Good banks in Spain

[Sparksy]

Hi,

Does anyone have any suggestions for a good bank to use in Spain? They should have a good English website/app and be secure and convenient to use, preferably with offices throughout Spain, which are easily located.

[fixer]

Lacxia is the bank i use with English web site but dont think a there is such a thing as a good Spanish bank !

[Sparksy]

Really!? No such thing as a good Spanish bank? I am surprised! Why do you think so? And maybe I should also ask what you define as a good bank?

[AndyG]

We use BBVA. They seem to have lots of branches in many towns and villages. The staff in our local branch spoke good English but they have now moved to other branches apparently. The new staff speak enough English for us to get matters sorted. These have included twice asking for charges to be refunded as we are entitled to free banking if we retain a high average credit balance. Dealing with apparently straightforward queries in branch can take a long time but it does usually get sorted if you have the time on the day.

[phillip]

[QwUOTE=Sparksy;545708]Hi,

Does anyone have any suggestions for a good bank to use in Spain? They should have a good English website/app and be secure and convenient to use, preferably with offices throughout Spain, which are easily located.[/QUOTE]

I have used La Caixa for over fifteen years and find the service excellent. The staff in the branch are very good and always reply to emails promptly and the internet banking can be accessed in English and is easy to use.

[Sparksy]

I am actually in the process of learning Spanish, but until then I will need a bank whose services I can use in English.

I think your example is a bad one, because English is used internationally, but certainly it would be different if they had come to Finland and were asking for a bank whose services they could use in Spanish.

[Angusjim]

Learn Spanish!!!..............you are in a foreign country!!!..............why do Spanish people have to learn "ENGLISH"???

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Can you imagine a Spanish person posting here,(who cannot be bothered to learn English) what is a good bank in the Uk.

Don't think it was said anywhere that the Spanish need to learn English he just asked if anyone knew of a bank that offered this service seemed a reasonable enough question to me

[phillip]

Learn Spanish!!!..............you are in a foreign country!!!..............why do Spanish people have to learn "ENGLISH"???

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Can you imagine a Spanish person posting here,(who cannot be bothered to learn English) what is a good bank in the Uk.

I do not see the relevance of this answer to the question.
A good bank has nothing to do with nationality and in the modern world, most banking websites are in muliple languages.

[jack oakley]

I have used La Caixa for over fifteen years and find the service excellent. The staff in the branch are very good and always reply to emails promptly and the internet banking can be accessed in English and is easy to use.[/QUOTE]

Stay well away from Santander, most of the staff are arrogant and vastly unhelpful and their charges are nothing more than daylight robbery, over 120 euros per year to maintain a simple deposit account.

[garlicbread]

Sparksy 's request seemed a perfectly acceptable one to me, with there being absolutely no reason for andyfm to attack him because he happens to want a bank with an English website.

I have lived here in Tenerife for 13 years and I bank with Santander, their 123 residents account offers FREE banking with cash back/discounts on many purchases. My local manager does in fact speak English although his staff just about get by in English. Sadly their website is in Spanish but easy enough to navigate if you have a modicum of Spanish. La Caixa is another bank where I have an account and their website is in English as well as Spanish and some (by no means all) staff in my local branch (Playa San Juan) do speak English . Charges are modest.

Were it not for foreign tourism the Canarian economy would be completely on its backside so to suggest that all foreigners learn to speak English is ludicrous. Many Canarians with brains do speak another language(s) other than their own, many of those that don't often end up in low paid jobs or with no job at all. Tourism is booming in Tenerife at the moment and whenever I go to a an international type restaurant patronised by foreigners one can hear a dozen different languages but the "common" one is always English. Good luck with your banking Sparky.

[cheery]

Learn Spanish!!!..............you are in a foreign country!!!..............why do Spanish people have to learn "ENGLISH"???

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Can you imagine a Spanish person posting here,(who cannot be bothered to learn English) what is a good bank in the Uk.

I would agree wholeheartedly with this. If you are in a foreign country, learning that language should be one of the first things you do when you commit to moving there long term. When the time comes for us to move we will be learning the language to a better standard than

'Quiero dos cerveza por favor'

It makes life a hell of a lot easier. I am well aware that English is an international language but people should make more effort to integrate and adopt the local language and culture. This is not aimed at the OP but Brits in general who think that everyone should bend to their lazy ways.

[Sparksy]

I would agree wholeheartedly with this. If you are in a foreign country, learning that language should be one of the first things you do when you commit to moving there long term. When the time comes for us to move we will be learning the language to a better standard than

'Quiero dos cerveza por favor'

It makes life a hell of a lot easier. I am well aware that English is an international language but people should make more effort to integrate and adopt the local language and culture. This is not aimed at the OP but Brits in general who think that everyone should bend to their lazy ways.

