How to Open a Euro Denominated Bank Account
A Great Hedge Against a Further Decline of the US Dollar
I'm not very dollar confident and, at the moment, my feeling is that Euros (bought on dips) might be a good way to stay leveraged (outside of buying foreign stock). Those in Argentina during the recent crisis who survived financial ruin were those with (in that case) US Dollar denominated accounts. Apparently that is common there but, in the US, having a Euro denominated account does not seem to be an easy task.
As long as the Euro account is interest bearing at a fairly competitive rate, this would be a great hedge against a further decline of the US dollar.
I am a US resident and I still have a bank account in Germany. I left the country 6 years ago and have no residence there. The key is that the bank wants your US address and your social security number and will issue a 1099 to you.
I am with Deutsche Bank and handle almost all banking online (which is not too much anymore).
I also know Swiss and German's that open account in the respectively other country without a residence there. Most EU countries (Austria as a sample was know for relative lax reporting laws) I know don't require a residence.
I just called the Deutsche Bank call center in Germany and got the details :
You can open an account as a foreigner with no problems. There are some issue though :
a) their official language is german. They can answer emails in english etc. but you will need to fill out German forms that you can download from the Internet. Also phone banking is German only.
b) they obviously recommend to do Internet banking
c) The forms on the Internet should be preferrably filled in handwritten and some of them need to be notarized by a German consulate or embassy and then mailed to them. Obviously you can also show up in person if you happen to be e.g. in Frankfurt.
d) you can then deal with all your investments via email to your customer care rep. Expect to have higher commissions then the US, it is by far not as comeptitive in Germany. Also you can just put some money into e.g. 30 days fixed savings that automatically extend if you want it reasonable liquid.
e) you can also get a atm card if needed and get money out of ATM machines if you e.g. are in euro country and want to save on currency conversion
f) they will only run the account on a 'plus' basis meaning you can't overdraft (most German accounts have overdraft with around 1-3 montly salaries as the amount)
g) they will report to the IRS
So in general, if you are really willing to spend some time, it is not a big deal especially if you are not too far away from a German consulate.
Published by Douglas Alexander
I enjoy mystery shopping, finance, sports and saving. I consider myself an expert on finding great deals, saving, and getting the most for your money. I would like to share my techniques for getting the be... View profile
Not Every Item at the Dollar Store is a Good DealYou would think that if you shopped at a dollar store that everything you found would be a good deal. That however is not necessarily true. - The Power of One American Dollar which foundation accept one American dollar per person per donation for a noble mean like eradication of poverty?
- Tips for Teens About How to Manage a Savings AccountTips for Teens About How To Manage A Savings Account
- The New Dead President DollarStarting this month, February 2007, the U.S. Mint will launch a new dollar coin program.
- Tips for Teen About How to Open a Savings Account
- Opening an American Bank Account
- Global Investing - The Weak Dollar
- Review of Books Sold at Dollar Stores- Part 2
- Dollar Store Shopping: What You Need to Know
- Dollar Store Items = Great Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Christmas!
- The Euro Vs. the Dollar
- Spend the time
- Hedge your bets
- Pay attention to the rates
10 Comments
Post a CommentThis is interesting information, but it is hard to trust someone with financial information that can't formulate a proper sentence in English.
Actually you're all wrong.
Check out Everbank in Jacksonville, FL. They do have EUR, GPB and CHF demoninated CDs and other bank options...
American banking system is probably the most primitive in the world. The only country in the world (incl so called 3d world countries) where people still write checks, and there is no real electronic system (no ACH is quite backward, you cannot pay a person by entering their a/c info, the receiving party has to pull money out of your account). In most countries people can open accounts in multiple currencies, but not in America. How stupid.
I recently opened an account with Citibank UK. There are a few steps to go through, they need a notarized copy of your passport and they will also send a letter of Reference to your bank, so you have to be able to give them a heads up, but they allow you to hold an account in Euros and you can easily access them via the web. They do make you fill out a US 1099. www.citibank.co.uk
You could try some of the Irish banks. I know some do non-resident accounts. They're english speaking and the local currency is the euro.
It's a good article, but I still did not understand what I have to do to open a euro account in Germany.
Any hints?
If you're main goal is to hedge against a falling dollar, why not just open a brokerage account and buy currency ETFs (otherwise known as ETVs - Exchange Traded Vehicles) ? You can buy ETVs denominated in foreign currencies such as Euro, Mexican Pesos etc.
Hi,
I just contacted US HSBC and they told me I would have to open the account in a Euro based country and I would have to use that branch as my primary service point.
JB, do you have a link you can share?
Thanks,
Harris
Yes, this helps somwhat. But, would a Swiss or Austria bank be easier for a US citizen to deal with. Maybe applications in english, etc.?? And, do they allow Euro accounts? There must be an easier way to do this than with a German bank. Also there must be an easy way, on the internet, to enter a German sentance & maybe be given the english translation. This would make it much easier to fill out the German application. Just a thought.