Is it possible to open a USD account at Kasikorn

[Bogbrush]

I'd like to know if anyone has opened a $ account with Kasikorn? What I'm looking for is the facility to (1) be able to deposit USD cash over the counter and (2) be able to transfer USD internationally via the usual bank EFT web site.

 

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

 

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[connda]

To the best of my knowledge, only Bangkok Bank though Bangkok Bank New York offers domestic ACH transfers from the US to Thai accounts.  

Also, I personally would not open an account at Kasikorn after the fiasco where a teller took 80K from a customer but only gave them a receipt for 40K.  Even with publicly published video, the bank backed the teller and the issue was settled out of court.  But that sets up a red flag for me personally.  The bank and it's executives have a fiduciary responsibility to their customers, not to their employees.  Something to keep in mind. This issue is well documented, not hearsay.  And I doubt they meet your criteria anyway.

[Wim1954]

1 hour ago, connda said:

To the best of my knowledge, only Bangkok Bank though Bangkok Bank New York offers domestic ACH transfers from the US to Thai accounts.  

Also, I personally would not open an account at Kasikorn after the fiasco where a teller took 80K from a customer but only gave them a receipt for 40K.  Even with publicly published video, the bank backed the teller and the issue was settled out of court.  But that sets up a red flag for me personally.  The bank and it's executives have a fiduciary responsibility to their customers, not to their employees.  Something to keep in mind. This issue is well documented, not hearsay.  And I doubt they meet your criteria anyway.

That happens one time with a teller and now you suggest that every Kasikornbank is not good anymore nice point of vieuw.

[VocalNeal]

I don't know how other banks do it but HSBC used to do all there transactions in Baht in Thailand. So if from a US$ account one wished to transfer US$ out of the country they would convert to Baht withdraw the baht from your US$ account and then convert back to US$ to transfer. 

 

Just in case you think it might be more micro % savvy to have a a US$  account. If Kasikorn or Bangkok Bank do it any differently then OK.

[topt]

OP may want to have a search on previous topics to do with Foreign Currency Accounts.

One here - https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/994936-cash-depositwithdrawal-in-foreign-currency-deposit-account/

 

In most cases they will charge you 1-2% for depositing in cash which could work out expensive.

As to online transfers suggest checking their web sites first and then asking in a main branch. I think this came up in an earlier thread as well.

[ross163103]

Not sure what nationality you are, but a Kasikorn bank manager told me that their bank will no longer open accounts for US citizens unless they have a Thai work visa. It's related to US laws, Kasikorn doesn't want to deal with the US bueracracy....can't blame them as I hate dealing with that s**t also. Also if any US citizens currently have a Kasikorn account, it's better to keep it open otherwise if you close it they won't open another one for you. Obviously this only applies if you want to stay with Kasikorn, if you move banks this wouldn't concern you.

[Thongsaeng]

Thanks for heads up

 

[HerbalEd]

2 hours ago, ross163103 said:

Not sure what nationality you are, but a Kasikorn bank manager told me that their bank will no longer open accounts for US citizens unless they have a Thai work visa. It's related to US laws, Kasikorn doesn't want to deal with the US bueracracy....can't blame them as I hate dealing with that s**t also. Also if any US citizens currently have a Kasikorn account, it's better to keep it open otherwise if you close it they won't open another one for you. Obviously this only applies if you want to stay with Kasikorn, if you move banks this wouldn't concern you.

Are you taking what you heard from one manager at one Kasikorn bank and extrapolating that on to all Kasikorn banks? 

[janclaes47]

I have a USD and a Euro account at Kasikorn.

 

Both accounts I transferred the money in the respective currency from a bank in my home country.

[janclaes47]

5 hours ago, connda said:

Also, I personally would not open an account at Kasikorn after the fiasco where a teller took 80K from a customer but only gave them a receipt for 40K.  Even with publicly published video, the bank backed the teller and the issue was settled out of court.

 

And of course because this happened at this one branch, it happens at all thousands of Kasikorn branches all over the country, and for sure will not happen at any other bank in Thailand or elsewhere in the world.

[max2u]

2 hours ago, janclaes47 said:

 

And of course because this happened at this one branch, it happens at all thousands of Kasikorn branches all over the country, and for sure will not happen at any other bank in Thailand or elsewhere in the world.

Other than one nit to pick re: thousands of branches (more like 1,100 or so) in Thailand (and a handful in other nations) janclaes47's  post perfectly punctures the hot air balloon of presumptuous sliming of Kasikorn (a.k.a Kbank--and formerly Thai Farmers Bank, a longstanding reliable  family (Lamsan)  enterprise (chaired by the grandson of its founder) that is 2nd largest in market cap of the banking sector on the SET.

