A foreigner battles banking in Korea

By Chance Alberg

The banner flashing across my computer screen clearly states that I am ineligible for “Prime Service.” After three failed attempts to install this certificate while struggling to tame Internet Explorer’s incessant pop-ups, this is how you greet me? I guess this should come as no surprise. When it comes to “Prime Service,” actions speak louder than words.

To acquire this account, I spent over two hours in the bank muddling my way through cryptic forms and signing my name on command. One broken computer and two bank tellers later, the relationship was sealed. I am currently the proud new owner of an Expat Savings Account. As I was ushered out the side door into the drizzling rain, well after business hours, I felt a bit like KEB (Korea Exchange Bank)’s dirty little secret.

You see, this is not my first bank. My first and primary account is with NH. That is where my loyalty lies if only because it’s where my paychecks are deposited. Unfortunately, it has limitations. Namely, I am unable to access my money from abroad. This was particularly troubling last December in China, when I lost all my money in a Beijing luncheon gone awry. Fortunately, I travel with one credit card and a small cash advance limit, which saved me from complete disaster.

A few months later in March, I was finally home in the U.S. visiting my family after traveling for a couple of weeks through Southeast Asia. Having spent the 700,000 won I was forced to carry in cash, safely nestled on the floor of my backpack, I was essentially destitute. With my credit card maxed and my U.S. bank account drained, I did what any 33-year-old woman would do.

I swallowed my pride and borrowed money from my family. This was all so unnecessary because I had over 3,000,000 won stashed in my bank account in Korea, completely inaccessible from abroad. Two weeks ago, when a friend showed me her awesome new KEB global debit card sporting a VISA logo and declared that she’d been able to access her money from India, I was sold!

Unfortunately, there were complications! In the process of opening the account, I am told that Korean law dictates I must choose only one bank for overseas remittance. I must decide between NH and KEB. I hesitantly switched to KEB because I wanted that global debit card. Now I will have to transfer money from NH to KEB, before I can transfer money home. It feels like I just opened up a whole new can of worms.

At the time, I also requested online banking, which is essential to my survival because business hours correspond with teaching hours. Furthermore, the only way I will be able to access the money deposited into my account after I leave the country next February, will be through online banking.

Online banking poses further complications. You need a special certificate installed on your computer via Internet Explorer, to access your accounts. This means that I can only access my accounts from the one computer I’ve installed the certificate on, and I must use Internet Explorer. When I try to install the banking certificate on my computer, I am told that I already have a certificate through another bank. Does this mean I can only have one online account, too? I am angry! This is so unnecessarily complex and confusing!

When it comes to Korean banking, I feel like I’m at war. I’ve moved halfway across the planet, am facing significant communication barriers and am heavily dependent upon one overworked Korean co-teacher to help me resolve these issues.

Korea is one of the most technologically savvy nations in the world. I am confident they could figure out a way for me to easily access my money from abroad without giving me an ulcer. It feels like Korean banks are trying to make it so difficult for me that eventually I’ll just give up.

But I am a fighter! I just don’t understand why I have to fight for something I already earned.

Chance Alberg is in her second year of teaching elementary school English in Daegu, through the EPIK program. Her blog, Chance’s EPIK Adventure can be viewed at https://chancealberg.wordpress.com.