DOLLAR ACCOUNT SYSTEM IN BELIZE, SEEMS TO BE FAKE?
Stopped by customer service for Bank of Nova Scotia in Belmopan on Friday, to enquire about dollar accounts held in Belize. What a farce! ( my opinion ) Now in my history I have had bank dollar accounts for emergencies in Honduras and Guatemala. Each time I wanted them back, the banks would apologize profusely and say they didn't have any right now. Ended up each time, buying some local product, with local currency, and taking it to Belize to sell, to get my money back out of those countries. So, I listened VERY CAREFULLY to the spiel on Belize based bank dollar accounts given to my wife and I. Turns out to be the same story.
There was a long spiel on the dollar accounts, how they are Central Bank controlled. Intended mostly for merchants dealing overseas. I was only interested in parking ten thousand or so, for trips to Guatemala, the banks over there do not recognize Belize currency and won't exchange it. Now I have medical emergencies, in my golden years of old age, I am going to need more US dollars than ever, almost impossible to get within Belize at a fair exchange rate. It was when the customer service guy slipped in, soft voiced, and short and quick, between other jargon, that I heard the words ( dollars are available, based on availability ) WHOOPS! Been there, done that in Guatemala and Honduras to my inconvenience.
End of story: If you bring US dollars in Belize, do what I do. Bury them in a plastic bag on the farm in Spanish Lookout. They will disappear in the local banks! ( my own experience )
Some people might even say it is a SCAM, designed to bring in foreign exchange, from the unsuspecting naive retiree.
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