Well I had two choices really – use my UK bank account and withdraw cash via ATMs on a regular basis – and get hit with the Cash withdraw and FX currency conversion costs each time, or set-up and utilise a local bank account for my daily allowance and therefore reduce the currency conversion and bank charges I incur.
Well I chose the optimal route of a setting up a local account, so having received some details from my relocation company as to recommended bank organisations – ranging from Standard Charter, HSBC, Citibank, DBS or UOB – I then had to determine what I really wanted from the account.
I decided to go with DBS because the Savings Account only required a SGD$500 deposit, versus the SGD$1k or SGD1,500 that some of the others required (which I didn’t have available). I also liked the wide DBS branch network (48) within Singapore and free ATM withdrawers, which others would charge SGD$0.30. It soon mounts up!
And whilst the saving interest rate was quite low – I think it was 0.1%, the account will be available to me for the 6 months without significant charge. Good thing about Singapore banking is that they issue you a Debit Card, enrol you into ATM Cash Access, enrol you into Internet Banking, Hard-Token (for Internet Banking) during the first meeting! So you leave with the account set-up – WoW!
There are some charges to monitor:
- minimum balance of SGD$500 daily average or fee of SGD $2 per month
- if I lose the hard-token, then SGD$20
- if I require a statement re-print, then SHD$20
So in short, service charges galore – but at least I get free ATM Cash Access at 900 ATMs in DBS/POSB Singapore and free access to ATMs at DBS Taiwan and DBS Hong Kong – nice!! 🙂