What does it take to get a credit card in this town?

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  1. #31

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    I've done my homework. 4.3% is HSBC's "rack rate" for AUD time deposits of 9 months for about HK$1M equivalent.


  2. #32

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    ok. then fair statement to make about your 25k hkd losses.
    i thought premier wld give closer to market rate for deposit.. hmm.. guess i'd find another bank to start a premier account


  3. #33

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    i got denied by the citibank cathay pacific miles card. I called twice and they couldn't give me a reason.
    i think it's absolutely ASININE that Citibank in US and Citibank HK do not talk to each other. they run on completely different systems. I can't even transfer money online from my us CItibank account to HK Citibank account without them charging me US$30! Screw that...
    I have two other Premier/Elite US citibank cards yet Citibank HK won't acknowledge it.
    I've applied for it again, let's see where this gets me this time...
    and this interest rate in HK is absolutely ridiculous- opened up a local citibank account and ended up not really using it except for occasional incidentals. I still come out on top staying with my 5% APR Citibank e-savings account in the US and being charged with local maintenance fees for a low bank account balance in hk rather than dealing with this joke of an interest rate.
    for such a pinnacle of uber-hyper-capitalism place the banking system is sure a drag.

    Last edited by Mr.Bing; 05-03-2007 at 02:42 AM.

  4. #34

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    Sep 2004
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    483

    I have to admit, HK banking is one of the weirdest I've come across WW. We've had accounts in Denmark, UK, Belgium, USA and all of them were easier to deal w/ than the guys here. It took me 3 tries to get a credit card, and 6 tries to get my octopus card linked to my credit card. That's not to mention all the hidden fees that seem to crop up (yes, I know the bank sends me a full list of fees and services, but short of being a pshysic, I don't know how anyone figures it out). Here's my own funny story w/ Citibank:

    Me: I'd like to know cheapest way to transfer US$ into my acct
    Bank: You can transfer by wire to your savings account
    Me: How much does that cost?
    Bank: ...gives some rate....
    Me: Is there anything cheaper?
    Bank: No
    Me: What if I open a US$ account
    Bank: Oh yes, that is different...gives me a new fee...
    Me: Is there anything cheaper?
    Bank: No
    Me: What if I deposit a US check into a US$ account
    Bank: Oh yes, that is free
    Me: Really? You mean no fee, completely free, zero dollars?
    Bank: Yes
    Me: Can you show me that in writing in the fees & services booklet?
    Bank: Ummm, I'm sorry, I am not sure....
    Me: OK...what's the catch, then?
    Bank: Oh, there is no catch
    Me: Can I access the money right away?
    Bank: Oh no, of course you must wait 4 weeks
    Me: Amazing...you have been so helpful (dripping sarcasm)

    Amazingly enough, it is COMPLETELY free for me to deposit a US$ (foreign bank) check into my US$ account here (any amount), but you do have to wait 4 weeks (which is of course where the bank makes it's money). Still can't find this "free" service in writing anywhere...

    Now, applying for a Cathay miles credit card, and curious to see how it'll go.

    Last edited by nina_70; 05-03-2007 at 11:24 AM.

  5. #35

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    i think u have to think in the context of hk.
    if the default rate is high, i.e. people scramble off after chalking up a large debt, like what one guy was asking about a few months back, then they have all their basis to be cautious issuing cards to foreigners.

    remember, your contract and account wiht citi US is different from what you have with citi hk. if u bail out, citi hk would not be able to claim anything from your account holding in citi US.

    i am not sure how it works between different countries in the EU now..

    and the locals do get to apply as many credit cards as they want. the process is easy and low hurdle.


  6. #36

    Join Date
    May 2005
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    Quote Originally Posted by nina_70:
    ...Amazingly enough, it is COMPLETELY free for me to deposit a US$ (foreign bank) check into my US$ account here (any amount), but you do have to wait 4 weeks...
    HSBC charged me $200 to deposit a GBP cheque into my GBP account. On top of that the UK bank had a charge too. The whole thing took four weeks too. The time it takes seems to be standard but your being charged nothing seems a good deal if you do this often.

  7. #37

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    i have a brokerage account that they themselves have probably a few branches all over the world.

    i pass them a HKD cheque in sg, they send it to their hk branch and bank in for me, forex it to me at sharp rate and i can draw SGD in sg for that.


  8. #38

    Join Date
    Aug 2005
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    238

    i've been going around to several bank branches to shop for better interest rates. The lack of professionalism I've come across has been startling. Some examples:

    - When I asked a DBS representative whether it was possible to trade US stocks with their Treasures securities account, she went over and asked the security guard if he knew the answer.

    - A Dah Sing bank branch did not have a single employee inside.

    - A Citibank officer said that they can only quote time deposit rates to existing customers (?!)


  9. #39

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    Fo Tan
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    Quote Originally Posted by nina_70:
    Now, applying for a Cathay miles credit card, and curious to see how it'll go.
    It took us about a month to get that. And, at one point in time, they told us we were rejected.

  10. #40

    Join Date
    Sep 2004
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    483
    Quote Originally Posted by discobay:
    HSBC charged me $200 to deposit a GBP cheque into my GBP account. On top of that the UK bank had a charge too. The whole thing took four weeks too. The time it takes seems to be standard but your being charged nothing seems a good deal if you do this often.
    Yup...when we 1st came over we were getting paid by US$ check for months, so this was really important. We still get checks every now and then from US, and use this as the main method to put money from our US account into our HK account. We're standard customers (not Premier status or anything like that). The wierd thing is that the deposit shows a charge, which is then "waived", so free in other words. It's been like this for the past 3 years I've been here. I'm sure it's a loophole which they'll close as soon as they read this message....

    Still don't understand the fee system...it's one of those crazy HK bank things, where you have to ask 100 questions to get the right answer.
    Last edited by nina_70; 06-03-2007 at 11:07 AM.