Korean Job Discussion Forums

[homerpsu]

I know there's been several posts on banks, but I haven't found one that claims one bank stands out from the rest.

I'm moving to Seoul soon and wanted to pick a bank that allowed me to get all:
- Checking acct
- Savings acct
- Credit Card
- Imbedded T-money on one of these cards
- Maybe all of these accts linked to my CC card?

- I'm sure all banks allow autopay for my cellphone bill but if there is such a service it would be awsome.

At the moment I'm leaning towards KEB but only cause I recognize the name...

Anyone with any advice? Would really appreciate the response.

[ttompatz]

[88Sparky]

I like KEB (Korean Exchange Bank). Since you're going to be an English teacher, then you're probably not going to be able to visit a bank during their normal operating hours. Normal Korean bank hours are 9 AM to 4:30 PM.

The only disadvantage I can think of with KEB is that they have fewer branches. However, they have branches that are open on Sundays, which is very helpful for expat English teacher.

However, the advantages with them will easily outweigh that disadvantage. Their charges on foreign exchanges conversions are 2.5%, which are the best rates. They charge about 28,000 KRW (Korean Won) for wire-transfers, (which is about $28 USD.) You can have accounts in 20+ currencies. They can create a solution that is custom made to your needs. When you're in South Korea, then by law you can only choose one bank to send wire transfers and to convert currencies. The staff at KEB speaks English the best and are the most expat friendly.

If you are not near a KEB, then I would also open a second bank account with Woori Bank. They are a distant second to KEB. I know a lot of expats doing their banking with more than one bank. When you open your bank account(s) there, then you have to have your passport, your work visa, and your Korean Alien ID card. Now there are some banks who may give you a bank account with just your passport. However, if you have all three of those things, then they will give you an account without a hassle.

[Njord]

I have accounts with KEB and KB, but I use KB for 90% of my banking. Advantages include English language internet banking, T-money credit card, and many convenient locations. I've never had any difficulty communicating with KB staff in English, although they sometimes have to call over the office "expert" to help translate.

I only send money abroad in large wire transfers and when I compared rates a couple years ago, the total cost was comparable.

I've heard many foreigners with a strong preference for KEB, but I'm not sure why. From what I've heard, Shinhan has better customer service, but I've been happy with KB for five years and haven't had any problems.

Really, all the large banks are about the same and will have the same basic services you need including credit cards. Just pick whatever is convenient for your location so you can visit on a lunch break and don't need to worry about weekend hours.

[ssuprnova]

Any feedback on Citibank? There's a branch that just opened in my area and I'm thinking of jumping ship.

[jk3587]

I have a citibank account here and in the USA. I use citibank global transfer to move money to america to pay my credit card bills and it costs 5000 won per transfer. Also, pretty much every 7-11 has ATMs that don't charge fees for citibank cards so you can pull money from there.

[nathanrutledge]

I'm going to disagree with ttompatz regarding the CC. I have a Woori V card (haha, I have my V card...) with a very high limit that I got with no trouble. Of course, it could be that I have been in Korea a while and my university uses Woori and the branch is on campus, but I have friends who have deposit-less cards as well from KEB and KB. Again, they have been here a few years, but they are all E-2 holders.

That said, it IS a pain in the butt to get a CC IF you don't speak Korean. The cards for foreigners ARE restrictive in terms of the benefits.

The other thing to know about CC's is that you cannot really ride a balance here. Most of the cards are set up to auto deduct from your account and will take the full balance. It's rare (from my experience, and that of my friends) to have a card where you can pay minimums and keep cash in the bank. If you have the cash, then they take it to pay off the balance. Which is good because it prevents you from paying interest. But it's bad because you can get sucked into a cycle of never having cash. Be careful.

As far as the other stuff, I'd go with Woori. I've used Nonghyup and KEB before, and I liked them, BUT:
1) Woori cards offer the best services. The T-Money option on the KEB card only lets you use 50k a month. Every other month or so, I'd find I'd gone over the limit and didn't have credit for a few days. You can recharge it manually, but that's not the point of having the automatic account, is it?
2) As much as KEB touts their English service, it's not that good. I got better English service as Nonghyup (the FARMERS bank) than I did at KEB, even going to their foreign service branch in Itaewon (which actually had the worst service!). For what you get at KEB, you can get the same at Woori.
3) Woori is government owned (for now) which means that with the bank failures and sales going on, it is probably the safest bet. Of course, all accounts are insured for up to 50 mil, but there are other perks. I find I usually get a better interest rate (if only by a fraction of a point) and there are generally more locations.
4) Internet banking - I definitely have to give the nod to KEB on that one. Excellent site (by Korean standards - damn, I hate Active X). Still, the other benefits outweigh the internet banking, IMO. Why? Because every job I've had I've been allowed to take 20 minutes to walk down the street to the bank to pay my bills/wire money/etc every time I needed to do it.

Honestly, my friends have been at every bank in Korea - Nonghyup, KEB, KB, Citibank, Hana, IBK, etc... and they all have their complaints/likes about them. As ttompatz said, you'll get different services, but they are usually cheaper and better so it really doesn't matter where you go.

[pkang0202]

I've heard good things about the Shinhan Expat Banking.

https://www.facebook.com/ShinhanBank?sk=app_2309869772


The Shinhan Bank Global Center, located on the first floor of the Seoul Finance Center building in Gwanghwamun, opened last March with multilingual staff, financial consulting services and exclusive products for foreigners.

[Freakstar]

[Jake_Kim]

[The Sherriff]

[nathanrutledge]

[nate1983]