# ABN-AMRO  opening a bank account



## bmoc (29 May 2011)

just back from holland after opening a bank account with abn-amro bank


----------



## jonocon (29 May 2011)

did you go over there especially to do it? What are the rates like?


----------



## bmoc (29 May 2011)

no not especially for the rates but they are 2.5 %. But to have my money in one of the best banks in the world


----------



## Guest105 (29 May 2011)

What are the names of the best banks in the world?


----------



## DMcL1971 (29 May 2011)

bmoc, can you give some details about the process for opening the account? I am planning on visiting Amsterdam in about a month and would be very interested in opening an account while I was there.


----------



## Jiblet-run (30 May 2011)

I also would be very interested in this.
A trip to Holland is looking very likely - with visits to Rabobank and ABN-AMRO on the cards. Anyone know of any other good Dutch banks (English speaking)?

There is no mention on ABN-AMRO's website about foreign savers and what did you say when they asked for a Dutch social security number?
Any info would be much appreciated.


----------



## Mpsox (30 May 2011)

bmoc said:


> no not especially for the rates but they are 2.5 %. But to have my money in one of the best banks in the world


 
Is that the part of ABN Ambro that was taken over by the Dutch Govt because of their debt issue or the part owned by RBS?


----------



## bmoc (30 May 2011)

Rabo bank not very helpful no internet view of your account and they wanted other documentation that i did not have. ABN-AMRO  on the other hand were very helpful all i needed was my passport to set up my account. There internet site is very good all in english.


----------



## DMcL1971 (31 May 2011)

bmoc, 

Did you just walk in off the street or did you have to make an appointment?
Was your passport the only documentation you required?
Did you require a Dutch social security number?
What type of account did you open?
Was there a minimum balance required to open the account?


----------



## bmoc (31 May 2011)

DMcl 1971

Yes, just walked in off the street went up to this guy ask if he spoke english he did, told me to sit down and he will get a colleague to look after me. Yes a passport was all i needed i had other documentation with me but wasn't asked for it. No need for a dutch social security number. I opened a saving account and a current, there was no money required to open the accounts. When finished he had all the paper work for me all in english this included the two account numbers (e.g. IBAN account numbers so I can transfer any money) hope this can help you.


----------



## DMcL1971 (31 May 2011)

bmoc,

That's great. I'll give it a try myself next month. It's good to hear it was that straight forward.  Thank you for your help.


----------



## Jiblet-run (2 Jun 2011)

bmoc thanks for the info.

DmCL1971 - Let us know how you get on.

Just a point - I read up on how ABN-AMRO was bailed out. Any concerns of depositing money there now?

Google "ABN-AMRO bailout" and look at the WSJ and BBC website - I can't post links just yet.....


----------



## DMcL1971 (3 Jun 2011)

To be honest I have no idea what to do with my money these days. Every time I think I know what to do, I read another post or thread showing the down side of whatever I thought was a good idea. (I’m not pointing the finger at you jiblet-run, I’m just having a Friday afternoon rant).

Irish banks are in trouble and might go bust, but on the other hand we have a bank guarantee scheme so don’t worry. 
Foreign owned banks operating in Ireland are more secure than Irish banks but on the other hand they will probably have to follow Irish legislation if anything goes wrong in Ireland (Default, restructure etc.). 
Foreign banks in the eurozone have their own problems just like the Irish banks do but on the other hand are they any worse than Irish banks. 
We might leave the Euro, then my Irish deposits might be devalued. 
The Euro might break up, then my foreign Euro deposits might be devalued. 
Putting money into foreign currency accounts in Ireland might also be affected by Irish legislation if things go wrong. 
And any foreign currency account is going to fluctuate with exchange rates.
Maybe I should just stick my cash under the mattress but then maybe increased inflation is on the way.
So, put your money in the age old safe bet of gold, but wait, gold might be in a bubble.
We can’t win!!

So all I can think of to do is to spread what savings I have around a bit in order to hedge my bets. I don't consider ABN AMRO to be any better or worse than any other bank. But when it comes to opening up a foreign account I like the sound of the ABN AMRO option only because, I have been to the Netherlands a few times before, nearly everyone there speaks English and bmoc says it is straight forward to open the account. So I'll be spreading my money around a few accounts in Ireland and this Dutch one. I wish I knew what the right thing to do was but in the absence of a better plan I'll stick with this one.

P.S. There is info on foreign accounts on the ABN AMRO site Have a look here


----------



## Jiblet-run (3 Jun 2011)

@DMcL1971 - Completely agree with you. It's next to impossible to know what is a save place to put your money in these days.
I suppose I was seeing if any of the wiser folk had any feedback on ABN AMRO before I travel over to Holland.
Currently I've two Keytrade accounts opened - Belgium and Luxembourg. I've decided not to put any money into Belgium - due it being only a level above the PIIGS. 
Might put some in Luxembourg but want to do some testing transfers over & back first (I've only recently opened the account). Switzerland is also an option.
I think for the moment - I'm gonna stick with the euro for all my accounts (foreign and domestic)

As you mention best option is to spread it around. And I'd have more faith in a Dutch backed bank than a Irish one!


----------



## bmoc (6 Jun 2011)

Up date:- Sent money over to ABN -AMRO with paylink , they sent me a confirmation email that the money was lodged with them. I also got my ABN AMRO card, with my pin code and my e-identifer for banking online to follow.


----------



## BOXtheFOX (7 Jun 2011)

Any charges associated with having an account with them? What's the interest rate like?


----------



## Rujib (7 Jun 2011)

I tend to agree with the posters who are confused about what to do. Yes, the Irish banks are totally bust, and so it cannot be a bad idea to get money out of them.
On the other hand, the paranoid fixation of the ECB, around the issue of burning bondholders or indeed any form of burden sharing of the current crisis, is founded on their fear of "Lehmans" style collapse of a European bank, which would cause an inevitable run on all the other major European banks.
The bottom line is that the big "safe" European banks, are not adequately capitalised to withstand a major economic "event", such as a default of any Euro zone country. The possibility of such an economic event happening, is not small you know!!! 
I reckon cash deposited in several accounts, in several different banks in Ireland, might be as easy to get your hands on in real cash, in the event that the system starts to rumble. By the time you get the plane ticket and get to the bank in Berlin, the qeue of people outside , might be a little long for comfort.
For those who have online accounts, in Europe, some will find the only way to gat hands on the cash, is to transfer it back to an Irish current account, and then gat the cash out. More valuable time lost in a crisis.


----------



## xertpo (8 Jun 2011)

The Dutch deposit guarantee scheme is a little different to the Irish government guarantee. It's important that you understand how it works. It's not a government guarantee per se.

I can't post full links yet but have a look at dnb.nl


----------

