Record of OCBC Overseas Bank Account Creation Experience

Cause#

Recently, Musk started sending money to users on X with over 5 million views. Since X's remittance is done through Stripe Express, and domestic bank cards cannot receive funds, many users began researching overseas banks with simpler account opening processes.

Most users chose to take a trip to Hong Kong to open a Hong Kong bank card, while some recommended registering for an OCBC bank card located in Singapore. Opening an OCBC account not only has a low threshold but also allows direct account opening in China. Therefore, I grabbed my passport and immediately registered for an OCBC account. Although the account opening process went smoothly, I spent a lot of extra effort during the funding stage, so I wanted to write an article to document it.

About OCBC Bank#

OCBC Bank is one of the three major local banks in Singapore, headquartered in Singapore, and was established in 1932. It is one of the oldest banks in Singapore. The website and app support Chinese and have Chinese customer service.

Applying for an OCBC Account#

First, you need to prepare the following materials/documents:

An Android or Apple phone that supports NFC
Passport
ID card
Mobile phone number from mainland China
Prepare 1000 SGD for funding verification

First, go to the Apple or Google store to search for "OCBC Digital" to install it, or directly visit the following addresses:

Open "OCBC Digital" and fill in the information truthfully according to the interface requirements. Enter the invitation code: HLO9FDOS. If you fund 1000 SGD within one month after using the invitation code, you can receive an additional 15 SGD bonus.

If the app crashes or shows a black screen upon opening, please try completely closing it and reopening it. Additionally, the loading speed may be slow on domestic networks.

During the registration process, try not to select self-employed, otherwise, it is likely to be rejected.

The general steps for registration are as follows:

On the homepage, select Foreigners with Electronic Passports
Fill in your mobile phone number as required (using a domestic phone number is fine)
Obtain a mobile verification code and scan the passport barcode
Take a photo of your passport and ID card as required, and complete video verification

The registration process is very simple. Upon re-entering the app, you will be required to complete the following steps:

Set a username
Set a 6-digit PIN
Complete facial verification
You will be asked to bind your phone to OneToken

Note: Please do not exit the application during the process, otherwise, you may not be able to log in after the review is approved, getting stuck in a loop.

Once set up, the homepage looks like this👇

Funding with Bank of China#

By this point, you have completed the registration. Below is the process I followed to fund 1000 SGD and the pitfalls I encountered:

Many tutorials recommend using Panda Remit for funding, but since Panda Remit is not a same-name account, there may be some risks. Personally, I use Bank of China more often, so I chose to remit through Bank of China.

The specific remittance path is as follows: Bank of China APP => Currency Purchase => Cross-Border Remittance

There are no pitfalls in this operation, but the issues with fees and the time it takes for the funds to arrive are quite troublesome.

I remitted 1000 SGD using the Bank of China APP, and they charged me a fee of: 8.39 + 25.17 = 33.56 SGD.

When the funds arrived the next day, I only received 970 SGD, meaning they charged me a total of 63.56 SGD in fees, equivalent to about 342 RMB. It really hurts, and I hope everyone learns from this and avoids making the same mistakes.

I saw a tutorial mentioning that the remittance fees for Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Panda Remit are relatively low, but unfortunately, my ICBC account is self-registered and cannot make cross-border remittances.

Those with ICBC cards can refer to the article below👇

Real Experience Sharing of Cross-Border Remittance from Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to Singapore OCBC Bank

Update: 2023/09/11 Apply for 360 Account#

After completing the account opening, you can apply for a 360 account:

In the top left corner of the APP settings, select "Apply"
Select "Account"
Select "360 Account"
Click "Apply Now"
Supplement the information, fill in the account mailing address in the format of [mobile number + address], with the mobile number first; otherwise, the bank card sent by registered mail cannot be delivered. For address changes, please refer to this tutorial，自雇人士选择『No』然后点击『下一页』
Fill in the "Taxpayer Identification Number" with your ID card, then click "Confirm Tax Resident Status"
Confirm your name, then click "Next"
Confirm the information, then click "Open Account Now"
The account opening is complete
Obtain detailed information and keep it safe