN nations...the also give preferred exchange rates to customers with a million THB in their account.

Edited February 7, 2017 by KhonKaenKowboy

[jonwilly]

I hold accounts with UOB at their Hua Kaew branch friendly, helpful staff.

 

john

[chiang mai]

On 07/02/2017 at 1:28 AM, KhonKaenKowboy said:

UOB Thai Public Company is a Thai Bank, which is a requirement for visa extensions.  It took over Radanasin Bank in 1999.

UOB (Thai) is a Singaporean Bank with offices in 19 countries, including the UK where the bank is known as UOB Ltd. In the UK it is known to be a Singaporean Bank, not a British Bank. In Thailand UOB is known as UOB (Thai) and it also is a Singaporean Bank with branches in Thailand and not a Thai bank in Thailand.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Overseas_Bank

[Nowisee]

22 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

UOB (Thai) is a Singaporean Bank with offices in 19 countries, including the UK where the bank is known as UOB Ltd. In the UK it is known to be a Singaporean Bank, not a British Bank. In Thailand UOB is known as UOB (Thai) and it also is a Singaporean Bank with branches in Thailand and not a Thai bank in Thailand.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Overseas_Bank

Thanks for this link/info.

Do you suppose this might be a good option if considering frequent travel to Vietnam?  It shows International branches in Vietnam. 
I'm thinking, load up some funds in the UOB bank in CM and have access to it Vietnam.  
Your thoughts?

My apologies for the hijack.

Edited February 8, 2017 by Nowisee

[chiang mai]

Just now, Nowisee said:

Thanks for this link/info.

Do you suppose this might be a good option if considering frequent travel to Vietnam?  It shows International branches in Vietnam. 
I'm thinking, load up some funds in the UOB bank in CM and have access to it Vietnam.  
Your thoughts?

Yes that would work well, UOB is a very very good bank so I don't anticipate you will have problems.

[Nowisee]

4 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

Yes that would work well, UOB is a very very good bank so I don't anticipate you will have problems.

 

I'm going to check out the KSK branch (thanks jonwilly) and see about opening an account and ask this question.
Hopefully they speak decent English and hopefully I won't need a certificate of residency..because that's a dead issue.

[chiang mai]

3 minutes ago, Nowisee said:

 

I'm going to check out the KSK branch (thanks jonwilly) and see about opening an account and ask this question.
Hopefully they speak decent English and hopefully I won't need a certificate of residency..because that's a dead issue.

If you have no joy at KSK, try Airport Plaza branch (lower ground floor), they speak English. Also, a friend went with me to open an account and they told him the minimum opening amount was 50,000 baht although I'm not sure if that's for a higher tier account or not.

[LannaGuy]

12 minutes ago, Nowisee said:

 

I'm going to check out the KSK branch (thanks jonwilly) and see about opening an account and ask this question.
Hopefully they speak decent English and hopefully I won't need a certificate of residency..because that's a dead issue.

be surprised if any bank allows you to open without a residency cert/yellow book and depends on your visa of course

[theguyfromanotherforum]

Yes that would work well, UOB is a very very good bank so I don't anticipate you will have problems.

UOB is a Thai bank with Thai regulations. Do you really expect UOB to bail you out in case of any "problems"?

Maybe the OP could open an account in Thanachart  bank and go back Scotia Bank in Canada to complain if something happens to his deposit.

[chiang mai]

22 minutes ago, theguyfromanotherforum said:

 

UOB is a Thai bank with Thai regulations. Do you really expect UOB to bail you out in case of any "problems"?

Maybe the OP could open an account in Thanachart  bank and go back Scotia Bank in Canada to complain if something happens to his deposit.
 

 

 

UOB is a very good bank, it;'s internal processes are Singaporean developed rather than Thai plus it's consistently voted as being one of the top ten safest banks in the world. So yes, those things plus their proven track record with me plus Deposit Protection Insurance means I stand a very good chance of leading a trouble free banking life with them.

[jonwilly]

UOB Hua Kaew speak excellent English, they can even understand my UK accent.

 

john

[Bill97]

 

UOB is a very good bank, it;'s internal processes are Singaporean developed rather than Thai ....

Internal processes for foreign currency deposits are not the same as at uob in Singapore. I have dealt with both.

Legally they are different banks with one owned by the other.

[chiang mai]

41 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Internal processes for foreign currency deposits are not the same as at uob in Singapore. I have dealt with both.

Legally they are different banks with one owned by the other.

Yes their products and product structures are different by virtue of different countries and different markets. But I was referring to their client handling internal process.

[KhonKaenKowboy]

48 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

Internal processes for foreign currency deposits are not the same as at uob in Singapore. I have dealt with both.

Legally they are different banks with one owned by the other.

Yes, that's why it is referred to as "UOBT" on their own website, and is called UOB Public Company Thailand, and is listed on the SET.  They also require 3 million to get the best rates, which are still less than what I am getting with one million.  Maybe it's just a nice place for the fellas to meet on Huay Kaew.

[chiang mai]

4 minutes ago, KhonKaenKowboy said:

Yes, that's why it is referred to as "UOBT" on their own website, and is called UOB Public Company Thailand, and is listed on the SET.  They also require 3 million to get the best rates, which are still less than what I am getting with one million.  Maybe it's just a nice place for the fellas to meet on Huay Kaew.

You don't know what you're talking about in respect of UOB, not about its ownership nor about its investment rates, plain and simple.

[Bill97]

But I was referring to their client handling internal process.

What does that mean? Examples please?

[chiang mai]

21 minutes ago, Bill97 said:

What does that mean? Examples please?

It's the way they conduct their every day business with customers:

 

Their processes for opening accounts, transacting on accounts, security, sending audited statements for confirmation twice a year, eligibility criteria and approvals of unusual transactions, those things are uniform across all their branches as far as I can tell and they are uniform within the branch when you repeat something a second or third time.

 

With some of the Thai banks: the criteria for opening an account varies from branch to branch and often person to person; I often used to get away with saying I don't have my passport with me, here use my drivers license instead; I never had an independent audited statement on my accounts ever; complex and big ticket transaction require two or more levels of approval, often that means one cashier reaching across and borrowing another persons security card and swiping it through the terminal, and so on. None of those things happen at UOB in my experience, often to my frustration but overall for my benefit.

 

 

[Bill97]

It's the way they conduct their every day business with customers:
 
Their processes for opening accounts, transacting on accounts, security, sending audited statements for confirmation twice a year, eligibility criteria and approvals of unusual transactions, those things are uniform across all their branches as far as I can tell and they are uniform within the branch when you repeat something a second or third time.
 

They are not the same as their Singapore branches which was my point.

Do you have UOB accounts in Singapore or anywhere outside Thailand to compare to?

[chiang mai]

Just now, Bill97 said:

 

They are not the same as their Singapore branches which was my point.

Do you have UOB accounts in Singapore or anywhere outside Thailand to compare to?

I wouldn't expect those processes to be the same in another country, I never said or even implied they were common global practices, all I said was they are Singaporean processes meaning they well designed and robust.