DBS Multi-currency

[dreant]

https://www.dbs.com.sg/personal/promotion/online-account-opening

Got new promo. Lock in 10k for 6 months to get 10,000 miles

'Enjoy perpetual waiver of fall-below fee on your first account when you open it online.'

This seems far much more useful... I wish I didn't have to park 3k in my eMCA all the time.

 

[simwb90]

Not sure if already posted so pardon me if it was already answered...

I will be going to UK for a year to complete my studies.
My employer will be providing me funds in GBP.
The funds will be credited to a bank account of my choosing.

I will eventually create a UK account when I get there so that it is easier to handle the administrative matters since I'm physically in UK but I want to settle the funds crediting before I leave for UK.

Qns:
Can I do the following?

-create a DBS MCA and maintain minimum SGD balance
-get employer to credit all the GBP into this MCA
-use DBS Remit to transfer from this MCA to my eventual UK account

any fees or potential losses (due to forex?) that I need to be aware of?

Thank you

 

[lifeislonggamma]

Not sure if already posted so pardon me if it was already answered...

I will be going to UK for a year to complete my studies.
My employer will be providing me funds in GBP.
The funds will be credited to a bank account of my choosing.

I will eventually create a UK account when I get there so that it is easier to handle the administrative matters since I'm physically in UK but I want to settle the funds crediting before I leave for UK.

Qns:
Can I do the following?

-create a DBS MCA and maintain minimum SGD balance
-get employer to credit all the GBP into this MCA
-use DBS Remit to transfer from this MCA to my eventual UK account

any fees or potential losses (due to forex?) that I need to be aware of?

Thank you

Some UK banks will charge you for the incoming GBP remittance. For example, HSBC UK imposes a fee if the incoming amount exceeds 100 quid.

 

[simwb90]

Some UK banks will charge you for the incoming GBP remittance. For example, HSBC UK imposes a fee if the incoming amount exceeds 100 quid.

Oh!

That is a bummer...
the incoming GBP will be 1,100 monthly
Do you have a recommendation then?

Apart from the UK banks charging an incoming remittance fees, any other downsides i need to be aware of?

 

[Charlie_Zhan]

Oh!

That is a bummer...
the incoming GBP will be 1,100 monthly
Do you have a recommendation then?

Apart from the UK banks charging an incoming remittance fees, any other downsides i need to be aware of?

dbs have a incoming TT fee of S$10 or the equivalent in foreign currency

Sent from Samsung SM-G965F using GAGT

 

[dreant]

Oh!

That is a bummer...
the incoming GBP will be 1,100 monthly
Do you have a recommendation then?

Apart from the UK banks charging an incoming remittance fees, any other downsides i need to be aware of?

If you can open a Citibank account both in SG and UK, you would be able to move funds freely between them instantly via CGT. Also, for Citi SG, incoming telegraphic transfers are free.

The downside of this is the minimum TRB (total relationship balance) that you will need to maintain.

For regular Citibanking, it would be ~SGD15k in each country separately (SG, and UK). If you can qualify for Citigold ~SGD250k, you only need to maintain that in any one country, and the status will be accorded to your overseas accounts too.

Not much else you can do - I would advise you to request for physical GBP (*) before departure, or SGD so you can change it and carry it with you instead; and to have your company TT you the GBP1,100 to your UK account each month, after you have set it up. Generally, it costs around SGD20-50 to send a TT (taking both sender and receiver costs into consideration), it would be quite silly to pay that fee twice by setting up to receive it in an account in SG, then to try to forward it to yourself in the UK.

On top of that, you may lose access to the funds - not many banks in SG will allow you to make all possible transactions via the internet. The only bank I can do so is Citibank. The close second is CIMB, but it requires signing forms in advance *and* some transactions must still be confirmed by telephone confirmation before they are executed.

One other thing you had not mentioned, is how long will you be there for. I would think most of these 'cost saving measures' aren't worth the effort, if you'll not be there for a significant period of time (more than a year?)

(*) Considering brexit, and how the GBP has been constantly falling - it may be advantages to request for your allowance in SGD, and have that rate fixed before departure. If things keep up, you'd have more GBP each month. Of course, this does also carry the risk that you may end up with less GBP each month should the currency strengthen over time instead.

The other downside of receiving and holding your entire allowance in GBP is, if it's constantly falling is, by the time you return to SG, it may be worth significantly less. By getting your allowance in SGD, you can decide how much, and when to convert funds to GBP as required; that is assuming your total expenses is less than your allowance each month.

