I just came to Taiwan a month ago. I was shopping around for banks that would meet my needs.
My needs being, that I need to be able to deposit Canadian cheques that are in my name and bank back home, into an account here and then withdraw the money once it clears.
The one bank I went into does not clear international cheques, but she referred me to C******* in Kaohsiung on Wufu Rd.
The lady behind the counter spoke English and said that it was their policy not to open accounts for foreigners that cannot speak fluent Chinese.
I told her I was studying Chinese, and she said that would be ok.
I think she went in the bank to ask the manager to make sure it was ok, the manager came back with her and said, since I didn’t know enough Chinese, I was best to take my business to another bank.
I told her that was a racist action… and that I would be making a complaint with the C******* head office in the USA.
She said it was not her decision, it was head offices.
The next day, I stopped in at another bank at Zhongzheng and Zhonghua. I inquired about their fees. The man behind the counter put me through on the phone with a lady with exceptionally good English, and she said that “my needs will be better served elsewhere” because the paperwork is complicated, go to another bank.
I cant help but feel there is a strong racist element, or at the very least, a could not be bothered with foreigners attitude that really sucks.
Then i went to Land Bank, and the treatment was like night and day… I was treated really well, with me speaking the limited Chinese that I know…that part was redeeming.
no such thing as racism. definitely not in Taiwan, anyroad. just too much bother for them to deal with you. another branch of the same bank may well have been totally different, of course.
umm, so was that Shittibank you’re complaining about here? they have very little to do with their parent company in the USA, apparently, and judging by the parent company’s recent performance perhaps that’s a good thing.
Also, don’t forget that you pay nothing to use the banks here, whereas in many other countries there is a substantial fee to operate an account.
Please go ahead and name the banks. This is important information about customer service, and the public has a right to know and share such information.
On depositing N. American checks and taking new foreign customers, Citibank has a poor record in my sexperience. Oops, typo, but too good to fix.
I know there is no fees to do banking here, but the bank does not know how much money I will bring to them.
Also, they will get their blood out of me anyway (with the foreign cheque clearing charge )
It was Shittibank to urodacus who guessed it, and the other bank was Cathay United.
The lady at Cathay did give me the fee price i requested, but then proceeded to say that i would be best served elsewhere. She didnt outright say I couldnt open an account, but I was told that it would be too complicated.
And the float they earn before crediting the funds to your account.
[quote]It was Shittibank to urodacus who guessed it, and the other bank was Cathay United.
The lady at Cathay did give me the fee price i requested, but then proceeded to say that I would be best served elsewhere. She didnt outright say I couldnt open an account, but I was told that it would be too complicated.[/quote]
It’s not racism. It’s ‘couldn’t be arsed’ mentality. Just take it to another bank like Fubon, and chalk it off to experience.
OP-maybe all the forms are in Chinese, and you need a Chinese name to open the account. They don’t know how /can’t be bothered to help you complete this process. Maybe you can take a Taiwanese friend to go to the bank with you and help you do all the paperwork.
A long, looooong time ago I asked about opening an account at Citibank, and they told me there was something like a $150,000 NT minimum deposit to open one. I had no trouble opening one with peanuts at Taipei Fubon, though.
Actually I have a chinese name and all the paperwork.
I made an attempt to say all the words i had learned in a month with them (albeit poorly) and she understood me as her English ability was very good.
I know I could get a Chinese friend to come, but they outright said, if I cant speak Chinese fluently, then no dice.
Me neither, and I’ve been a customer of almost all banks here.
I can give an example -even in Chinese, it took the guys at Chinatrust more than one whole hour to open my account. The government makes them do a lot of stuff to make sure we do not run away with their (??!!) money (taxes, especially).
It is a discriminatory practice, yes. It was a silly excuse, yes. But the fact remains they can deny service based on “do not bother us, we have enough troubles already”.
And yes, do as Hannes suggests, never go to the bank sloppily dressed. Many Taiwanese, thanks to the media, have a very low view of furriners. Looks are everything. So is exceptional patience and perseverance necessary in most endeveaours and exchanges involving services.
Stick to the ones that people here suggest, true and tried. As Dragonbones says, Fubon is all rightie -except for credit cards, IMHO. I like MEGA Bank, too.
I’ve had surprisingly good luck with Taiwan Credit Cooperative. It is one of Taiwan’s biggest and oldest state-run banks and has branches everywhere. Unlike some of the private banks, they really want your business.
I have tried for many years to get overseas checks cashed by Taiwanese banks. My understanding is that you need a corporate account. A few banks are willing to allow you to do this if you keep NT$150K in the account.
The local subsidiaries of foreign banks (HSBC etc) are really more like franchises. In any event, unless you have lots of money, they provide no more service than regular Taiwanese banks. Plus they have lots of attitude despite their poor service.
None of this this is racism. Taiwanese banks (and many other things) are highly regulated and bureaucratic organizations that are not set up to accommodate foreigners in English or Chinese. They find this hard to explain, and may resort to silly excuses in hopes that you will go away. Stay calm and polite and in there bank. Eventually someone will help you.
Cashed? Not gonna happen. Deposited and held for a month or more, if you have already set up an account, yes.
Money orders? You might be able to get a cashier’s check in USD. (I do at one US bank but they would not serve you as you are not an established business customer.)
Citibank Asia behaves like its own company and in my experience is generally hostile to foreigners. It’s best not to even think of it as an American bank. I’ll second (or third?) the recommendation for Taipei Fubon. Their service was always excellent and cordial.
Then I went to Land Bank, and the treatment was like night and day… I was treated really well, with me speaking the limited Chinese that I know…that part was redeeming.[/quote]
just too much bother for them to deal with you. another branch of the same bank may well have been totally different, of course.
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