Below are real Converse Bank reviews from foreigners who’ve gone through account opening in Armenia, along with the documents and process involved.
Documents You’ll Need
To open an account at Converse Bank, you’ll typically need:
- an international passport
- a rental agreement for 3+ months
- an income tax certificate or a certificate confirming your tax residency status
- proof of income in Armenia: an employment contract, or sole-proprietor registration in Armenia with a client contract
- a Social Card — this is a bit like a national ID/tax number, but on paper. It’s issued at the passport office covering your registered address. If you’re above the cutoff birth year in their records (roughly pre-1980), it’s usually issued within about 30 minutes on the spot; for others, it can take longer since the office needs to run extra checks — sometimes a few days.
- registration or a rental-based address record
We can help you open an account at Converse Bank — just get in touch.
The Account Opening Process
Converse isn’t always the first choice for foreigners, since for non-resident individuals it often only opens a dram-denominated card rather than a full account. It also asks for a fair amount of paperwork and can take a while to decide — reviewers report approval taking up to two weeks in some cases.
If remote account opening matters more to you than the specific country or bank, opening a bank account in Kazakhstan is worth a look as an alternative.
Converse Bank Reviews
- Converse is a slow-moving bank, both at the application stage and afterward for day-to-day service. But in the end, a lot depends on the kind of transactions you’re doing.
- I was just at Converse with an international passport, a rental agreement, an income certificate, and bank statements in hand. They told me I’d also need an employment contract (I explained I work for an organization back home — they said that’s fine too, or an Armenia-based one works as well).
- They’ll open a dram or ruble account for 1,200 AMD and a card for 25,000 AMD. A USD account is possible too, but SWIFT transfers won’t come through on it.
- I went to Converse. They asked for: a certificate of current tax residency, proof of source of income, a rental agreement, and a Social Card number. They quoted up to two weeks for approval.
- Just stopped by Converse Bank. You need a statement showing where the money comes from — either as a sole proprietor or a work certificate — plus a rental agreement of 3+ months.
- Hi everyone! Went into Converse yesterday with a stack of documents (an employment contract from my home country, a rental agreement, an income certificate), but they refused to open anything except a dram account (“which only works inside Armenia”) without an employment contract.
- Converse Bank does support international card-to-card transfers — possibly some other banks do too, but most don’t, so you’ll usually need a third-party service like Wise, Paysend, or TransferGo instead. Those require registering, entering the recipient’s details, and paying with a card that isn’t restricted (some card networks have limitations depending on where they were issued).
- My first attempt sending via SWIFT USD-USD through Converse, routed via Bank of Georgia as the correspondent bank, took about two weeks and then got rejected anyway — everyone still took their fees, so I lost $75. A second attempt using Citibank as the correspondent went through in one business day; the sending bank kept $15 and Citibank kept $12.
- I tried opening a personal account at Converse. They told me they could only open a card on the local “dram” card scheme for me — worth double-checking exactly what’s on offer, since answers seem to vary by branch and by what you specifically ask for.
- I opened my first card in Armenia at Converse in March. The only options offered were local dram-scheme cards — international or foreign-currency cards were declined, and I couldn’t order one myself through the app either (it just errors out). Documents needed: international passport plus proof of address in Armenia — I had my landlord write a short note confirming I was staying there. They called a day later asking for a work certificate too, which I provided, and picked up the card about five days after that.
A note on fees: according to Converse Bank’s official English-language transfer tariffs, USD/EUR transfers currently run 0.14% (minimum 7,500 AMD, maximum 50,000 AMD), which is somewhat different from the numbers some reviewers above reported — tariffs change over time, so always check the current published rate before relying on a figure from an older review.
Get in touch if you’d like help opening an account at Converse Bank.
FAQ
Can a foreigner open an account at Converse Bank? Yes, though for non-residents it often means a dram-denominated card rather than a full multi-currency account — ask specifically about your options when you apply.
What documents are required? At minimum: an international passport, a rental agreement (3+ months), proof of income or tax residency, and a Social Card.
How long does approval take? Reviewers report anywhere from a same-day card issuance up to two weeks, depending on the branch and account type.
Can I get a USD account with SWIFT transfers? A USD account is possible, but according to at least one reviewer, incoming SWIFT transfers to it didn’t work — confirm current capabilities directly with the bank before relying on this.
Does Converse Bank support international transfers? Card-to-card international transfers are supported in some cases; for most cross-border transfers, third-party services like Wise, Paysend, or TransferGo are the more reliable route.
Is Converse Bank officially licensed? Yes — it operates under a license from the Central Bank of Armenia (license No. 57, issued December 20, 1993).
