Question Where to Find a Trusted Bank/Bank ATM in Jakarta

[living4experiences]

After reading through a few threads on the topic of obtaining IDR, I need to ask you all for some first-timer-to-Asia tips. I'm traveling from Oregon to Jakarta next month for a pre-dive stay to get over the jetlag before going on to Sorong for 10 days at Sorido Bay Resort followed by 11 days liveaboard on the Damai II as part of a Bluewater group dive trip. For one less detail to deal with upon arrival to a foreign country, I usually buy my foreign currency at home (U.S.) and bring it with me, but the IDR is not a currency Wells Fargo (my home bank) sells. I have the Charles Schwab debit card, which has been quite handy in Europe and Mexico. Has anyone had trouble using that card in Jakarta at an ATM? Though not my first choice, I plan to bring plenty of USD in case I need to do hand-to-hand money exchange.

I've read the Jakarta airport is a decent place to get money, and I would prefer not to have to wander the streets of Jakarta looking for a money changer.
It looks like there's Bank Mandiri and Bank Central Asia ATMs in the airport. Are these national trusted banks in Indonesia? I'm staying at the FM7 Hotel, but Google Maps doesn't show any nearby banks.

If you've been to Jakarta recently, any tips or advice would be helpful.

 

[FishWatcher747]

What is "3 mio"?

3 million IDR, or $188.

It is a big pain to arrive in Jakarta looking for $500 USD in local currency to go to some remote island where they don't take credit cards or USD and find the ATMs only give $188.

Be prepared.

 

[GF99/99]

I'm surprised you need to pay for things on site at Sorido Bay and on the Damai II. Seems like paying for dives in advance would be easier and cheaper. Maybe you want more flexibility than a dive package allows.

I had an unpleasant time settling up on a Raja4 liveaboard. I needed to pay my bar bill, port fees, etc. My credit card, a United Visa card from Chase, was not approved. Especially frustrating for a credit card marketed towards travelers. I called Chase in the US. They didn't want to approve the purchase until I called them from my US cell phone number. My US phone did not work in Indonesia since I only had an Indonesian SIM. I called from a friend's phone who had T-Mobile and international roaming. I forget how I convinced them the purchase was legit, but it was a total headache and I was the last passenger off the boat.

I switched to Google Voice soon after returning home to make future trips easier.

Edit: The more I think about it, the more I see why you need to pay for so many things on site.

It’s all about the Capital One Venture X card. I use to have Chase Sapphire but after having to many of the exact same issue you had I quit using it and switch to Capital One. I have never had it declined anywhere, probably used it in 60+ different countries including many African countries. Capital One has been very good about FedEx’ing me new cards around the world, Capital One has sent me new Venture cards to Indonesia, Mongolia, France, and Turkey.

Same with the Charles Schwab debit card, this is like plastic gold. Over the years it has saved me hundred it not even thousands in ATM fees and good exchange rates.

 

[justinthedeeps]

I've been using Wise which can issue a physical debit card for ATMs, chip/pin, online, contactless, mobile wallets. It also comes in handy for ACH-based transfers as payment for services abroad, with support for the domestic receiving banks in various countries including Indonesia. It can also be set up to top up a linked GoPay account. There are fees/commissions. The way it wants you to 'log into your bank' (Plaid Co third party) is a little creepy, maybe link that to a less important 'burner' account.

 

[chillyinCanada]

It’s all about the Capital One Venture X card. I use to have Chase Sapphire but after having to many of the exact same issue you had I quit using it and switch to Capital One. I have never had it declined anywhere, probably used it in 60+ different countries including many African countries. Capital One has been very good about FedEx’ing me new cards around the world, Capital One has sent me new Venture cards to Indonesia, Mongolia, France, and Turkey.

Same with the Charles Schwab debit card, this is like plastic gold. Over the years it has saved me hundred it not even thousands in ATM fees and good exchange rates.

I don't have the Capital One Venture but my Capital One is a travel card. One of the first times I tried to use it was to buy a flight. Locked me down and said that they would review but that I would have to phone them back in 5 days to reinstate it. I was on my way to Singapore and wasn't going to be physically able to follow the instruction. Groan. They didn't care because that was the process that had to be followed.

