Aaron+
Feb 7, 2012, 2:00 PM
Post #38 of 47
(3267 views)
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Re: [chicois8] How the heck can I open an account there when I'm still here ?
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1. Why would anyone look at or quote the Oanda rate? For anyone living in North America, an Australian or Irish, etc., foreign exchange transaction company´s rate is not useful when you count the cost of wiring money in US or CND funds to such a FX firm, and then seeing whether they will wire pesos to a Mexican account. Except for the banks engaged in FX in North America, I have been unable to find any FX firm other than fx.com and Western Union (fx.com works through Western Union). Please advise if you know of one. (Even the business-oriented Travelex online service was absorbed some months ago by WU, for almost US$1 billion in cash.)
If you are moving a large amount, as for a real estate purchase, do realize that you can ask deal over the phone with Xe.trade for a rate a wee bit closer to whatever is the midpoint than you can get online.
Also, do realize that an Xe.com account holder (and presumably a Western Union account holder) must register with their NOB address, probably for some anti-money laundering regulation in the US and or Canada. You can still send pesos, by wire or free ACH transfers, to your Mexican bank account.
2. Use of credit cards.
Many Mexican firms and services (such as doctors) add a percentage (say 3.67%) to your bill in you use a credit card, whether national (Mexican) or international. Some refuse to accept any debit card, go figure. I have had problems with the acceptance of a national debit card or one of my U.S. credit cards when the recipient processes through Bancomer, no problem if they use Banorte, HSBC, or Carlos Slim´s Inbursa. Pemex stations that accept debit or credit cards do not seem to add on any percentage. The Pemex station by Costco (which is not owned by Costco) happily accepts whatever. (The US card I use has my Mexican billing address.) Mexican credit cards are costly, and I really do not see any advantage to having one. Yucalandia mentions direct utility billing to a credit card; I believe that only works if you have a Bancomer credit card, not even sure if it applies to a Banamex card. Since I receive my CFE and JAPAY (water bill in Mérida) bills by e-mail, I just use our Banorte account online to pay them, without the worry of paper bills that never seem to arrive reliably (a problem where I used to live here).
3. Please realize that not all Mexican accounts are insured by the federal IPAB, though just about all with depositary banks per se; see http://www.iflr.com/Article/2324167/Mexico-Guarantees-of-bank-deposits.html.
However, Mexican history within the last century, --that is, well before IPAB, -- has cases in which foreigner-held accounts have not received protections afforded nationals´ holdings. And everyone except the favored rich insiders got the shaft during devaluations.
4. My biggest grip with the Mexican banking system, besides it being bureaucratic, inefficient, and costly, is that there is no such thing as a true JOINT account. There is only one titular, though others can be on the account, though the non-titular can also receive an ATM card.
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