Loading Money into a Debit Card, and withdrawing Cash overseas from their ATMs

Hi,

I came to Hong Kong from Sydney Australia and have been looking to find an equivalent of Citi's debit card product here in HK.

References can be found here:

https://en.tripadvisor.com.hk/ShowTopic-g255055-i120-k7244620-Citibank_plus_card-Australia.html

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/wiki/cards_with_no_overseas_transaction_fees

Basically how it works is, you just load up your Citi account with money, travel overseas and find a Citi ATM overseas (plenty around key spots in SouthEast Asia, Europe and obviously US) and withdraw cash in your destination currency. The rates are always fantastic and there are no extra fees or commission charged by Citi. It saves heaps of trouble because if you travel to multiple destinations you don't want to be carrying excessive USDs or carry 3-4 different currencies.

So I've checked with a few banks here (Citi, HSBC, Standard Chartered) and they all thought I was bluffing and no such product would ever exist.

Has anyone come across anything similar in HK?

Thanks in advance!

4 replies

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Klauner · 28 May

http://www.neat.hk/ There you go. I using this Card without any problems.

htsyd OP · 29 May

Thanks Klauner, just did a bit of reading around Neat and it sounds like a pretty cool idea. But at the end of the day, it's still just a Mastercard and there's nothing on the website that says I can withdraw cash from a foreign ATM without it being counted as a cash advance. It seems like a great product for people who want quick or low-doc applications for a credit card, but there seems to be much better travel Mastercard/Visa cards out there.

mars2012hk · 29 May

Most bank accounts in HK come with a Union Pay + EPS debit card by default, that you can use everywhere in the world the way you describe. If you have a credit card, you can ask the bank to activate the "debit" option so that the card can play either role (debit or credit) at will. I did that with HSBC and when I insert my card in an ATM (anywhere in the world), instructions on screen let me select whether I want to withdraw from current, saving or credit account. If I withdraw from current or savings, the fee is minimal (0.1% blended into the exchange rate, if you are HSBC Premier client)

GAN · 29 May

Where is the office of Neat?