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best Mexican bank?


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On 9/17/2016 at 3:53 PM, John Shrall said:

Out of curiousity for those who feel Multiva is superior to Bancomer, does Multiva offer online banking with bill payer? Are they really issuing credit cards, not just debit cards? Do you receive cell phone text notifications when the credit card is used?

I'm just asking about true banking services, not the investments that each entity might offer.

The best bank is one that you never have to visit. Banking customer service is generally an oxymoron.

Not an oxymoron at Intercam. The face to face customer service is excellent. They also have a help line in English and I am quite happy with their very secure online banking and when I want to load up again I merely write a cheque from my Canadian bank.

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I'm curious to know how come Actinver isn't mentioned. It was useful for us for a long time, cashing US checks, etc. But when Banamex USA dropped some of us a few years ago we opened a USAA account in the States to receive our SS deposits. It's great and for peso cash I use their Visa debit card at local ATMs (usually the one at CIBanco for the best exchange rate). But tell me why Actinver isn't among the preferred banks.

Lexy

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It was once a popular choice for expats, but that was a decade ago, when it was Lloyds (not Lloyds of London).  Then it slowly became les and less inviting and was eventually sold to Actinver.  There seemed to be difficulties in the transition and service suffered. We quit using it many years ago.  We had only used it to cash occasional checks, but no longer needed that service and never used any Mexican bank for the next decade.  Just used electronic banking from our USA bank.

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I love Actinver and they even have free coffee!   I have been with them for 19 years. What I like most is that I can wire money from my Merrill Lynch retirement account directly to the Actinver Brokerage Account and get very close to the spot rate. Now if I were to send it to my Actinver Bank account there would be a slightly larger exchange rate fee.

I even have a dollar Bank Account at Actinver. The total is less than $800 US but when  I head north, it's nice to have some US dollars with me and not be forced to pay a high exchange rate at say the airport.

What some people do not like about Actinver is that if they have no money in either a brokerage account and almost nothing in their bank account, one would have to wait for either 4 or 6 weeks when cashing a US or Canadian Check at the Bank.

I never have this problem is because I  have a small brokerage and bank account and any US dollar check I might want to cash is much  smaller than my  brokerage account.

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1 hour ago, canmex87 said:

They now have Visa debit cards which can be used at any ATM.

But does Actinver have any ATMs?

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No, Actinver does not have any ATMs in Ajijic. But the only time I would need an ATM is when the bank is closed, and there are ATMs available in stores outside some other banks, near Dominos Pizza Etc . Gosh I use my Actinver Visa Debit card at Costco, Walmart, you name it. I almost never use it for money at an ATM.

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10 hours ago, johanson said:

No, Actinver does not have any ATMs in Ajijic. But the only time I would need an ATM is when the bank is closed, and there are ATMs available in stores outside some other banks, near Dominos Pizza Etc . Gosh I use my Actinver Visa Debit card at Costco, Walmart, you name it. I almost never use it for money at an ATM.

It certainly is better than it used to be. If you use your Visa debit from Actinver how much are you charged?

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2 hours ago, Crazydog said:

I had an awful experience with actinver. Do not give them any money.  

I break out in a cold sweat everytime I have to enter their building wondering what fresh hell they are going to put me through to accomplish a simple task quickly performed by other banks here.

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I am not charged anything when I use my card. I understand that there is a fee and that the person accepting payment via my debit card pays. I have used it for a small charge like breakfast at Salvador's restaurant and for a smart TV at Costco costing $19,999.

And Al Berca, I am sorry about the bad luck you have had. I have never had a problem there. I walk in go to the Cashier window, give them my account # and provide an ID like my Jalisco Drivers license, INAPAN card, passport or what have you and they give me money from my account.

I learned that the best way to bring money down from up North is to wire it from my Merrill Lynch retirement account to my Actinver brokerage account. I am charge a very small fee by Actinver.

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We use Actinver for both banking and investments and have been quite satisfied.  When we need cash we go to the ATM at Plaza Laguna or to the windows at Actinver.

Personally speaking, I haven't found banking in Mexico to be up to the level of that available in the U.S. particularly when it comes to the use of computers for conducting transactions.  Having said that, I've also found that Mexican banks seem to be improving while NOB banks seem to be going in the opposite direction.

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On 9/18/2016 at 8:40 AM, lcscats said:

Bancomer is the largest bank here. It does require 8000P for no fee checking account but branches are everywhere in Mexico and they do have an English banker and an english help phone number useful during the day.   In Mexico I use Bancomer.  In US or traveling  I use BOA or my Credit Union (FTFCU).  I move money from US to Mexico with a US check deposited (over 5000USD gets better rate converting to pesos) into my Bancomer checking account. It takes less than a week to clear and money is in my account.  

 

Lets be honest in Mexico we can hear bad stories about every bank or investment house including all of them lakeside.  You have to watch your money, keep all your paper records and be diligent.  Don't trust any institution here regardless of what you hear.   "Let the buyer beware" is my best advice.  No problems in eight years with our method. 

 

 

I have the "Libreton" account at Bancomer. No fee, balance required is 4000 pesos, not 8000.

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