I'm pretty sure that is an error by the local HSBC staff - we had this discussion recently and that is how it turned out in the Canada case.
See this thread: http://www.geoexpat.com/forum/thread50831-3.html
and specifically post #25.
I'm pretty sure that is an error by the local HSBC staff - we had this discussion recently and that is how it turned out in the Canada case.
See this thread: http://www.geoexpat.com/forum/thread50831-3.html
and specifically post #25.
PDLM is quite right. There is NO DOUBT that you only need to maintain the amount in one account. It is not exactly HKD1mil though - the different places have a different amount (in their local currency) which approximates to HKD1mil. I have 3 premier accounts - two of them fall far short of the requirement (one is the HK one) and I have never had a problem with this.
You DO have to define the HOST account though (I believe that is the correct terminology) - it is the HOST account that must be funded. So, if you were Premier in France, and had the money in it, but now are moving most of that money to HK, then you should change which bank is the host. What you SHOULD NOT do is split your funds between the two ... that doesn't work!
That's right i've just open recently a premier account in France and one in HK.
In France the minimum balance is 75,000 € but they said "no matter if you don't have it, you got one year to reach this amount" so they take into account other critera such as your age, profil and salary to determine your potential.
In fact, i have only 3,000 € on my premier account in France and I only pay it 1€ / month.
I opened a Premier Account in Wanchai on Mon 28th Sep.
..This is my first HSBC account so HK will be my host country for Premier.
I was not going to open Premier as I don't envisage putting HK$1m into it, however (for some reason unknown to me) they have waivered any fees for the first year. If at the end of the year I decide I won't hold 1mil and don't want to incurr any charges I can close or downgrade for free.
Sounds like a good deal to me as I'm going to now open a Premier account in the UK and transfer money for free for the next 12 months.
One thing I'm not clear about (Feel free to advise if you know!) is my account includes a Sterling account and I have actually put some GBP straight into it...however I dson't know how I transfer this into HK$ so I can withdraw with ATM????
Thanks
Most HSBC Premier accounts have a minimum balance if you go below this you will incur a fee. The fee varies from country to country. Sometimes HSBC has special deals to keep customers happy.
They normally open you two 'accounts'. One is a savings, one is a current. When you take money from an ATM or use EPS you will have the option to choose which account you take the money from. Cheques will come from your current account.
If you have money in different currencies the best way to access this is to transfer online from the other currency account to your HK$ account. This is one of the reasons Premier is good, because you can move money around the world in different currencies for no fee.
I got this info from someone who works at the bank so hopefully it's helpful
Make a free online transfer from your GBP account in the UK to your GBP account in HK (all HK premier accounts have about 10 different currency accounts set up under the one umbrella for free) - you use "global view" to do this and you need to have them both set up first and connected. Then make a currency conversation from your HK GBP account to your HK HKD account. Voila - access by ATM.
I started off with an HSBC Premier relationship in Canada. I immediately opened an account in both Hong Kong and the USA while in Canada. The account package that came with the Hong Kong account included a letter that basically stated the following:
"Because of your existing Premier relationship in Canada, the below balance fee of HK$380 for a balance of below HK$1 million will not apply to you".
I have been quite happy with the service (except my Canadian RM stuffed up the HK credit card, but I have it in my hand now) and the global transfers in real-time through Global View have been amazing. The exchange rates are also very good when done through Global View.
I have been told that I may switch my host account any time when I want. I am leaving my Canadian account as my host account which requires CAD$100,000 (approximately HK$720,000) and I have less than HK$20,000 sitting in my HK Premier account with no problems so far. HSBC told me that you must meet the qualification in one country only and that's good enough to have the requirement waived in every other country (i.e. you cannot combine balances from more than one country to qualify). I just transfer minimal amounts at a time from my Canadian account for use in HK and it's working out very well.
Last edited by tng11; 01-10-2009 at 09:16 AM.