HSBC Debit Card

I have used my visa debit with then around the world with no issues

Same here, used my debit card in July in the USA no problems.
Also throughout Europe for petrol/ shopping etc.

Terry

Were you expecting an AMEX Centurion Card or what? Just kidding of course.  Prestige aside, a VISA Electron card is perfectly legitimate and useful for daily needs worldwide.

Romaniac

Nothing wrong with my Amex centurion either

Hi. Thanks for the replies. I was just curious as I thought the only people banks dished these cards out to were skint students. HSBC gave me a debit card and a credit card and HSBC Expat fixed me up with a AMEX plat card so HSBC Malta seems like it's lagging behind a bit. 

Hi

Don't expect banking here to anything like the UK.  HSBC is perhaps the bank here to avoid (it has been rumoured that they may close their operation in Malta in the near future) but BOV are not a lot better.  We have lived here 14 years and only have our state pensions paid in here; we have always kept our serious cash in the UK  and transfer money as required. Remember, Malta is still a cash economy and prefer mattresses to banks; many small businesses do not take cards or cheques anyway. 

However, perhaps my views are a little tainted by the fact that we are moving to Spain. The cost of living is rising rapidly in Malta and its time for us to go.

We are a long time HSBC Premier customer outside of Malta, with credit cards, pension, property etc. all with them.

We opened an account in Malta a few months back and ended up having a debit card instead of a credit card for the Malta account as they wanted us to maintain a large balance in the credit card account and pay in every time we used the card to maintain that balance which seemed pointless to us (and somewhat pissed us off).

They don't care about how much funds you have with HSBC anywhere else on the planet or how good a customer you are with them, Malta seems to operate completely separate from the rest of HSBC.

That said we have used the debit card everywhere in Malta without a problem, and the HSBC staff here are always polite and helpful.

Rob

That is the ethos of HSBS: 'the local bank'. It means they operate in every country differently.  Also there is a difference between their debit card (quikcash) and a Visa debit. If it is Qwikcash then many shops will not accept them because they require a different machine to process them from the BOV ones and visa verse; so it largely depends on which bank the vendor uses.  Larger companies like Pavi can process both cards. Only yesterday I was refused twice: once at Gozo Pools and at the local vets.  Both only had BOV machines.  Anywhere else but Malta and they would produce a machine to process transactions with any card.

Which bank would people recommend, my wife and I are visiting in October and we are starting to get things in place in lieu of us moving. Would you recommend HSBC or BOV. Plus how easy is it to open an account with just my passport with a UK address as then I can start moving funds in to the bank before we move.

Cheers

When we first came here it took 2 months to open an account but someone I know, recently opened an account with the HSBC in Gozo and it took 3 weeks to get an appointment and 3 weeks after the interview before the account was opened.  He had to supply evidence of funds in the UK and they obtained references from his bank.  Most people claim BOV to be the better of the two.

We have found it best to keep our money in the UK and withdraw funds on our UK Visa Debit card at an ATM. For large amounts you can just go to the cashier with your Visa cards and withdraw whatever you want; it is cheaper than transferring it.  Don't expect the same service you get in the UK.
Hope this helps.

tristrav wrote:

When we first came here it took 2 months to open an account but someone I know, recently opened an account with the HSBC in Gozo and it took 3 weeks to get an appointment and 3 weeks after the interview before the account was opened.  He had to supply evidence of funds in the UK and they obtained references from his bank.  Most people claim BOV to be the better of the two.

We have found it best to keep our money in the UK and withdraw funds on our UK Visa Debit card at an ATM. For large amounts you can just go to the cashier with your Visa cards and withdraw whatever you want; it is cheaper than transferring it.  Don't expect the same service you get in the UK.
Hope this helps.

We have found that we get a much better rate (after charges ) by either using a prepaid card such as Forex or Travelex if you still have a UK address for your UK bank or better still by having a Maltese bank account and then using a company such as Transferwise to transfer the funds to it. Both our UK banks charge a transfer fee and a withdrawal fee for using an ATM here, which makes the actual rate about 3 cents lower.

