Are you an Expat? | All you need to know about Banking in Singapore

Bank Accounts | Savings Accounts | Singapore

Banking Journey for EXPATS in Singapore

After your initial mesmerizing days of stay in Singapore, reality strikes that you have to begin work of your settling down the process in Singapore. One of the most important being opening of bank account so that transactions can start to run your stay smoothly. There are several banks in Singapore which have bank accounts specifically tailored for expats. You need to study and compare all these plans/accounts to get a better deal.

First and foremost, would be opening of savings account for payments of your daily needs, groceries, utilities etc. besides your salary credit. Here you need to look for where you can earn more interest so that you can park your additional funds here.

This is followed by access to ATMs either near your home or your office for easier access to cash at any time. Make sure your bank has a widespread ATM presence.

Survival would be difficult without Credit cards. Nowadays many banks offer attractive credit cards, especially for expats. It’s better if you have a credit card from the same bank where you have a savings account for ease of transaction. But it is not necessary, you can choose a credit card which gives you better features and deals.

Another important aspect which you need to consider is the ease of remittance. As expat if you need to send money back home, bank’s remittance service is important. You can do this online with most banks in Singapore.

If you want to keep your money in home currency, you can open a Multi-currency account with the bank and this way you will not have to carry cash currency when you travel back home.

In case you have sufficient money to stash away, Investment account may be a good option. Here banks will enable you to invest your money in various investment products like Unit Trust, Equities and others.

List of banks in Singapore

• DBS
• UOB
• Citibank
• Standard Chartered
• HSBC
• OCBC
• CIMB
• Maybank
• RHB Bank
• Bank of China
• ICBC
• State Bank of India

All banks have some or the other unique features which would be able to fulfil your requirements. Take your pick!

Moving from Singapore to Australia