Fortunately I am learning Spanish, like I said before. If I was British, which I am not, I might have been reluctant to learn other languages. It might seem unnecessary, and easier to encourage others to speak my language, considering so many people speak English. As I am not used to people speaking my language, I am able to speak many languages, and now I am also learning Spanish.


I do not believe that i "ATTACKED" Sparksy,iF you read his post he is asking about banks in "SPAIN" (mainland) not here in Tenerife!!!

I do not only spend time in Tenerife but the Spanish mainland too, and sometimes there can be differences that some banks are much more common in some regions, so I asked for a bank that is common to find both in Tenerife and the Spanish mainland.

[Madelene B]

Sparksy- Great question! Because I've asked myself the same question. I'm currently with Sabadell Solbank in Puerto de la Cruz (El Botainco). My bank contact is proficient in English, French, German and Italian, really impressed, but I'm not happy with the mortgage I have, paying far to much interest.The terms and conditions are hard to grip, we don't have any Visa card connected to our account since we only spend holidays on the island and we are tied to the office in El Botanico, the office in down town Puerto can not do much for us, which is a cumbersome.

So to summarise: The service is fine, watch out if you are looking for a mortgage.

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[9PLUS]

Cajasiete as there's virtually no costs involved.

[pikano]

I decided on Banco Sabadell, initially because of the good English language website, unlike Santander, who's website is only available in Spanish or Catalan.

Working as an expat in the Philippines at the moment, and planning to relocate to Tenerife in July, I was anxious to find out if I could open a bank account online, before I arrive, and transfer money direct from Philippine Pesos to Euro.

I found that Sabadell have an online 24/7 chat facility on their Facebook page, and, despite the fact that it was around 1am when I sent them a message, they responded within 5 minutes! They told me that, because of money-laundering rules, its not possible to open an account online, but that if I get back to them a week before I arrive in Puerto de la Cruz, they will make an appointment at the bank for me, to open an account :)

So far, I consider that good service!

[helena246]

Cajasiete as there's virtually no costs involved.


hi 9plus do they charge for non residents bank accounts as most do charge 80euros plus

[tfs1]

I decided on Banco Sabadell, initially because of the good English language website, unlike Santander, who's website is only available in Spanish or Catalan.

Working as an expat in the Philippines at the moment, and planning to relocate to Tenerife in July, I was anxious to find out if I could open a bank account online, before I arrive, and transfer money direct from Philippine Pesos to Euro.

I found that Sabadell have an online 24/7 chat facility on their Facebook page, and, despite the fact that it was around 1am when I sent them a message, they responded within 5 minutes! They told me that, because of money-laundering rules, its not possible to open an account online, but that if I get back to them a week before I arrive in Puerto de la Cruz, they will make an appointment at the bank for me, to open an account :)

So far, I consider that good service!

You are correct that the main website of Santander (ie front page) sadly does not offer an English option but for whats its worth there is a English option when logging into a Santander.es account which can be seen when selecting acceso clientes at the top right of the main website.

[Daviddur]

I also use the Bank Lacxia. It covers all my needs.

[cressrt]

Assume you mean CaixaBank

[Richj]

Banca march have very good English speaking staff and website. However the draw back they don't have many local branches and you then are charged a fee to withdraw cash. My advice is use a bank with a branch in your resort.


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[Snowteck]

Sparksy 's request seemed a perfectly acceptable one to me, with there being absolutely no reason for andyfm to attack him because he happens to want a bank with an English website.

I have lived here in Tenerife for 13 years and I bank with Santander, their 123 residents account offers FREE banking with cash back/discounts on many purchases. My local manager does in fact speak English although his staff just about get by in English. Sadly their website is in Spanish but easy enough to navigate if you have a modicum of Spanish. La Caixa is another bank where I have an account and their website is in English as well as Spanish and some (by no means all) staff in my local branch (Playa San Juan) do speak English . Charges are modest.

Were it not for foreign tourism the Canarian economy would be completely on its backside so to suggest that all foreigners learn to speak English is ludicrous. Many Canarians with brains do speak another language(s) other than their own, many of those that don't often end up in low paid jobs or with no job at all. Tourism is booming in Tenerife at the moment and whenever I go to a an international type restaurant patronised by foreigners one can hear a dozen different languages but the "common" one is always English. Good luck with your banking Sparky.

I have used Banco Santander (Los Gigantes) since 1990 without any issues. They have paid all my standing orders faultlessly and the manager speaks English and is proactive.
Internet banking in English is available. After clicking 'accesso clients', simply change the language to English and log in with your user name and password. Their 123 account is only available to residents.

[PaulCourt]

Just opened a joint current account with La Caixa in Los Cristianos, they were very helpful and gave us temporary debit cards there and then. Can recommend.

[Megaloo]

I am with Sabadell and they have English speaking staff all paperwork is in English also