Ray

Ray

lmjacques wrote:

Which bank would people recommend, my wife and I are visiting in October and we are starting to get things in place in lieu of us moving. Would you recommend HSBC or BOV. Plus how easy is it to open an account with just my passport with a UK address as then I can start moving funds in to the bank before we move.

Cheers

You might struggle without a Maltese address at all the banks unless arranged via an HSBC account in the UK with HSBC over here, which I know others have done. But it is possible to open a basic account with Banif with just an address in Malta/Gozo and a passport, they do not ask for references from your UK bank.
Our account was opened same day and it provides a cheque book and a Visa Debit card which can be used anywhere (supposedly). We have used them in Germany and UK with no issues. Don't expect a Credit card at any of the banks without lodging the same amount in a separate account to cover the 'credit' given.

Ray

Thank you that is great. The credit card isn't an issue as I have no interest in having one.

When we do move I will be looking for work so obviously once I get a job I'll need to be paid.

I presume I would need a Maltese account then or are most employers willing to pay in to any account.

Thank you.

lmjacques wrote:

Thank you that is great. The credit card isn't an issue as I have no interest in having one.

When we do move I will be looking for work so obviously once I get a job I'll need to be paid.

I presume I would need a Maltese account then or are most employers willing to pay in to any account.

Thank you.

i would think finding an employer who does direct transfer is akin to finding a hens tooth
a  lot of companies sitll pay by cheque here but you can usually cash it the same day by taking it to your local branch of hsbc or bov dependent on who the cheque is issued (worth noting banks only open till 1pm )  or they pay you in cash

there is no charge to cash a cheque though and its a very good service

My advice is to do a lot more research before you come to Malta.

We only have experience of HSBC but we opened our HSBC Malta account when overseas, using our overseas address not our Malta address, our relationship manager in our home country overseas arranged it all for us, we had to complete a 30 page application form which was a pain and even the relationship manager was a bit stunned by it.

Probably took 2 months to get it all done.

It's not really difficult to get it done, it just takes much longer than you would expect based on experience of HSBC outside of Malta.

As to how we run it, we basically put EUR into our overseas account and then use the online banking to transfer that into our Malta account, we don't use HSBC for the FX as we find their rates are pretty poor.   

Hope that may be of use.
Rob

tristrav wrote:

My advice is to do a lot more research before you come to Malta.

Already in Malta thank you been here 1 year 5 months  but thanks for your concern

Back of the net Rob !

I have the same issue.  The Electron card will not work in the Netherlands, but will work in Spain. Ask them for a credit card.

There seems to be some confusion with some of the answers. You asked about a visa electron card and not a visa debit card.
From my experiences in Malta/Gozo with a HSBC visa electron card it is sometimes not accepted in shops, restaurants etc, it is only good for withdrawing cash from the hole in the wall. You have to ask HSBC for a debit card which they will charge you a monthly fee. Also be aware there is no facility to change your pin number.

Welcome to Malta banking

VISA electron is accepted all over the island

f.magpie wrote:

There seems to be some confusion with some of the answers. You asked about a visa electron card and not a visa debit card.
From my experiences in Malta/Gozo with a HSBC visa electron card it is sometimes not accepted in shops, restaurants etc, it is only good for withdrawing cash from the hole in the wall. You have to ask HSBC for a debit card which they will charge you a monthly fee. Also be aware there is no facility to change your pin number.

Welcome to Malta banking

Visa Electron is a Debit Card, it is just that some places do not accept it.

I have a Debit Card from the CO-OP bank in the UK  which is a Visa Debit but because they used to issue Visa Electron Debit cards the card still starts with 'Electron' numbers and this can cause a rejection with some card machines / systems.
At one time the railway ticket machine in the UK would not accept my card because there system had not been updated.
With regard to Malta/Gozo it is very much down to whether the retailer has the right card machine for the card!
The HSBC card for the 'Hole in the wall' is a Quickcash card.

Ray

also you can use the quickcash card in the majority of shops too - inlcuding pavi , lidl , tower supermarkets etc , you can use the quickcash card to top up your tallinja card online and for paying your bills ..