Good morning all, hope your post-hump day highs have hit!
I finally hit month 7 of living in Japan on my student visa and can finally apply for a non-Yucho bank.
The two I'm looking at right now are SMBC and Sony Bank, both for their English support and ability to get a debit card rather quickly. Line Pay says they're going to remove their debit card eventually, and I don't want to get caught flat-footed on my phone bill.
I'm curious to hear what people think of them, or if there are any other standouts I should look at. So far the pros and cons I have for both are:
SMBC
Pros:
One of the "big four" so I can reliably set up auto-payments/transfers from my account
English support
Phone app
Cons:
Confusion between SMBC and SMBC Prestia
Prestia doesn't have as many services/flexibility as regular SMBC (?)
Sony Bank
Pros:
Full English support
Foreign exchange/multi-currency support
Good for transferring money to and from my account in foreign currencies
Some free transfers/withdrawals
Cashback on debit card
Cons:
Online only
Apparently requires much more personal information for remittances/transfers overseas than other banks (?)
Thanks much for reading, and have a smooth ride til 花金!