 

[whizzard]

My son studies in the UK. To fund his expenses, I transfer GBP from the GBP wallet in my DBS Multiplier account (which is also a multi-currency account) to his HSBC UK account via DBS online transfer (not TT). Neither DBS nor HSBC deduct any fees for the online transfer.

I have used 2 ways to exchange FX for my DBS account; one is by exchanging directly with DBS and another is to exchange with a 3rd party money changer (I transfer SGD to their SGD account and they transfer the FX directly into my DBS account). Either way, no fees or deduction by DBS.

I have also been doing this to fund my holidays. The last time I changed EUR with a 3rd party money changer to be credited into my DBS account was in Dec 2018 and similarly, DBS did not deduct any fees for the EUR which was credited into my DBS account. I have shared this experience in another thread referred below.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/121414629-post8.html

The only method I have used to transfer GBP to my son’s UK account is via DBS online transfer. DBS as a paying bank does not charge any fees and HSBC as the receiving bank also does not deduct any fees. The last time I did that was about 9 months ago.

Unless DBS or HSBC have changed their terms recently, this has been my experience. I suspect if you use online transfer instead of TT, there is no charges by DBS or HSBC.

NB: The accounts used are DBS Treasures and HSBC Premier but I don’t think the type of account matters unless they specifically waive such online fees for these accounts.

 

[Hafi]

'Enjoy perpetual waiver of fall-below fee on your first account when you open it online.'

This seems far much more useful... I wish I didn't have to park 3k in my eMCA all the time.

does having a POSB Saving account still considered as first account?

 

[stiwipl]

My son studies in the UK. To fund his expenses, I transfer GBP from the GBP wallet in my DBS Multiplier account (which is also a multi-currency account) to his HSBC UK account via DBS online transfer (not TT). Neither DBS nor HSBC deduct any fees for the online transfer.
[...]

This is very interesting that you brought it up. I always thought DBS remit is limited to selected countries but now it seems it is FREE to send online transfer pretty much anywhere and if we use the same currency, no conversion should apply. What's more they are using words like: "Recipient Gets" - that would suggest that that they are sending this international transfers as OUR fees (all fees covered by sender), instead of SHA(red) fees (where some intermediary bank fees may apply). How is that profitable to them I have no idea. Perhaps I missed something or there is a catch somewhere. I will have to try it.

Also the reason you were not charged S$10 for incoming TT is that usually these money changers are sending TT with OUR fees (covering all fees along the way). In such cases DBS (or any other bank) doesn't charge incoming TT fees.

 

[simwb90]

My son studies in the UK. To fund his expenses, I transfer GBP from the GBP wallet in my DBS Multiplier account (which is also a multi-currency account) to his HSBC UK account via DBS online transfer (not TT). Neither DBS nor HSBC deduct any fees for the online transfer.

I have used 2 ways to exchange FX for my DBS account; one is by exchanging directly with DBS and another is to exchange with a 3rd party money changer (I transfer SGD to their SGD account and they transfer the FX directly into my DBS account). Either way, no fees or deduction by DBS.

I have also been doing this to fund my holidays. The last time I changed EUR with a 3rd party money changer to be credited into my DBS account was in Dec 2018 and similarly, DBS did not deduct any fees for the EUR which was credited into my DBS account. I have shared this experience in another thread referred below.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/121414629-post8.html

The only method I have used to transfer GBP to my son’s UK account is via DBS online transfer. DBS as a paying bank does not charge any fees and HSBC as the receiving bank also does not deduct any fees. The last time I did that was about 9 months ago.

Unless DBS or HSBC have changed their terms recently, this has been my experience. I suspect if you use online transfer instead of TT, there is no charges by DBS or HSBC.

NB: The accounts used are DBS Treasures and HSBC Premier but I don’t think the type of account matters unless they specifically waive such online fees for these accounts.

This is useful to know!
So I could possibly get my employer to credit to my DBS MCA GBP wallet
Subsequently when I setup my UK HSBC account, i can just use ibank to do DBS Remit from DBS to HSBC without any fees incurred

Is that right?

For clarifications, I am unable to request for GBP to be given as cash.
If i were to provide a local currency account, then i would suffer from forex difference as it will be depositing GBP into a SGD account.
As for asking them to send it only when i'm there, let's just say i'm not certain how long these processes will take so i rather not risk it.

 

[whizzard]

This is useful to know!
So I could possibly get my employer to credit to my DBS MCA GBP wallet
Subsequently when I setup my UK HSBC account, i can just use ibank to do DBS Remit from DBS to HSBC without any fees incurred

Is that right?

