2025.2 Update: The new account opening bonus is $1,000/$2,000/$3,000, you need to open a premier relationship savings account and deposit $100k/$250k/$500k. The APY of this savings account is 3.75% currently, so it’s not a terrible deal for putting your money here.
2024.7 Update: The new account opening bonus is $1,500/$2,500, the required deposit is $100k/$250k. No DD requirement.
2024.1 Update: The new account opening bonus ranges from $2,000 to $4,000, requiring a deposit of $100k to $500k plus Direct Deposit (DD). The specifics are detailed below. This fund can be placed in the HSBC Relationship Savings to earn an interest of 4.50%, so there’s no loss in interest. This bonus is very generous, and friends with sufficient funds may consider taking advantage of it!
Application Link
Features
- Account Opening Bonus: $1,000/$2,000/$3,000! See below for conditions. Deadline: Feb 28, 2024.
- Monthly Fee: $50, methods to avoid this fee are detailed below.
- A $25 early termination fee is required if the account is closed within 180 days.
- HSBC Premier’s International Banking and Global Transfer features might be useful for some. HSBC allows opening bank accounts in another country (only in countries with HSBC branches). For people who frequently transfer money between China and the U.S., transferring money between HSBC Premier accounts in both countries is free of charge.
- Wire transfer fees are $0, including incoming and outgoing, even for international wires. This account is a must-have for those who frequently make international transfers.
- Although HSBC offers zero fees for transfers between different countries, the exchange rate for currency conversion by HSBC is notably unfavorable. Therefore, it’s recommended to use other banks for currency exchange and use HSBC solely for international transfers.
Bonus Requirements
- This account opening bonus is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: “Customers who have a current or past HSBC account in the U.S. on file are not eligible for this offer.”
- You need to open a premier relationship savings account at the same time.
- Before Mar 31, 2025, deposit $100k/$250k/$500k and maintain this balance until at least Jun 30, 2025 to receive an opening bonus of $1,000/$2,000/$3,000. The APY of this savings account is 3.75% currently (2025.2), so it’s not a terrible deal for putting your money here.
- Friendly Reminder: Be sure to leave at least $1 in the checking account and not transfer all the money to savings, as the checking account will be automatically closed after 30 days without funds, and you’ll miss out on the bonus.
Types of HSBC Checking Accounts
HSBC Basic BankingHSBC Choice CheckingHSBC Advance- HSBC Premier
Currently, HSBC only offers its premier account in the United States, as the lower-tier accounts have been phased out of the U.S. market.
How to Avoid Monthly Fees (meeting any one of the following)
For HSBC Premier Checking, the monthly fee is $50. The requirements to avoid this fee are:
- Maintain an average monthly balance of at least $75,000;
- Or have at least $5,000 in monthly Direct Deposit (DD) (HSBC’s DD is very flexible, as referenced on DoC’s page).
The above balances include checking, savings, and investment combined.
Summary
HSBC’s IT level is vastly inferior to that of American banks and is very poor. There are still some cumbersome processes with HSBC, such as the steps to use online banking after opening an account, which involve first receiving an email with a temporary account number, followed by a physical letter with a temporary password. According to everyone’s experience, their regular service is also very poor. In short, don’t have high expectations in terms of ease of use.
Despite this, the account opening bonus is very generous and worth considering.
Fee-free wire transfers are also a major feature of the HSBC Premier. Although many banks’ high-end accounts offer this feature, the threshold for HSBC Premier is actually very low. You just need to use a $5,000 fake Direct Deposit (DD) to meet the requirement, which is virtually no barrier for those willing to spend some time figuring it out.
Application Link