 

Kbank worked fine for receiving wire transfer of $USD from my US bank to my $USD account at Kbank, and when I withdrew $USD they gave a favorable conversion rate for Bt (which I deposited n my wife's Kbank account). The bank required $5000 $USD be maintained else there'd be a small 'maintenance' fee monthly, and pays no interest on the $USD account, so I keep the account active at $5K solely for the purpose of moving $USD in either direction US<>TH   So yeah, with no interest it's a  hundred or so $/year less in pocket than if I parked the  funds in some  other reliable bank, Stateside. But that's small money for the convenience, and the tellers and management at the few branches we've been to have all been the model of courteousness and good humor, so WTH ! :-)

Edited August 10, 2017 by max2u

[ross163103]

3 hours ago, HerbalEd said:

Are you taking what you heard from one manager at one Kasikorn bank and extrapolating that on to all Kasikorn banks? 

I assume--maybe wrongly, that the policy applies to all branches since it's usually corporate that decides these type issues not individual branches. I'll ask the manager I know if it's branch specific and get back to the forum. I can't imagine why one branch would have that policy and not all. 

[Bogbrush]

32 minutes ago, max2u said:

Other than one nit to pick re: thousands of branches (more like 1,100 or so) in Thailand (and a handful in other nations) janclaes47's  post perfectly punctures the hot air balloon of presumptuous sliming of Kasikorn (a.k.a Kbank--and formerly Thai Farmers Bank, a longstanding reliable  family (Lamsan)  enterprise (chaired by the grandson of its founder) that is 2nd largest in market cap of the banking sector on the SET.

 

Kbank worked fine for receiving wire transfer of $USD from my US bank to my $USD account at Kbank, and when I withdrew $USD they gave a favorable conversion rate for Bt (which I deposited n my wife's Kbank account). The bank required $5000 $USD be maintained else there'd be a small 'maintenance' fee monthly, and pays no interest on the $USD account, so I keep the account active at $5K solely for the purpose of moving $USD in either direction US<>TH   So yeah, with no interest it's a  hundred or so $/year less in pocket than if I parked the  funds in some  other reliable bank, Stateside. But that's small money for the convenience, and the tellers and management at the few branches we've been to have all been the model of courteousness and good humor, so WTH ! :-)

Thanks for this, but this seems to revolve around $ in to LOS by EFT and vice versa; my dilemma is somewhat different. I want a $ account where I can deposit $ CASH at a Thai branch over the counter, and then have the facility to either withdraw it in $ cash or EFT it overseas. 

 

Will that work, do you think?

[shaurene]

Why do you not go to the banks and ask them. 

[max2u]

1 hour ago, Bogbrush said:

Thanks for this, but this seems to revolve around $ in to LOS by EFT and vice versa; my dilemma is somewhat different. I want a $ account where I can deposit $ CASH at a Thai branch over the counter, and then have the facility to either withdraw it in $ cash or EFT it overseas. 

 

Will that work, do you think?

^ I'm with shaurene  ^ on this.

 

Perhaps  "I would like to open a U.S. dollar-denominated account. How may I put funds into the account, and how may I withdraw funds?"    . .would directly obtain the information you seek

[topt]

1 hour ago, Bogbrush said:

Thanks for this, but this seems to revolve around $ in to LOS by EFT and vice versa; my dilemma is somewhat different. I want a $ account where I can deposit $ CASH at a Thai branch over the counter, and then have the facility to either withdraw it in $ cash or EFT it overseas. 

 

Will that work, do you think?

Already told you above yes you can deposit cash but they will charge you for the privilege and the same to withdraw it.

I suggest you go and ask about online transfers back to the US since as nobody has yet commented it looks like it is not the norm. All the major banks offer FCAs so if Kasikorn don't have what you want then maybe try the others. Bangkok Bank has most of their info available online in English for example.

[max2u]

29 minutes ago, topt said:

Already told you above yes you can deposit cash but they will charge you for the privilege and the same to withdraw it.

I suggest you go and ask about online transfers back to the US since as nobody has yet commented it looks like it is not the norm. All the major banks offer FCAs so if Kasikorn don't have what you want then maybe try the others. Bangkok Bank has most of their info available online in English for example.

google may or may not be our friend, but it has plenty information ;-)

https://www.kasikornbank.com/en/personal/services/payment

 

Edited August 10, 2017 by max2u

[Craig krup]

I'll absolutely guarantee you that if you deposit dollars someone somewhere will take a close look at you to find out where you're getting them from. If you've a dollar deposit from pension or other income in a US account it comes out of the machine in baht. But what would you be doing in Thailand that would mean you had dollar currency in your hand? 

[Bogbrush]

3 hours ago, max2u said:

^ I'm with shaurene  ^ on this.

 

Perhaps  "I would like to open a U.S. dollar-denominated account. How may I put funds into the account, and how may I withdraw funds?"    . .would directly obtain the information you seek

Thank you all for your comments and advice. The main reason for approaching this forum was (1) I thought maybe others had gone down the same road already and (2) there can be a bit of a language barrier at the bank.  I also take note of the post regarding regular $ cash deposits drawing unwanted attention.