For clarifications, I am unable to request for GBP to be given as cash.
If i were to provide a local currency account, then i would suffer from forex difference as it will be depositing GBP into a SGD account.
As for asking them to send it only when i'm there, let's just say i'm not certain how long these processes will take so i rather not risk it.

Yes, you could get your employer to credit your GBP salary into your DBS GBP wallet. Hopefully, when they credit, DBS will not deduct any fees. I think if they use online transfer (and not TT) there won’t be any fees deducted by DBS.

You can then use DBS Remit to send the GBP to your HSBC UK account

I just sent some GBP using DBS Remit to my son’s HSBC UK account this afternoon for his expenses for this coming academic year. It won’t show up until tomorrow (Monday). As you can see, it says $0 fee on DBS’ end.

 

[MrConfused]

Alternatively, you can consider to use transferwise's border-less account since you would be in UK. This border-less account will allow you to open a GBP account instantly to receive GBP funds for free (no charges for your employer and yourself) and you can spend them using their debit card.

 

[simwb90]

Yes, you could get your employer to credit your GBP salary into your DBS GBP wallet. Hopefully, when they credit, DBS will not deduct any fees. I think if they use online transfer (and not TT) there won’t be any fees deducted by DBS.

You can then use DBS Remit to send the GBP to your HSBC UK account

I just sent some GBP using DBS Remit to my son’s HSBC UK account this afternoon for his expenses for this coming academic year. It won’t show up until tomorrow (Monday). As you can see, it says $0 fee on DBS’ end.

thank you =) i hope there are no fees hahahaha
my employer is local so i dun think there would be an issue...

Alternatively, you can consider to use transferwise's border-less account since you would be in UK. This border-less account will allow you to open a GBP account instantly to receive GBP funds for free (no charges for your employer and yourself) and you can spend them using their debit card.

hahahaha thanks for the tip but unfortunately, i don't think my employer can do this =)
they only transact with banks so i'll probably try whizzard's tip instead
appreciate the help thou!

 

[mngedo]

Hello everyone,
I have a Dbs Multiple Currency account and my main saving account is also Dbs . Big question is, would it be recomended to deposit RMB in Singapore for withdrawal in China. Or should i just withdraw from the China ATM based on FX. Both methods i know would have a withdrawal fee.

How would the Multi Currency account benefit me in China?

 

[dreant]

Hello everyone,
I have a Dbs Multiple Currency account and my main saving account is also Dbs . Big question is, would it be recomended to deposit RMB in Singapore for withdrawal in China. Or should i just withdraw from the China ATM based on FX. Both methods i know would have a withdrawal fee.

How would the Multi Currency account benefit me in China?

It would not benefit you at all.

DBS: MCA FAQ

Functionalities of the MCA:
o Direct foreign currency point-of-sale purchases*
o Online / eCommerce foreign currency spend*
o Overseas ATM local currency withdrawal*
o Internet / Mobile banking (24/7 currency funds transfer, Remittance)
o Cheque Payment

*Renminbi Offshore (CNH) is not available for the new functions stated above and all CNH purchases will be defaulted to SGD.

 

[Charlie_Zhan]

Hello everyone,
I have a Dbs Multiple Currency account and my main saving account is also Dbs . Big question is, would it be recomended to deposit RMB in Singapore for withdrawal in China. Or should i just withdraw from the China ATM based on FX. Both methods i know would have a withdrawal fee.

How would the Multi Currency account benefit me in China?

dbs MCA does not store RMB/CNY.. only offshore RMB (CHN)

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[kram62]

What is the purpose of CNH then?

 

[xsoldix]

What is the purpose of CNH then?

Good question. I’ve always wondered.
Is it for investment kind?

so we can exchnge and use like in aus/usa, etc?

Posted with fingers HardwareZone Forums app

 

[Charlie_Zhan]

What is the purpose of CNH then?

Good question. I’ve always wondered.
Is it for investment kind?

so we can exchnge and use like in aus/usa, etc?

Posted with fingers HardwareZone Forums app

for use/trade outside of mainland China.. because CNY itself cannot be traded outside of Mainland China due to tight currency control by PBOC.

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-CNY-and-CNH-currencies

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[kram62]

for use/trade outside of mainland China.. because CNY itself cannot be traded outside of Mainland China due to tight currency control by PBOC.

https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-CNY-and-CNH-currencies

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Yes I had seen that article some time before.

But still it is unclear on what a retail client can actually use these CNH.

This is why I wonder why DBS is bothering adding CNH into the MCA if a layperson has no real way of using it.