HSBC has launched from today an online savings account that allows customers to make deposits or payments in 10 different currencies. The HSBC Multi-Currency Savings Account is available to anyone, but Wendy Lim, HSBC's head of consumer banking here, said it is particularly useful for sophisticated customers such as foreign currency investors, 'who can now quickly transfer funds from currency to currency any time without the need to make a trip to the branch'.
The account currently pays interest of 2 per cent for Singapore dollar deposits below $50,000 and 2.4 per cent for deposits of $50,000 and above. For US dollar deposits, the rates are 3.9 per cent for amounts below US$100,000 and 4.2 per cent for sums of US$100,000 and above. The other eight currencies available are the euro, sterling pound, Swiss franc, Japanese yen, and the dollar currencies of Hong Kong, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Ms Lim said the account could serve as an attractive vehicle 'for customers to park their funds and enjoy good interest rates while they are in between investments'. The account does not come with an ATM card or a debit card, or cheque-book facilities. Customers can transfer their cash holdings between the various currencies and make deposits or payments through HSBC's Internet banking platform.
A flat fee of $5 is charged per visit for offline transactions at the bank's branches, but the fee is waived for customers of HSBC Premier - the bank's priority service for mass affluent customers - for transactions made through their relationship managers.
To start an account, customers need to deposit at least $2,000 or its equivalent in other currencies. This requirement is waived if customers have investments with the bank.
