Singapore Expats

Hello,

My family is relocating in six weeks to Singapore. I will open an account with a local bank when we arrive, however, we now use Bank of America. I have heard that it is in singapore and others have told me they have closed. Can anyone help me out? It would be nice to have a bank with offices both there and here in the states.

Thank you!

Sorry to inform you, but you will not be able to do any "US" banking in Singapore. Citibank has the approval to have accounts here now, but no other US banks have any presence.
Suggest that you set up an account with DBS when you get here; they have the best range of ATMs and branches in Singapore.
Regards, another american client of BofA

Bank America client also wrote:Sorry to inform you, but you will not be able to do any "US" banking in Singapore. Citibank has the approval to have accounts here now, but no other US banks have any presence.
Suggest that you set up an account with DBS when you get here; they have the best range of ATMs and branches in Singapore.

And note that even if you go for Citibank, this won't actually help out much -- you'll still have to pay steep transfer fees to get money out of a US account etc. Their credit cards are popular in Sing, but they have (AFAIK) no ATM network at all.

Speaking of which, I've always wondered why a country that so prides itself on technological prowess is unable to make its ATMs interoperate...!?

jpatokal wrote:Speaking of which, I've always wondered why a country that so prides itself on technological prowess is unable to make its ATMs interoperate...!?

Hi, dont confuse "inability" with "choose not to". At the risk of being flamed, I work for one of the credit card companies ... It's entirely feasible (from a technology point of view) to make all of them interoperate. However, for business ( ) reasons, they choose not to.
Sorry.

Also heard that Bank of America was here, but have yet to see any trace of it. Did it die already? If so, no great loss. Many bad experiences with them and their so-called "customer service".

Yutenji wrote:

jpatokal wrote:Speaking of which, I've always wondered why a country that so prides itself on technological prowess is unable to make its ATMs interoperate...!?

Hi, dont confuse "inability" with "choose not to". At the risk of being flamed, I work for one of the credit card companies ... It's entirely feasible (from a technology point of view) to make all of them interoperate. However, for business ( ) reasons, they choose not to.
Sorry.

Ooh! If you have the inside scoop can you tell me why? Because right now DBS/POSB has an overwhelming advantage in ATM availability, and I don't understand why at least UOB and OCBC don't team up to share their ATMs. (I understand perfectly well why nobody is teaming up with Maybank, but that's another story )

Hi, Honestly, the only inside facts I can offer is that it is entirely possible to make the systems interoperate. Your example of DBS/POSB is a good one. (There's one more example, below).
Although I'd love to brag and claim that I KNOW exactly why they don't want to hook up, I can really only offer an educated theory based on my dealings with them ... although its less convenient for the customer, having non-connected ATM networks helps the banks to differentiate their service offerings and actually discourages customers from 'hopping' from one bank to another. Case in point ... I have a DBS account for the -only- reason that it gives me access to their ATM network, which has the best coverage islandwide (because of their hookup with POSB). If I could use their ATMs with my HSBC (for example) ATM card, then I would ditch the DBS account in a heartbeat.

So, my point is, its a business decision rather than a technology limitation. Based on your other postings I'm confident you'll already appreciate this point, but for the benefit of anyone else reading this, please remember ... the banks are there to make a profit, and (despite all their publicity to the contrary) providing convenience to the customer is a secondary consideration.

Btw, Maybank, HSBC and Standard Chartered ATMs all interoperate, not that that exactly provides a vast network.
Cheers.

Yutenji wrote:Btw, Maybank, HSBC and Standard Chartered ATMs all interoperate, not that that exactly provides a vast network.

I wonder how Singapore's (extremely restrictive) banking regulations fit into this... I seem to recall that non-Singaporean banks were allowed a grand total of six (6) ATMs each islandwide, but there was some talk about relaxing this.

jpatokal wrote:I seem to recall that non-Singaporean banks were allowed a grand total of six (6) ATMs each islandwide, but there was some talk about relaxing this.

