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Minimizing/eliminating bank transfer fees: how about "borderless banking"?
Thread poster: Jake Estrada FCIL CL
Jake Estrada FCIL CL
Jake Estrada FCIL CL  Identity Verified
Philippines
Local time: 10:21
Member (2003)
English to Tagalog
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER
Mar 29, 2010

Just like most of you, bank transfer fees are eating up a big portion of my hard-earned money.

This is especially true for translators like me who do not benefit from financial aggrupations (e.g. Eurozone) where bank transfers charges are kept at a minimum.

Notwithstanding the fact that I already bear "automatic" fees for receiving bank transfers at my end, some of my clients even charge me for their own fees.

Has anyone found a way to minimize if not total... See more
Just like most of you, bank transfer fees are eating up a big portion of my hard-earned money.

This is especially true for translators like me who do not benefit from financial aggrupations (e.g. Eurozone) where bank transfers charges are kept at a minimum.

Notwithstanding the fact that I already bear "automatic" fees for receiving bank transfers at my end, some of my clients even charge me for their own fees.

Has anyone found a way to minimize if not totally eliminate bank transfer fees?

Paypal is not a viable solution for this particular purpose as it actually "takes away" between 1.5% to 5% of your money (and limits your withdrawal to USD500 which sometimes defeats the purpose of pooling several small payments).

Question:

Is there a "special bank account" or "special bank" where you can open an account in your country and receive payments in the same currency (on the same account) in another (different) country---and the transaction will considered as a direct deposit (i.e. no bank transfer fee?)


I've heard about "borderless banking" especially from large international banks with vast networks of branches across the globe (e.g. HSBC).

Is this it?

Or should I stop dreaming that this could possibly happen, and accept bank transfer fees as another sad, inevitable fact of life ?

TIA for your inputs.

[Edited at 2010-03-29 08:48 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Heinrich Pesch
Heinrich Pesch  Identity Verified
Finland
Local time: 05:21
Member (2003)
Finnish to German
+ ...
Charge your clients Mar 29, 2010

If your clients don't except paying your fees you should raise your rates accordingly. There are advantages and disadvantages when living either in the EU (no banking fees, high costs of living and competition from low wage countries) and in the developing world (high banking costs, but low costs of living and highly compatible service rates).

Regards
Heinrich

[Bearbeitet am 2010-03-29 10:02 GMT]
 
Per Magnus
Per Magnus  Identity Verified
Local time: 04:21
English to Norwegian
Fifty fifty Mar 29, 2010

On the transfer forms I have seen, one of the options is for the sender and receiver to split the bank charges. I always use that option, and it seems du be accepted, both from my translators, and from my customers.
 
Tiến Anh Lê
Tiến Anh Lê  Identity Verified
Vietnam
Local time: 09:21
Member (2007)
English to Vietnamese
+ ...
Is HSBC truly your global local bank Mar 29, 2010

I wonder how HSBC works since I have heard someone advertised that they could use their HSBC account any where in the world without any cross-border fee.

I meant, anyone has an exact answer for his question?:

"I've heard about "borderless banking" especially from large international banks with vast networks of branches across the globe (e.g. HSBC)."

regards,
smiles

[Edited at 2010-03-29 15:06 GMT]
 


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Minimizing/eliminating bank transfer fees: how about "borderless banking"?







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