bank account in the US

[gretrade2]

Hi
I am not sure where I should askt this, so I post it in here..

99% of my trading relates to US markets and it is in US Dollars. I have various acoounts with brokers (futures and Forex).in the US. To move money around and to withdraw some money it is necessary to have a bank account. My bank in the UK and the brokers' correspondent bank in the US charge me an arm and a leg every time I wire money in and out.
The easiest solution seems to be to open a US bank account.
I wonder whether anybody else has had this issue and how could it be addressed.
Thank you

 

[gretrade2]

OK, I must assume that one or more of the following is true:

a) everybody who trades with US brokers is happy to pay our beloved UK banks millions in overseas transfer charges
b) nobody really needs to make any tansfer.... I wonder why.....
c) I am the only one with this problem. There must be something I am missing, then.
d) this is the wrong forum. Maybe the moderator can point me to the right direction?

Thanks

 

[gc1]

If you enable receipt of PM's I'll send you some info.

 

[Directional]

US banks also charge you an arm and a leg for wires, usually $50 a pop.

you might want to consider an FX account with an FX specialist here in the UK - that way you can get hold any foreign currency in your account and switch your funds between currencies for a spread of just 20 pips.

my biggest expense used to be getting ripped off on the exchange rates the bank was quoting me

 

[gretrade2]

Thanks for the replies.
Arb, you are right, of course.
However if you have a US account you do not necessarily have to wire funds, and even if you do, you wire them once (from US to US) instead of twice (form US to London and then from London to US).

Anyway, I am finding that with all this Patriot Act frenzy and the US paranoia that whoever outside US is basically a criminal, it looks quite difficult to go around this.

Just a note of caution: if anyone is considering sending me some info on special agents that do everything for you for 20 or 50$, please save your and my time.
Thank you again and have a good day

 

[gretrade2]

gc1, sorry, my caution note sounded a bit harsh. I did not mean in anyway to pre-judge you and it was addressed in general.

 

[Silent.Trader]

OK, I must assume that one or more of the following is true:

a) everybody who trades with US brokers is happy to pay our beloved UK banks millions in overseas transfer charges
b) nobody really needs to make any tansfer.... I wonder why.....
c) I am the only one with this problem. There must be something I am missing, then.
d) this is the wrong forum. Maybe the moderator can point me to the right direction?

a) Not everybody overhere is located in the UK.
b) At least for me not as many transfers are needed as you suggest.
c) maybe, as for me there are no significant charges to transfers. This may have to do with me being only a poor bugger who's with a bit care able to stay below the thrashholds.
d) don't know what would be the most suitable location to post about this issue.
e) Maybe it would help if you gave a bit more detail about what exactly is the issue. When I first saw your message I've concluded that I was missing the point. I mean what's so hard about opening an account abroad, I've done so many times without any difficulty worth mentioning. Systems and ways of working may differ from country to country so pitfalls are there if you don't orrientate properly. In your original post you only state "I wonder whether anybody else has had this issue and how could it be addressed." The only answer I can give to that is contact some banks for conditions, make a choice and do the paperwork. Your remark about the patriot act suggests you have problems with the paperwork, but again no specifics. How can any-one help if you don't mention what we do not even know what the problem is? I'm no expert on US back accounts, but I suspect the patriot act has only resulted in more bureacracy, consequently more lengthy procedures and possibly some banks refusing foreign customers due to this additional hassle.

 

[gc1]

The issue is that the small number of U.S. banks who used to accept overseas "non U.S. citizen" account holders are no longer doing so. I gave the name of one U.S bank to the original poster but that bank's policy had changed since I opened my account so they no longer accept overseas account holders.

I suspect the situation will soon be the same as for European banks, e.g. if I want to open a Euro account in the Netherlands, dutch law requires that I go to the bank in person, it can't be done by post. The same applies for most other countries as well.

If you know the name of a U.S. bank still accepting overseas applicant please post the name.

 

[new_trader]

Hi
I am not sure where I should askt this, so I post it in here..

99% of my trading relates to US markets and it is in US Dollars. I have various acoounts with brokers (futures and Forex).in the US. To move money around and to withdraw some money it is necessary to have a bank account. My bank in the UK and the brokers' correspondent bank in the US charge me an arm and a leg every time I wire money in and out.
The easiest solution seems to be to open a US bank account.
I wonder whether anybody else has had this issue and how could it be addressed.
Thank you

What makes you think having a US account will save you money in wire transfers? It doesn't matter where you wire the money because as far as I know, it's the local bank charging the fee. If you have a US account you would need to wire money from the UK bank to your US account, then transfer it from your US account to your Broker. Maybe I am missing something?

I had no problem opening an Account with Bank of America but I opened it in the US.

 

[Silent.Trader]

If you know the name of a U.S. bank still accepting overseas applicant please post the name.

If that question was brought forward in the original post it would have been a lot easier to point op in a direction. As said I'm no expert on US banks, and rules may be strict, but basicly it's just a matter of paperwork and bureaucracy. In such an extend that many banks apparently don't even consider . With a proper amount of money there's no real issue if I read at: http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?t=397273

And showing up maybe a hassle, but to be ' forced' to make a long weekend trip to the US is imho not that big an issue . As suggested in the above, just contact the local branch of an international bank and they should be able to help you. If you already do business with them that of course would help.