Foreigners and Singapore banks

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat, 03 Sep 2005 1:25 pm

I am a US resident who will be living in Hawaii for a few years and plan to retire in Thailand in the near future.I would like to open a Singapore account and was wondering if a US citizen with a US or Thai residence address can do so.Must one have a Singapore residence or other legal requirements?I also have a Singapore dollar account with Everbank and can I wire it to a Singapore bank?

Light · Post by **Light** » Wed, 02 Nov 2005 12:27 am

This reply may be a bit late, but...

Yes, it's possible to open a Singapore account using a foreign address.
You must be present with proper documentation to open the account, as they will need to authenticate your signatures and etc.

I would recommend HSBC if you need to access the account from overseas location often.

Best,

Light

Scorpion · Post by **Scorpion** » Wed, 02 Nov 2005 2:01 am

Light wrote:This reply may be a bit late, but...

Yes, it's possible to open a Singapore account using a foreign address.
You must be present with proper documentation to open the account, as they will need to authenticate your signatures and etc.

I would recommend HSBC if you need to access the account from overseas location often.

Best,

Light

Is it really possible to open an account in singapore, if you are not a resident here?

Vaucluse · Post by **Vaucluse** » Wed, 02 Nov 2005 12:38 pm

Is it really possible to open an account in singapore, if you are not a resident here?

Not as far as I know.

Light, where do you get your information?

Light · Post by **Light** » Thu, 03 Nov 2005 11:23 pm

I did it myself at HSBC, prior to moving to Singapore, using my US address.

Light · Post by **Light** » Thu, 03 Nov 2005 11:25 pm

HSBC sent all mail correspondences to my US address, including the Debit card and password info.

Scorpion · Post by **Scorpion** » Fri, 04 Nov 2005 1:08 am

Light wrote:I did it myself at HSBC, prior to moving to Singapore, using my US address.

Hi light, where you working here in singapore at the time of opening the account in the singapore HSBC.

Light · Post by **Light** » Fri, 04 Nov 2005 6:36 am

I wasn't working here in Singapore at the time. It was prior to my moving to Singapore and working here.

Vaucluse · Post by **Vaucluse** » Fri, 04 Nov 2005 12:08 pm

Interesting, I didn't think it was possible. Thanks for the info.

ashley66 · Post by **ashley66** » Tue, 28 Feb 2006 12:42 am

i heard that citibank can help you open a/c without you having to come to singapore. If you are interested to know more, pm me.

Oriental · Post by **Oriental** » Sat, 04 Mar 2006 10:53 am

Yep, Citibank will open an account for you even as a non-resident. It will be done through their International Personal Bank though, which is similar to an offshore bank. You can open an account in various currencies SGD/USD/EUR. They will issue an ATM card and a checkbook so that you can withdraw cash and make SGD payments.

Citibank’s service is however somewhat varying which can be a nuisance at times.

Post by **Strong Eagle** » Sat, 04 Mar 2006 2:53 pm

Oriental wrote:Yep, Citibank will open an account for you even as a non-resident. It will be done through their International Personal Bank though, which is similar to an offshore bank. You can open an account in various currencies SGD/USD/EUR. They will issue an ATM card and a checkbook so that you can withdraw cash and make SGD payments.

Citibank’s service is however somewhat varying which can be a nuisance at times.

Citibank is also very expensive. You must keep $20,000 US on balance else face $35 US monthly charges.

UOB will open an account for a non resident. What you need is a letter of introduction from someone who has an account there. Take your passport and letter and presto, you get a checking account and debit card. I did this for an employee of mine working and living in KL who wanted to be paid in Singapore.

Oriental · Post by **Oriental** » Sat, 04 Mar 2006 5:20 pm

Strong Eagle wrote:UOB will open an account for a non resident. What you need is a letter of introduction from someone who has an account there. Take your passport and letter and presto, you get a checking account and debit card. I did this for an employee of mine working and living in KL who wanted to be paid in Singapore.

I approached UOB but the service was horrible. Tried 3 different branches but were unable to open a personal account. It’s not that I’m trying to rob the place for crying out loud. All I want is to deposit an amount at a ridiculously low interest – but no! What if I’ve asked for a loan, God forbid, I may have been thrown face down, and on top of that been asked to pay a “handling”

fx8fx · Post by **fx8fx** » Fri, 17 Mar 2006 9:08 pm

Oriental wrote:
Strong Eagle wrote:UOB will open an account for a non resident. What you need is a letter of introduction from someone who has an account there. Take your passport and letter and presto, you get a checking account and debit card. I did this for an employee of mine working and living in KL who wanted to be paid in Singapore.

I approached UOB but the service was horrible. Tried 3 different branches but were unable to open a personal account. It’s not that I’m trying to rob the place for crying out loud. All I want is to deposit an amount at a ridiculously low interest – but no! What if I’ve asked for a loan, God forbid, I may have been thrown face down, and on top of that been asked to pay a “handling”

ddt77 · Post by **ddt77** » Fri, 14 Apr 2006 3:34 pm

Citiank would be a great choice, Cos i have an account with them as a CitiGold Customer. Great services and privileges.
The bank itself is very established in Global banking as well, it really save me a lot of trouble!!They even helped me in getting me the loan for my property in Singapore.

The local banks are not so impressive. OCBC bank wasnt really helpful in helping me to get an account in Singapore.

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Foreigners and Singapore banks

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