Hi, yes I believe that still applies for most of the foreign banks, but a new category Qualified Full Bank was introduced about 3 or 4 years back. I don't remember all the details but basically it was to appease the foreign banks a bit and give the local banks a wake-up call in the form of more competition. QFB's can have upto 15 'service locations' (25 from 1/1/2005) of which a max of 10 are brick and mortar (the remainder being off-site ATMs).
QFBs so far are: ABN-Amro, Citigroup, HSBC, Maybank, Standard Chartered and BNP Paribas.

Cheers

Actually, there is a Bank of America "branch" in Singapore! Here are the details:

Bank of America - (65) 6 239 3888

I talked to Miss Diana Lee at: (65) 6 239 3021

Don't ask me where they are located. I'm not sure. The deal with Bank of America in Singapore is a little cloudy to me. It appears they operate very much separate and autonomous from what is otherwise "Bank of America" in the US. Similar in fact to the California Bank of America banks in that State. Might as well call it "Bank of Not America", it doesn't matter what they name it.

However, I am a highly satisfied customer for both my personal and business accounts with them, and I plan to relocate my business to SG early next yr, and open a BOA account in SG. Why? Because I expect to get paid in USD into my Florida bank account, and I RAVE the new transfer feature they offer in online banking. As I understand it, I can transfer my USD funds into my Singapore account instantly at the click of my button. However, I can transfer my funds from my BOF account in the USA to any other bank account in Singapore. But it probably has to be a USD bank account. Haven't researched that far yet... But so far, I love the 21st century and Bank of America, because I haven't found another US bank that offers this service from your browser. And at NO COST. If you try a wire transfer, there is a fee. Enjoy.

Seems like some people don't get the point that in sg there is NOT a free banking environment. I've heard that the govn't is affraid that their own banks here couldn't compete if it were free. When you do see sign for American Express Bank, UBS Bank etc. these are not retail banks, but more like investment braches for institutions, etc. Sg likes to present itself as a sort of Switzerland of Asia, but it really isn't.

So dear one straight question, is it possible to get money transfer from my brother BOA account to my DBS account in Singapore. Thats is through internet.
For example Now, I can transfer money from my DBS account to my sister ICICI account in India.

bluewater wrote:Actually, there is a Bank of America "branch" in Singapore! Here are the details:

Bank of America - (65) 6 239 3888

I talked to Miss Diana Lee at: (65) 6 239 3021

Don't ask me where they are located. I'm not sure. The deal with Bank of America in Singapore is a little cloudy to me. It appears they operate very much separate and autonomous from what is otherwise "Bank of America" in the US. Similar in fact to the California Bank of America banks in that State. Might as well call it "Bank of Not America", it doesn't matter what they name it.

However, I am a highly satisfied customer for both my personal and business accounts with them, and I plan to relocate my business to SG early next yr, and open a BOA account in SG. Why? Because I expect to get paid in USD into my Florida bank account, and I RAVE the new transfer feature they offer in online banking. As I understand it, I can transfer my USD funds into my Singapore account instantly at the click of my button. However, I can transfer my funds from my BOF account in the USA to any other bank account in Singapore. But it probably has to be a USD bank account. Haven't researched that far yet... But so far, I love the 21st century and Bank of America, because I haven't found another US bank that offers this service from your browser. And at NO COST. If you try a wire transfer, there is a fee. Enjoy.

After 3 months of searching, i chanced upon a Bank of America office yesterday!

the sign says its the "Bank of America regional office" and it occupies about 2-3 floors so i guess it should have enough banking facilities? i found it after banking hours so i haven't had a chance to check it out. I sure hope it all links back to the California BOA or else i'll finally give up and get an account with a local bank.

Meanwhile, FYI, BOA is at
Republic Plaza Tower 1, 9 Raffles Place #18-00. Republic Plaza Tower 1. Singapore 048619.
Tel: 62393888 (General)

cheerio!