Most US credit cards have foreign transaction fees, cash withdrawal fees, and offer lousy exchange rates. I wouldn't want to use a debit card at an ATM due to all the reports of card ID theft at those, but I haven't heard any stories yet of debit card fraud when used inside the bank(?).
I was thinking the exact same thing. This could be even better than wiring my money down here. The only downside I can see is any wait time you might have in the bank. No BSC bank account information was requested. I'm surprised there was no transaction fee(?). If one is posted to my account next week, I'll update the info.
ATM's here charge anywhere from 150 to 300 pesos per transaction. That adds up. Also, since it's a debit card, I prefer to be using it as little as possible since, as previously pointed out, if the card info gets hacked and money is withdrawn from your bank account, it's not easy getting that money bank, unlike a credit card hack which is easy to resolve.
Sometimes they're just not available or the fee is nothing more than a nuisance. I have 2 debit cards and the Fidelity one is fee free. My bank reduces my fee to 1% as I'm eligible for the old fart discount. 1% is not worth worrying about given that I've been with my bank for over 35 years.
Some banks don't offer that feature, the person might not travel internationally much, and it can be a headache switching banks and all the linked autopay accounts.
