# Banks & banking



## Guest (Feb 7, 2010)

Hi all, 


Can anyone recommend a Bank and the type of account we will require?

My husband will be getting paid in Stirling..... should we get his wages paid into a Uk bank then transfer the money to our Cypriot Bank account? or get his wages paid directly into his Cypriot account. If so what type of account would we need for this?

We will need an account for Direct debits and stuff I take it thats how you pay bills in Cyprus?

We will also need an account to withdraw funds by cash machine, probably knowing me on a daily basis so dont want to be charged exchange rates everytime we do?

An excellent online banking system as well as face to face.

We will still keep our bank account in the UK as we still have a morgage here and other DD's.


We will also need a savings account but I feel we may keep our savings account in the UK if we are allowed to. 

WHAT IS A STIRLING ACCOUNT AND A EURO ACCOUNT?????


Hope this all makes sense...

Thank you all rgs Lynda xx


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## BabsM (May 24, 2008)

lyndamarcx said:


> Hi all,
> 
> 
> Can anyone recommend a Bank and the type of account we will require?
> ...


Hi Lynda, 
There are lots of banks in Cyprus that offer these services or you could look at an offshore UK account. I suggest you look at one of the big banks in Cyprus (Bank of Cyprus, Hellenic, Laiki). There are loads of branches of all of these all over the island. Have a look at what has branches close to where you will live. There's nothing more annoying than having to drive miles to get money out of a cash point. 

You will be able to keep your UK bank accounts but it might be an idea to look at moving your account to the Nationwide. I understand they allow you to use your UK cards abroad without charging extra. But make sure you move your account before you leave the UK as they will not open a new account with a foreign address. That will allow you to draw your husband's wages out of cashpoints here. Just check they are still doing the free use abroad as I heard whispers of it being withdrawn.

I suggest you also open a current account (with cheque book, standing orders/direct debits and online banking) with a bank here and a branch local to where you will live, such as Bank of Cyprus, Laiki or Hellenic. This account will operate in Euros because that is the currency of Cyprus. Check that they do not charge to withdraw cash from cash points. You can set up direct debits to pay your bills out of this account. The Cyprus bank will also do savings accounts if you want. The Cyprus immigration authorities prefer you to have an account in a Cyprus bank.

You will need some way of moving your money from your Sterling UK account to your Cyprus Euro account on a regular basis. Your UK bank may offer international transfers into your Cyprus account but they will charge, sometimes a lot. You could have a second account in England, attached to your UK account, that operates in Euros that you can transfer your money into (cheaper than sending it abroad). Or you could have an account operating in Sterling here in Cyprus, attached to your Cyprus bank account. Only you can decide which one to go for. You should compare charges and exchange rates as some offer lower exchange rates and few charges and some offer higher charges and a better exchange rates.


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## Guest (Feb 8, 2010)

BabsM, 

Thank you so much yet again for your advice, this has helped me loads. Ill look into Nationwide now. 

Once again Thankyou.

Would still appreciate any recommendations on particular Banks?? 

Kind Rgs Lynda x


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## philly (Feb 5, 2010)

I was told by a number of people ( ex pats ) last time I was over that Alpha Bank was the best for ex pats anyone had experience of them ?

Thanks


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## BabsM (May 24, 2008)

philly said:


> I was told by a number of people ( ex pats ) last time I was over that Alpha Bank was the best for ex pats anyone had experience of them ?
> 
> Thanks


Yes, a neighbour used them. They found the bigger banks offered better services.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

philly said:


> I was told by a number of people ( ex pats ) last time I was over that Alpha Bank was the best for ex pats anyone had experience of them ?
> 
> Thanks


The Alpha bank is in trouble thanks to a particular developer who has been discussed on these forums inthe past owing them 70 million euros. If this developer goes down they will take the Alpha bank with them.
I would recommend the Laiki (Marfin) popular bank.


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## philly (Feb 5, 2010)

Great thanks for the honest replies


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## AradippouTales (Jan 27, 2010)

Veronica said:


> The Alpha bank is in trouble thanks to a particular developer who has been discussed on these forums inthe past owing them 70 million euros. If this developer goes down they will take the Alpha bank with them.
> I would recommend the Laiki (Marfin) popular bank.


They also had a poor rating for some time due to the geographical source of much of their deposits. There was a suggestion, rightly or wrongly, that their processes with regard to anti-money laundering were not as robust as some of the other banks.

It could well be that in subsequent years they have resolved some of those issues but, for now, it is not somewhere I would choose to put my money when there are other reasonable options.

Mands


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## theresoon (Apr 11, 2008)

Regarding Alpha Bank, when I went to check them out, the lady was very friendly and was eager to get a big deposit but when I said we will need a mortgage soon she said no, they take deposits but all loans have been put on hold. Coming from the banking world myself, I found this to be very odd as banks make money from loans not deposits. Later on we saw some threats on the forum mentioning that they had been approved by Alpha for loans/mortgages but Alpha backed off the deals.

I think your main concern should be not having to do too many transfers as they can add up as I have found out. I would see where most of your outflows are and have the direct deposit done there. Or your UK savings to do your mortgage and other payments in the UK and have your direct deposit done here. Also minimizing the fx transactions is important to save you on charges. If you have a foreign currency savings or deposit account here and transfer funds from it to the foreign currency checking account (in order to do a wire transfer or fx to Euros) there is a charge for this. 

Considering you'll be using the atm daily I would stick to one of the two Bank of Cyprus or Marfin Laiki. And come to think of it, Bank of Cyprus now has a system- at least with there branches in Greece where you can transfer upto e2000 a day with no charge. So they might have the same with their branches in the UK. Nothing against Hellenic but you might have to drive for a while before you find an ATM. For instance last summer they closed their branch in Protaras and my dad had to drive all over Paralimni to find their branch. Where ever you decide to open an account make sure you become friendly with the people at the branch, this will ensure they will go the extra mile for you.


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## philly (Feb 5, 2010)

Theresoon

Thank you for your post it is exactly what we needed to know

)))))


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