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Banking in South Korea

Banking in South Korea

So I live in a very small town with only 2 banks NH or Shinhan.  Both of these banks are perfectly fine if you only need them for money matters in South Korea.  When I first arrived my handler took me to get a bank account and she of course took me to the place where the school also does their banking so it would be easier for them.  I am getting ready to do my big trip outside of South Korea and I started reading various message boards and come to find out my NH bank card won’t work outside of Korea.  So what is a girl to do.  If I use my American cards  I will get charged international fees. So here is my solution and advice to anyone living abroad, find a bank that is truly international. A bank that has locations in many different countries, not only will that help when you are traveling but certainly when you are trying to transfer money.  I currently get charged roughly 100 USD every time I transfer money, its ridiculous. If I transfer 12 times a year that is $1200.  I would rather keep that money than give it to some bank.  I wish someone would have told me this before arriving so I could have done my research prior to coming here.  Thankfully I found out before I went on vacation and didn’t have access to my funds. For me personally living in Korea and being a resident of the U.S. I decided to got with Citi Bank, not only do they have locations in the U.S. and South Korea, but they also won’t charge me transfer fees and I will have access to Citi Bank ATM’s  across the world.  Hope this helps and happy travels!

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