Dubai Forums Dubai Expat Forums Dubai Expat Help Forum Products and Services in Dubai

I am new to Dubai. Looking to open a bank account, get a credit card, etc. Any recommendations. Any horror stories with certain banks.

Please advise.

Thanks.

personally i have HSBC a/cs in hong kong and india...they are great there...but here...they are the pits...have heard real horror stories about them here...including not even issuing an ATM card for a month...the internet banking service is too darn complicated...only in UAE...i bank with emirates bank..and have had excellent service so far...and zero issues...thats just me personally though...

yes my company uses HSBC here and they suck.

Me too i use Emirates Bank and have been more than happy with there service. i recommend them.

I have NBD. My demands were a bank with no hidden charges, free credit card and good savings programs. They've been true to that so far. But as with everything else here, the account opening process was long and tedious....and their customer service isn't the best.

mraph33 wrote:But as with everything else here, the account opening process was long and tedious....and their customer service isn't the best.

actually i opened my account online with Emiraets bank !!! it was nice quick and easy

emirates bank - me bank.. they are really good and good internet banking .....

I bank with Comercial Bank of Dubai but thats only becuase my company do ... that way they can pay my pay cheque directly into my account without me having to be here to pick it up!!

However saying that - they are pretty useless ... they sort everything out but eventually!!!

i bank with HSBC and have to say the quality of service sucks but from the experience of my colleagues they are all the same out here.

Basically when dealing with a bank out here you have to remember you are doing them a service by letting them look after your money.

I think this site may help you to get all information regarding bank facilities in dubai. Just try, It has complete list of banks and ATMs in Dubai.

http://www.dubaicity.com/about_dubai/banks_atms.htm

What are the reasons causing dissatisfaction with the service of HSBC ??

These days all you need to have is a card and internet banking to get any of your banking needs catered to

Yeah Emirates bank is great!!!

Thanks to you all. I am also curious what are the problems with HSBC. Please let me know even in private messages. I disagree that today all we need a card and internet banking. Do you know that card and service fees vary from bank to bank. I had bad experiences before with Citibank in Cairo, where fees accumulated in my 0 balance account and they asked me to pay money to get my account closed. I really hate to go through such experiences.

Raniao wrote:I had bad experiences before with Citibank in Cairo, where fees accumulated in my 0 balance account and they asked me to pay money to get my account closed. I really hate to go through such experiences.

In that case, don't bank with HSBC! Bunch of twats.

Well, I bank with HSBC, and so far, I have had no problems. Charges are a little higher, but with the amount of transfers i have to do monthly to UK and HK, it is easy and quick.

I am happy with them.

Hi,
I work(ed) in Dubai Bank (currently serving my notice period) and I used to open accounts and sell credit cards.
Honetly, Dubai Bank's service is pretty good. Many clients come to us when they're fed up of Mashreq, NBD and Emirates Bank.
Very few have been upset with HSBC to be honest in my opinion.

PM me if you'd like a colleagues number. Depending which company you work in etc, we'll give you a zero balance account & credit card etc. We come to you (salesguys! lol).

Regards,
Shahveer

Actually I use HSBC and they've been okay with me no problems.

I would recommend highly to stay away from Standard Charter and quite a few people speak very highly of RAK bank.

From the people I've talked to, RAK seems to be the best bank out there.

There are also about 5 threads on here about banking which have lots of comments you may wish to do a search.

What about getting your money out?

Say there is strife in the UAE - are you more secure if your money is in a branch like llods, citibank or hsbc, or is it the same risk?

Well actually Im really surprised at the amount of positive votes for Emirates Bank coz I bank with them and they are CRAP!!!


Between taking 2-3 weeks for sorting out car finance for no apparent reason, when advertisement states 1-2 days (hmmphhh, yeah RIGHT!!!) and randomly debiting my account for all sorts of illogical reasons, I would say a DEF NO NO for Emirates Bank.

I have now started with Citibank and they are very good (or maybe its just the person I deal with is extremely efficient)! But, each to their own, I suppose....

scarlet wrote:Say there is strife in the UAE .........

Hopefully we won't get to that. And if there is, I'll say 'salamat' to the money and just worry about getting my butt out.

mraph33 wrote:I'll say 'salamat' to the money and just worry about getting my butt out.

You'll say thank you to the money?

Strife in the UAE? I do not think so. I do not see a reason for it anyway. But do you think if it happens you will be able to get your money from other/foreign banks? Who knows. Money may be lost in all cases.

XRW-147 wrote:

mraph33 wrote:I'll say 'salamat' to the money and just worry about getting my butt out.

You'll say thank you to the money?

salamat is bbye in Arabic ... i think salamat is thank you in tagalog ?

MaaaD wrote:salamat is bbye in Arabic ... i think salamat is thank you in tagalog ?

Dude, I'm taking the piss...

Abit of trivia - it is also a greeting in bahasa (Indonesian)

XRW-147 wrote:Dude, I'm taking the piss...

isnt that a given

MaaaD wrote:isnt that a given

Its the benchmark

I bank with HSBC in the UK and love them!! It's a shame and surprising to hear they are so crap here...

How are they about transfering money? I plan to be transfering money from the US and the UK to Dubai when we first move.

I love MASHREQ BANK... Good in everything, can be found anywhere, and they dont harrased people unlike ABN AMRO(which is by the way very poor in customer service, they even hired someone who doesnt know how to understand english! My mobile credit was wasted because of that b!tch !

ABN Amro is crap for sure
RAK has very good reports
ADCB is good i heard

I am not sure which one to choose , but to keep my money safe i am planning to open NRI account with ICICI or citibank and transfer some amount over there on a regular basis. from this account i can transfer the money to any other personal account in india vai online transfer. i have to check on the details though.

cheers,

jerry

We have been pleased with HSBC. Been in Dubai for 1 year. Opened account, and bought car through them also. They are great, and have had no problems.....I would refer people to them in a second.

Anyone have anything new to add to this thread? I need to join a bank and am trying to decide which one is best.