[lannarebirth]

5 hours ago, Bogbrush said:

Thanks for this, but this seems to revolve around $ in to LOS by EFT and vice versa; my dilemma is somewhat different. I want a $ account where I can deposit $ CASH at a Thai branch over the counter, and then have the facility to either withdraw it in $ cash or EFT it overseas. 

 

Will that work, do you think?

 

You can do that but bear in mind the 1%  charge each way for deposit and withdrawl.

[inThailand]

If your an American passport holder you can not do anything at K.ass except have a basic saving account.

[topt]

10 hours ago, Craig krup said:

I'll absolutely guarantee you that if you deposit dollars someone somewhere will take a close look at you to find out where you're getting them from

Really - at the moment unless you are talking more than say 10k at a time are you telling us that you know ("absolutely guarantee") that the Thai bank is going to care and do anything about it? How/what will they do?

Since they are not yet part of CRS who are they going to tell...... 

 

PS - as others have said my comments above do not apply if you are from the US.......

[VocalNeal]

19 hours ago, janclaes47 said:

I have a USD and a Euro account at Kasikorn.

 

Both accounts I transferred the money in the respective currency from a bank in my home country.

Yes OK. But the OP wants to transfer the funds out.

 

With regards to raising eyebrows in the OP's case . One would think yes. Someone might wonder where this US currency is coming from that he keeps bringing to the bank. Outgoing transfers less than 9,999 are OK . Above that one has to declare the reason for the transfer.

Edited August 11, 2017 by VocalNeal

[janclaes47]

1 minute ago, VocalNeal said:

Yes OK. But the OP wants to transfer the funds out.

 

I thought he wanted to transfer money into the account, but to answer that question, which applies to all banks in Thailand.

 

He can withdraw foreign currency in cash from the FCD, and will pay 1 - 1.5% commission on that depending on which bank.

 

He can not transfer foreign currency abroad directly from the account,but first has to exchange it to Thai Baht and deposit in a current or deposit account, and then transfer it abroad in Thai Baht.

[Craig krup]

6 hours ago, topt said:

Really - at the moment unless you are talking more than say 10k at a time are you telling us that you know ("absolutely guarantee") that the Thai bank is going to care and do anything about it? How/what will they do?

Since they are not yet part of CRS who are they going to tell...... 

 

PS - as others have said my comments above do not apply if you are from the US.......

 

What could a person be doing that would result in dollars coming into their hands within Thailand? Now there are doubtless many, many innocent things they could be doing. Let me tell you what the manager of the branch will be obliged to think, if he doesn't want to land in the crap himself. 

 

1) You're engaged in some (otherwise legitimate) commercial activity with people (probably farangs) who're paying in dollars, and you can't make the whole thing open. You're working illegally. You're teaching people Thai and you're asking them to pay in dollars. 

 

2) You're involved in something completely nefarious and the trade you're involved in pays in dollars. Drugs would be the most obvious candidate. 

 

You think a pretty autocratic state with a military government won't have procedures in place? You think they're daft? 

[topt]

2 hours ago, Craig krup said:

What could a person be doing that would result in dollars coming into their hands within Thailand?

Who said the $ were obtained in Thailand......

 

2 hours ago, Craig krup said:

You think a pretty autocratic state with a military government won't have procedures in place? You think they're daft? 

No comment

 

So if the person is even asked and says he earned it working offshore what is the bank manager going to do? The point is I don't think we know enough from the OP to make these kind of blanket assertions.

[Craig krup]

43 minutes ago, topt said:

Who said the $ were obtained in Thailand......

 

No comment

 

So if the person is even asked and says he earned it working offshore what is the bank manager going to do? The point is I don't think we know enough from the OP to make these kind of blanket assertions.

Yeah, because the Norwegian oil industry has the guys line up at the end of the month, and a bloke in a Santa outfit with a load of small denomination dollar bills in a windsock, hands out the wages while an elf keeps a paper record. 

 

If you carry $2,000 through the airport and pay it into an account presumably that's fair enough: better rate in Thailand, whatever. But if you're paying it in regularly, and taking it out in dollars....come on!

Edited August 11, 2017 by Craig krup

[Negita43]

I had a Euro account at Kasikorn.

 

Firstly at my branch (I can only speak for my branch) when I wanted convert some Euros in the account to Thai Baht it usually took around  2 hours make the transfer as no one seemed capable of doing the transaction without spending  a long time on the phone to what I took to be their helpline.

Finally, I decided to close the account and send the money back to my home country Euro account via an international bank transfer. I gave them the IBAN, Swift Code etc. I was there with my Thai girlfriend for several hours and they could not do it. In the end I had to wait a week whilst they obtained actual Euros which I now have to take back to Europe next time I go.NOT my way of doing things as I like to be able to have a paper trail to show should I need to.

 

As I said in another post. My advice - if you can, keep your foreign money offshore  where customer service and international banking is understood.