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ccie6961
Lurker
Joined: Apr 09, 2007
Posts: 37
Location: Zhongshan Park
Status: Offline
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 Posted:
Dec 03, 2007 - 12:26 PM |
 
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| Post subject: bank check, online banking and credit card? |
I can tell cash is the most common way of payment here, ATM seconds. just curious, are checks also used by individuals and companies?
I just opened an account at Bank of China and particularly asked for online banking. it seems that additional info or a different type of account is required. is online banking or bill pay also popular here?
what about credit cards? do they require extra balances in your bank account? how rampant is credit card scam? any credit card do you recommend in Shanghai?
Thanks for info. |
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adrenochrome
Reacher
Joined: July 28, 2004
Posts: 217
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 12:45 PM |
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Hi There,
as far as i know (last time I checked) online banking was only (if) available in Chinese at the Major chinese banks.
As u said, this is a cash society, checks being not used here at all (this not being the US, or UK). Paying bills online works to some extent from some banks but i would not count on it. Also, usually the interface is in Chinese only.
Suggest you keep your US credit card until u r satisfied with the service local banks offer here. Suggest Citibank or HSBC.
Cheers,
Adreno |
_________________
'Sex' is not the answer, 'sex' is the question. The answer is 'yes'  |
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me_myself_&_i
Reacher
Joined: Oct 15, 2007
Posts: 244
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 01:11 PM |
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Adam7
Rocker
Joined: May 11, 2004
Posts: 759
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 02:12 PM |
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Different banks offer different services, internet banking is mostly for checking your balance, not very sophisticated, when it is available.
Cheques (please spell it right) are only for company to company payments.
And whatever you do... DONT FOLD A CHEQUE!
Basically, the banking system is still in the stone-age aside from possibly CMB's credit cards. |
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Why? Just tell me why? |
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Synergys
Lurker
Joined: Sep 21, 2007
Posts: 20
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 03, 2007 - 02:33 PM |
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Anyone know if standing order can be done for fixed monthly payment such as house rental ? I tried checking at BOC but the cashier told be that it is not possible. What about other local bank ? Do they accept standing instruction ? |
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p1atl10
Board Royalty
Joined: Mar 18, 2005
Posts: 6296
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 03:44 PM |
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Cheques (please spell it right) are only for company to company payments.
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Adam7,
I do not write CHECKS anymore from my BoA On-Line CHECKING Account. (And that is how they spell it.) God Bless America! 
Synergys,
I do not know about a house rental. Is it to a management company?
I use ICBC and do have them automatically deduct my China Mobile mobile phone bill every month. |
_________________
Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer.....Dave Barry |
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jzzzzzzz
SuperStar
Joined: July 07, 2006
Posts: 1390
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 05:05 PM |
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| p1atl10 wrote: |
I do not write CHECKS anymore from my BoA On-Line CHECKING Account. (And that is how they spell it.) God Bless America!
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I like to think of it as Traditional and Simplified English  |
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p1atl10
Board Royalty
Joined: Mar 18, 2005
Posts: 6296
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 03, 2007 - 05:41 PM |
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_________________
Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer.....Dave Barry |
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Synergys
Lurker
Joined: Sep 21, 2007
Posts: 20
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 04, 2007 - 04:55 PM |
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platl10,
It is to my landlord who is also account holder in the same bank. If you are able to setup standing order for your China Mobile that direct debit different figures every month, then I believe they should be able to do the same for fixed payment. Will try to check with ICBC. |
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p1atl10
Board Royalty
Joined: Mar 18, 2005
Posts: 6296
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 04, 2007 - 08:16 PM |
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Good Luck!
You never know here...sometimes things that make sense,... you cannot do.
Sometimes things you least expect are "do-able"...are!
It's never boring here!!! |
_________________
Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer.....Dave Barry |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 08, 2007 - 09:28 PM |
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| Adam7 wrote: |
| Basically, the banking system is still in the stone-age aside from possibly CMB's credit cards. |
CMB's credit card and related services are as bad as any other's -- and usually even worse. Do you actually have a clue about what you are talking about? |
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ganggangdezw
Squeeker
Joined: Nov 29, 2007
Posts: 11
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 09, 2007 - 02:52 AM |
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ganggangdezw
Squeeker
Joined: Nov 29, 2007
Posts: 11
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 09, 2007 - 02:56 AM |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 09, 2007 - 09:00 AM |
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Not sure what "English call service" is. Please translate that phrase from Chinglish to some semblance of English.
You are lying when you say that they all support online banking in English. Don't you actually follow the links you post to make sure you don't end up looking stupid when they ultimately don't lead to where you tell people they do?
Fact: Of the banks listed, only ICBC has online personal banking in English.
Fact: Of the banks you listed, other than ICBC, only Bank of China has a form of online banking in English, but even that is only for corporate banking.
As for telephone banking services, only Bank of China, ICBC and China Merchants Bank offer this service in English. China Construction Bank does not.
