Best Bank

I need to open an account and am deciding between the following banks: Mizuho, Shinsei, MUFJ, Citibank, HSBC.

Could you give me your thoughts on which is the better of those banks. Pros and Cons would be appreciated.

for example, I understand that Mizuho is the largest Japanese bank, but requires a minimum residency of 6 months before opening an account. While Shinsei offers free ATM withdrawal from any 711.

Domo.

Don't use Shinsei, I use that bank and it totally blows. Yes, withdrawals are free on evenings and weekends at 7-bank but only when the damn thing works! There have been so many times now where I try to withdraw money not only from 7-bank but other bank ATMs and didn't have access to my money.

I also use UFJ, they're pretty decent although they've been shutting down ATM access about once a month for the last couple months for maintenance. As soon as they're done with that, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend you to them.

I have a Shinsei account and have had no problems with it at all. The fact that I didn't have to go to the branch to open the account and that they have online banking in English are major pluses in my opinion.

I also have never had a problem withdrawing money from the ATMs. I use the Shinsei ATM in my station more often than the 7-11 ones though.

I also have a Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ account which my salary is deposited into, but haven't been affected by the ATM shutdowns yet. It's a standard Japanese bank, I can't think of any major pros or cons as compared to Mizuho, Resona, Sumitomo etc.

Never had a problem with Shinsei bank on my end. My salary gets deposited into it just fine, and never had a problem using 7-11 ATMs and regular Shinsei Bank ATMs.

Shinsei offers free withdrawls from most ATMs, if a ATM charges you, Shinsei refunds it.

Shinsei also doesn't require a minimum balance each month, Citibank if I recall does, or you'll get charged a fee. I only talk about Shinsei Bank because its what I use, I went with my friends into SMBC and UFJ the other day, boy was that a mess, (My friends are Chinese that speak English, trying to speak Japanese), for pure easiness, and if you don't require super major functions other then a simple bank to deposit, withdrawal money with English support lines (though branches may vary on English speakers), their telephone network always has someone ready to support etc, Shinsei isn't too bad.

thanks for all the comments.

would anyone happen to know the "size" ranking for all these banks in Japan? and which has the most points of cash withdrawal across Japan?

The big three banks in Japan are Mitsubishi-UFJ, Sumitomo, and Mizuho. They have the most actual branches (staffed with people although they close at 3pm on weekdays). As for ATMs, since all convenience stores have them now and they're free to use (usually) during the daytime on weekdays (9am-5pm), that shouldn't be a problem.

As I stated earlier, I just don't trust Shinsei bank right now, considering my past experiences with them and the state of the worldwide financial market right now... For more info, check out wikipedia's article on Shinsei Bank (for what it's worth), I think that's a good start.

If that is the case then you can't trust ANY bank. Better off putting money under a mattress is what my great grandparents did.

As for Shinsei Bank ATMs they are 24/7 (same as 7-11 ATMs), and if you live in Tokyo, Shinsei Bank branches are open till 7pm, while most other banks are putting down their metal barriers at 3pm.

There is no "best bank" depends on what you need to do banking for. For Shinsei bank I like the English service, no minimum monthly fees, and the only things I do, is get my salary deposited, withdrawal money, and occasionally use J-debit. 0% failure rate yet.

how is shinsei outside of Tokyo?

Perhaps a silly question here, but why do public ATMs shut down so early? Is it crime related?

MUFJ is the largest bank in Japan with the most outlets throughout the country. There's no minimum depost required and no ATM usage fee during normal business hours (9am to 6pm M=F), a 105 fee for each use during non-bsns hours. Can be accessed at convenience store atms and has English instructions.

Perhaps a silly question here, but why do public ATMs shut down so early? Is it crime related?

Beats me.
7-11 ATMs and Shinsei Bank ATMs are 24-7. And there is no Fee 24/7 (not just during certain hours).

How is Shinsei Bank outside of Tokyo? There are few branches outside of the Tokyo area, but as I mentioned before, I never really need to go to a branch, you can do deposits, withdraws from ATMs, online banking in english, english telephone support.

Think about how many times you actually go to a bank branch, and what you do at a bank branch? Most of those can be accomplished at an ATM or via online service. Even opening an account doesn't require you to go to a branch, it can be done via, post (in English).

My apologies. I misread the post. It's the branches that close 3-7 p.m. (which is typical) not the ATMs. Doh.

Bank ATMs did used to shut down very early, and bank branch ATMs are usually still not 24 hour- they shut at about 9pm, earlier on Sundays.

I can remember a few years ago before Shinsei bank and 7-11 ATMs arrived when all bank ATMs shut down for several days during Golden Week and having to survive of 2,000 yen for several days. Why do they do it? It beats me too.