I was in SE Asia for months and didn't use the card the whole time that I was there.

But this is similar to problems I've had with both MasterCard and Visa. The problem has always been when I've been trying to buy flights.

So frustrating but that is part of travel. So one needs to be prepared just in case.

 

[Jackie]

I decided before I traveled to Indonesia that I was not going to use ATMs. Have had experiences where they have put daily limits on etc. My sister had just come back from Egypt and the bank limited their daily withdrawals.
Instead, I contacted the hotel in advance and they said that they could do $300 a day. Once we were there we went to a very fancy mall in Jakarta and went to the money changer.
We did this in Iran and also Morocco. It’s more acceptable in other countries and you don’t need to worry about your card being denied, limited, lost or being stuck with denominations that are too large.

 

[outofofficebrb]

I’ve always suspected but was never able to cross check - is it true that ATMs at the airport calculate a different (poorer) forex rate than those in the town/city? I know that money exchangers give a poorer rate right at the airport compared to those in the town… but ATMs?

I've been using Wise which can issue a physical debit card for ATMs, chip/pin, online, contactless, mobile wallets. It also comes in handy for ACH-based transfers as payment for services abroad, with support for the domestic receiving banks in various countries including Indonesia. It can also be set up to top up a linked GoPay account. There are fees/commissions. The way it wants you to 'log into your bank' (Plaid Co third party) is a little creepy, maybe link that to a less important 'burner' account.

Very late to this thread but will share this here for anyone coming to this thread in the future. I have been using Wise for a few years and love it. The exchange rate is the interbank rate (so, think Google rate) and not determined by the actual ATM or wherever it is located. The fees are very low and if you have a SIM with data, you can load the money right before you withdraw or pre-load before your trip, or any time during your trip. I've used it to send and receive local currencies with friends and businesses in other countries. It's pretty amazing and I have used this with IDR, SGD, EURO, AUD, CAD, Egyptian pounds, etc. to name a few. When in Indonesia, I pull out money as I need it at ATMs.

 

[FishWatcher747]

When in Indonesia, I pull out money as I need it at ATMs.

You are still limited by the ATM maximum which can be as little as 100 to 200 USD though, aren't you just like any other Debit card?

 

[outofofficebrb]

You are still limited by the ATM maximum which can be as little as 100 to 200 USD though, aren't you just like any other Debit card?

You can set your limits for security purposes but the max amount for Wise is $1,000 USD per day and a monthly limit of $4,000 USD. In Indonesia, even using $100 in cash a day is a lot locally. You can also freeze your card in the app if you're not using it and if you are worried about any card skimming and PIN being compromised. You can also easily change the PIN anytime in the app and the effect is immediate, as is the freezing/defrosting of your card and any currency/conversion/addition of funds you make.

Even with the ATM fees, it's still better than using my regular ATM card because the exchange rate is better and I don't need to expose my usual checking account. The fees are also straight forward. I also get the convenience of moving money around to different currencies. e.g., if I stop over in Singapore, I can move some money there immediately. If I don't use all of it, I can leave it in there for next time, or I can move it to IDR for Indonesia, or move it back to USD within seconds. Or, I can send money to a shop/op that only takes bank transfers/wire transfers by using the Wise local bank function. Sometimes local shops/ops give a discount when paying this way vs. using PayPal (with fees) if they don't accept credit card, or if you don't want to pay the card processing. (This is another reason why I like to work with travel agents - and I get my bonus credit card points for a travel merchant!)

My friend bought something for me in Australia and I used my AUD account to send him money straight to his local account. The fee to send hundreds of dollars was cents - way less than what PayPal might charge, way cheaper than a wire transfer, and convenient. I also bought something for a friend and he sent me money using his UK bank account to my local UK account details in Wise. I can either keep the funds there or move it to any other currency I wish. Super convenient.

@nato and @Searcaigh can tell you about the receiving/sending process as well since those are the people I am referring to.

Edited to add: in the US, if you maintain a USD balance in addition to or instead of the other currencies and opt in for interest on your USD, you also get FDIC passthrough insurance up to $250K . it is currently 4.33%. I really only keep money in there for travel so it's a minimal amount and I don't bother moving it in and out all the time. I have other high interest yielding savings accounts.