If you don't know what you are talking about, at least learn to use Google correctly and actually follow the links to their ultimate destination. |
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بارك الله ، بارك الله |
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pj4701
Seeker
Joined: Dec 08, 2007
Posts: 54
Status: Offline
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Dec 09, 2007 - 09:46 AM |
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Ccie,
Welcome to Shanghai. If I had to set up banking again, I'd still go with Bank of China, but no net service even though I've signed up. For reasons I'll never understand, it doesn't work. Keep an account in the States and a credit card if you can, and when you open a local account, ask for VIP service. It requires a large deposit (maybe 50,000RMB) but you go to the head of the line when you go to a branch-and the lines can be quite long! It takes me from 1 to 3 hours to pay rent, and VIP would skip the queue. If you wire money in, see if it can be wired in RMB instead of USD, as the conversion is a similar time sink. All transactions require going to a branch, waiting in line, and having your passport. Be patient, and Welcome! |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 09, 2007 - 09:50 AM |
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Actually, Bank of China online banking works perfectly -- but only in Chinese. They do not have English service.
In Bank of China a 50,000 RMB deposit gets you ZERO. You need 500,000 minimum balance to be considered a VIP customer. Other banks have different amounts, but generally about 200,000 RMB. |
_________________
بارك الله ، بارك الله |
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gw4khq
Reacher
Joined: Nov 13, 2006
Posts: 262
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Dec 09, 2007 - 10:44 AM |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 09, 2007 - 11:04 AM |
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^ Yup. Better than nothing.
However, BOC's online banking services in Chinese are not that difficult to use even for those with no Chinese language skills. The interface is pretty logicially set out and you can easily transfer funds between your accounts and pay your credit card bill without major screw-ups. |
_________________
بارك الله ، بارك الله |
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ganggangdezw
Squeeker
Joined: Nov 29, 2007
Posts: 11
Location: Shanghai
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 09, 2007 - 12:02 PM |
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| underh20 wrote: |
Not sure what "English call service" is. Please translate that phrase from Chinglish to some semblance of English.
You are lying when you say that they all support online banking in English. Don't you actually follow the links you post to make sure you don't end up looking stupid when they ultimately don't lead to where you tell people they do?
... ...
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Hi,underh20
I am very sorry for my mindless post. I didn't follow the links.
My english is ont well but I am trying my best to improve it. |
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jmg06shanghai
Reacher
Joined: Feb 18, 2006
Posts: 204
Location: ...in a van down by the river...
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Dec 09, 2007 - 01:20 PM |
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| Adam7 wrote: |
| Cheques (please spell it right) are only for company to company payments. |
Some people prefer the earlier version of English and check that evolved from Old German. On the other hand, how likely is it such people would refuse to deposit a US-bank check in their account? |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 09, 2007 - 01:25 PM |
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Don't mind Bladam7. He's challenged.
Not only are checks sometimes used for company to individual payments, but the fact is nobody in their right mind would refuse to deposit a valid US check into their Chinese account. It might take 4 - 6 weeks for the check to clear, but it is, after all, money and nobody would just throw it away. |
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janlynn
Wonder Wit
Joined: July 19, 2005
Posts: 3593
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Dec 09, 2007 - 02:01 PM |
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Do not have money sent as rmb to HSBC in China. it happened to me once and they ended up exchanging USD to RMB, then HSBC exchanged the RMB to USD. I lost a lot of money on the deal! HSBC is considered a foreign bank in China for some purposes but under Chinese banking terms for other purposes. When I left China, HSBC said it would be getting the ability to issue credit cards soon. Don't know if changes have happened in the past 10 months. |
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Some people never go crazy. What truly horrible lives they must lead |
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underh20
Shanghai Royalty
Joined: Sep 27, 2006
Posts: 9907
Location: EOA Seminar
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Dec 09, 2007 - 04:26 PM |
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| janlynn wrote: |
| When I left China, HSBC said it would be getting the ability to issue credit cards soon. |
HSBC already has issued credit cards in China and they have chosen to do so exclusively with Bank of Communications. Their contract contains a non-competition clause that prohibits HSBC from issuing any type of credit card product for up to ten years that is not issued in conjunction with Bank of Communications. |
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soapsud
Talker
Joined: Sep 28, 2004
Posts: 90
Location:
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 09, 2007 - 11:01 PM |
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I am just going to set up a bank account, I read all the replys on this thread but I am still not sure what bank would be the best I was looking at HSBC because I thought they would have an online banking service, I also have a HSBC account in HOng Kong, and assumed I could transfer money easierly from this account to Shanghai HSBC. The most importantfeature I would like is online services, as I travel a lot and would need to be able to transfer money, should I need to |
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jmg06shanghai
Reacher
Joined: Feb 18, 2006
Posts: 204
Location: ...in a van down by the river...
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Dec 09, 2007 - 11:51 PM |
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Acknowledging a requirement to maintaining higher balances than desired in a bank account, HSBC tells me I can open a dual or multi currency account in the States directly linked with a local HSBC RMB account. Any Yanks done that or know if I'm just getting BS'd by HSBC US reps trying to increase their USD balances? I've heard the same can be done in HK with HKD and RMB accounts. True? How 'bout tossing in GBP and SGD for the helluva it, likely or just BS? |
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