Global Money Laundering Report 2018

Review by

Heather Petty

heather.petty@finder.com

Heather Petty is a personal finance writer at Finder specializing in home loans, banking and insurance. After falling victim to a disreputable mortgage broker when buying her first home, she's on a mission to help readers avoid similar experiences when managing their own finances. A self-proclaimed word nerd, her writing has been featured on MSN, Credit.com and MediaFeed.org, among others. Heather previously worked as a technical writer and editor for the casino systems industry and is an internationally published young adult mystery author. She holds a bachelor's degree in English with a minor in journalism from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Expert review

The Global Money account may be a great fit for existing HSBC customers who live or do business abroad. The low fees and competitive exchange rates can help you get the most for your money while juggling multiple currencies.

But this account doesn't quite stack up to its global account competitors yet. You can only transfer money to other HSBC customers, and the available currencies are limited.

If you're not willing to wait on HSBC to expand its services, consider other accounts like the Wise Multi-currency account. Or if you're looking for a more traditional checking account, shop around to see what other banks are offering.

You must have an HSBC deposit account to open a Global Money account. If you do, follow these three steps to open your new account:

Open and log in to the HSBC mobile banking app.
Select Global Money and tap Get Started.
Follow the prompts to enter your information and open the account.

Eligibility

You must meet the following requirements to open the HSBC Global Money account:

An HSBC deposit account
The HSBC Mobile Banking app
Access to HSBC Online Banking

What kind of deposit account do I need to open to be eligible for an HSBC Global Money account?

You'll need to link your Global Money account to any of the following HSBC accounts:

Checking accounts

Advanced Checking
Basic Banking
Choice Checking
HSBC Direct Checking
Premier Checking

Savings accounts

Advance Savings
Direct Savings
Everyday Savings
Online Money Market Savings
Premier Savings
Promotional Advance Savings
Promotional Premier Savings

Manage your Global Money account from your mobile device and enjoy the following benefits:

Free transfers. Pay no wire transfer fees when you wire funds to other HSBC customers.
Competitive FX rates. HSBC uses the mid-market exchange rates and updates them every 90 seconds.

Keep the following drawbacks in mind before you sign up:

Only available to HSBC account holders. You'll need an active HSBC checking or savings account to use the Global Money account.
No ATM debit card. You can't access your HSBC Global Money funds with an ATM card. Other multicurrency accounts like Wise Multi-currency account come with an ATM debit card for easy access to your funds.
Limited currencies. HSBC plans to expand its currencies in the future, but the account currently only allows you to convert and hold eight currencies. In comparison, competitors like Wise let you hold up to 40 currencies.
Only available to select US customers. As a new product offering, HSBC sent an email to select HSBC customers to try this product. The bank plans to offer this account to more HSBC customers in 2021.

What currencies are available through the HSBC Global Money account?

HSBC allows you to transfer, convert and hold the following eight currencies:

AUD – Australian dollar
CAD – Canadian dollar
EUR – Euro
GBP – Pound sterling
HKD – Hong Kong dollar
NZD – New Zealand dollar
SGD – Singapore dollar
USD – US dollar

HSBC charges a currency conversion fee using the following rates:

1.5% for $0 to $50,000
1.25% for $50,000 to $100,000
1% for $100,000 to $200,000

HSBC Jade customers get lower conversion rates as a perk:

0.4% for $0 to $50,000
0.3% for $50,000 to $100,000
0.2% for $100,000 to $200,000

Plus, you'll enjoy no fees for transfers between HSBC accounts. The maximum daily amount you can transfer is $200,000 to your own HSBC account and $15,000 to another HSBC account.

As for fees for transfers to external banks, HSBC doesn't disclose this information. When we contacted HSBC, they said that the fees are disclosed in the Pre-Payment and Receipt Disclosures you receive with every transfer.

All deposits and withdrawals are done by transfer using the mobile app. To transfer money, click Get Started from the Global Money account app and follow the prompts to transfer money to any HSBC account.

Use one of the following options to contact HSBC:

Call 800-975-4722 from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. ET
Use the live chat feature on HSBC's website
Use the Apple Business Chat through the mobile app
Send a direct Twitter message to @HSBC_US
Visit a local branch during business hours
Send mail to HSBC Bank USA, N.A., P.O. Box 2013, Buffalo, NY 14240

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★★★★★ — Excellent

★★★★★ — Good

★★★★★ — Average

★★★★★ — Subpar

★★★★★ — Poor

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Read the full methodology of how we rate checking accounts.