Okay so in order to open the account, it is largely normal KYC stuff, so in my case Passport, driving license, bank statement (posted, not printed & from within the last 3 months) and three months payslips, however I gave them my employment contract.
You’ve then to fill out a form with the account you’re after, main currency, if you want internet/mobile banking facilities etc, all your personal/tax/employment info and how much dough you’ll be playing about with over the course of a month and year. Will you be sending money abroad? if so to where & source of funds.
From there, a few colleagues checked it. I was then asked whether I’d like to collect my account details in 2 weeks from branch or have them posted:
So the timeline looks like this:
In the next two weeks, they will open my account, sending me a debit card and internet banking form.
I will then call to activate the card, at which point they send a PIN
Simultaneously, I will send back the internet banking form to branch in the post, to save a trip.
Then I’ll receive an e-token which seems to be sort of like a secure key. At which point I can login online.
I’ll also get my PIN and be able to change it at a cash point.
Some branches do require an appointment, but I had my girlfriend call ahead for several reasons:
One the application form requires a Chinese name, and two the boxes are too small for English names. I’m hoping it doesn’t cause an issue, but they seemed confident!
I was then emailed by branch, and came in today. It was a lot cleaner and sleeker than most UK bank branches.
If I haven’t covered something, please let me know, but this appears to be the gist.