Banking in Tokyo Japan

[Tim0thy]

I'm trying to figure out the best bank to start an account with when I get to Japan. I've seen a number of threads/blogs that list off Shinsei, MUFJ, and Mizuho. Does anyone have any experience with these banks? I would prefer a bank that has easy online access (Being in English would be a huge plus as I won't be nearly comfortable enough with the language to do banking with it). It would also be nice if the bank was more capable of working with English speaking customers within their individual branches. Easy access to ATMs would be a plus as well. I would also like it if they had a low transfer fee as I will be working a telecommute job, located in the USA, so my money will have to be transferred to the bank quite frequently.

I will be coming on a student visa to study Japanese just to clear up any confusion about how I'm getting a visa if I'm working for a US company.

Thanks!

 

[nahadef]

Citibank is probably easiest if you're in Tokyo and you want to do international banking.

Citibank

 

[Tim0thy]

Citibank is probably easiest if you're in Tokyo and you want to do international banking.

Citibank

I had read that Citibank had a ton of fees and a high minimum balance. Any knowledge on this? I've looking into Shinsei a bit and they seem to have no fee when it comes to accepting transfers of USD and converting it to Yen.

 

[johnnyG]

I had read that Citibank had a ton of fees and a high minimum balance. Any knowledge on this? I've looking into Shinsei a bit and they seem to have no fee when it comes to accepting transfers of USD and converting it to Yen.

I've had good luck with Shinsei, tho your mileage may vary.