Is anyone doing online banking in English with a Taiwanese bank and happy with the web interface? I am currently forced by work to use First Bank and it kinda sucks. Does Citi offer this? When I go to their online demo it switches from English to Chinese which seems common.
I gave up on looking for online banking in English. As long as companies only deposit payroll directly into accounts of the bank where they do business, it’s kind of a moot point for me.
Mega Bank has a pretty good online banking site in English. megabank.com.tw/ You can only really see it if you go there for a demo or after you get your account. I have both a US dollar account and an NTD account, have used their wire transfer service and also transferred money to other banks I have accounts with.
Service at the bank is good too. Lines are not too long.
When I click on the English link, I just get corporate info but no access to my account. Can you tell me which link gets me to my account in English?
Sorry, forgot that part. You have to activate the on-line banking at the bank. They will give you an ID and password which you have to use in 30 days. I learned this from experience. Seems that is the way in Taiwan. My wife had to do the same thing for her Bank of Taiwan account. The online banking at Mega Bank is much preferable to the Bank of Taiwan online banking,
I really like HSBC Direct…it’s an online service only, but it covers the basics. You get a debit card, you can have multiple account numbers, including a usd account and you can transfer money overseas.
The English website is excellent. I also use Megabank, and I much prefer the hsbc. The site is more straightforward and user friendly. I use it to pay bills and transfer money home. The drawbacks are minor to me: you can’t use your bank card outside of Taiwan, and you have to designate accounts for bank transfers in advance and can’t make transfers to random accounts (for example if you buy something online and they want a bank transfer)
But if you want something just to pay your rent, store cash, and send money in US currency, it’s perfect.
It’s not as difficult as getting an account at the regular HSBC bank. You basically need just an ARC and a job with steady income to apply. The sales rep meets with you once at your office or coffee shop and then youre on your way.
I use Mega-bank, they have a complete English interface. Highly recommend it.
Just a note about transferring to accounts not designated in advance - if you don’t speak Chinese you might not be aware of the web ATM services available in Taiwan.
You need to buy a card reader (available almost anywhere including 7-11 for $150-$200) and use it with your IC card and an online ATM service (google.com.tw/search?hl=zh-T … =&gs_rfai=)
That will let you transfer money to any account of your choice but the regular ATM limit of $30,000 per day applies.
You can avoid the limit for paying credit card bills, tax etc. by using the bill pay function of these services.