Obtaining money with a Citibank account , or HSBC- your thoughts?

bluefin79

Does anybody have any experiences with HSBC?

I already have an account here in the Philippines and plan to withdraw funds through ATMs in India.

Are there a lot of branches/ATMs in India? How about in Delhi where I will be settling to work?

Thanks!

Aishah

bluefin - there are plenty of HSBC banks with ATM's in Delhi and around the country. Google and check if there's a website for HSBC - India and it should list where they are.

Mod Note: I've added the name of this bank to the title so others can reply for you.

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puchoo

In terms of number i think ICIC has the maximum ATM;s, but they are a horrible bank...

I would suggest citibank , ABN choices given my experience. You should try and get a card which allows u to withdraw from any ATM (irrespective of the bank) at no charge...

Ever since i got that status in my account its really been convenient..

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crvlvr

Due to banking regulations, banks are operated as separate companies in different countries. which means there is no difference if you go to a Citibank ATM or any other banks ATM while in India. As many have pointed out, watch out of extra fees that YOUR bank charges you,. AFAIK, ATMs in India do not charge anything. So if your bank does not have any charges, these ATM withdrawals will be free on any extra charges. I bank with a small credit union and have used my ATM cards extensively in India with no charges.

Cardamom

Hi Bluefin! I used my HSBC card when I was in New Delhi and Noida. No problems at all. In terms of charges - when I used my debit card for cash withdrawls I made a few large withdrawls and had no service charges applied since I was using the ATM at HSBC.

For my credit card (used at hotels), I had a certain percentage taken by HSBC for the transaction, but it wasn't very much. I think maybe 2-3$ on a 700$ charge. Overall, I was satisfied. I don't trust banks at all so maybe I was ready to put up a fight and was pleasantly surprised when I didn't have to

Definitely call your bank to see what charges apply before you think of using your card. I have a free checking account with HSBC here in the states and didn't tack on any extras so you may be able to save more if you have a different sort of account with them.

Cheers!
-C

PS: the one thing that annoyed me was they didn't include the exchange rate on the ATM receipt or on my online or print statement. So I just "assumed" I got a good rate. We all know what assuming does though...

bluefin79

Hi Cardamom thanks so much that was very informative. I am leaving for Delhi in two weeks time and will visit the local HSBC branch to clarify things.

NYTim

I used my ATM cards all over the place without any problems.

Desipardeshi

When you look at the situation from a tourist point of view, all the above may apply. What if you are moving to India for retirement and your source of income is your pension, stocks,SS etc which deposit on monthly basis to your citibank? Will I still be able to work out a better way of withdrawal than already mentioned above?