@Kevin ************

The brokers name was Max at

No problem with the letter, best to go to a fairly big branch where you live. They will have the secretarial backup. I bank with BKK but cannot answer regarding the statements as my local immigration offices do not ask for those.

Look on this as an adventure or an experience not just a means for getting from A to B. Some time ago I did BKK to Butterworth and in 1959, as a child, I did Butterworth to Singapore. A chance to experience the sights, smells, sounds and atmosphere of the vibrant SEA. Wonderful.

@Dan *******

Correct. I was holidaying in Thailand and just before the end of my holiday I went into a branch of Bangkok Bank in Sukhumvit Soi 3 Nana Neua to enquire about opening an account. This branch called itself something like the "Foreign Business Branch" although I did not know that at the time. As usual in Thailand it depends on who you speak to and the lady that helped me was brilliant. She was thinking outside the box and my Thailand account was opened sometime later after I provided a letter from my UK bank and a chunk of money. After that I found out about the UK to Thailand facility that was available to me. By then I was Non-Imm in Thailand.

@Nick ******

Yes. I use the phrase "not a retail bank" to try to indicate that they do not conduct personal business. Maybe that is a misleading expression but I am not a banker and have no knowledge of their phraseology. They do however conduct the business I described above and they do it well.

Can only speak for myself. In my case I collect my pension income in my UK bank and have a standing order once a month to the Bangkok Bank branch in UK. They are not a retail bank but they will receive the money and then credit it to your Bangkok Bank account in Thailand. Two working days as usual for banks but early delivery, in my case, at 0834hrs on the second day.

@Todd ********

Dead money? My Thai baht deposit has been one of my best investments compared to the small range of mutual funds that I hold.

@Nick ***********

Agreed. I have no idea either what the difference is or why one requires insurance and the other doesn't.

@Hamish ******

Well done for remembering the Asian labourers. I don't think they have any memorials or cemeteries. They were just taken from their families. " About 60,000 Allied POWs and tens of thousands of civilian workers were forced to provide the labour This led to the deaths of more than 12,000 POWs and about 90,000 civilian workers". Copied from 649

@Stuart ********

post office closed here.