Hanmi Bank Business Checking Review 2023
Tricia has nearly two decades of experience in commercial and federal government lending. Her expertise is highlighted throughout small business loan content on Fit Small Business.
This article is part of a larger series on Business Banking.
Hanmi Bank is a traditional bank with three business checking accounts. Its Smart Business Checking has no monthly fees, while its Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking offer waivable fees and unlimited deposits. Only Business Super Plus Checking lets you earn interest, but all accounts come with a free business debit card that gains reward points when you use it for purchases. The bank has branches across nine states―California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia, and Washington―and focuses on serving multiethnic communities.
Hanmi Bank Business Checking
What We Like
- No monthly fee for Smart Business Checking
- Waivable monthly fees for Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking
- Reward points and cash back for debit card purchases
What's Missing
- Branches limited to nine states: California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia, and Washington
- Low free transaction limits
Features
- Free debit card with Rewards Program
- Online, mobile, and telephone banking
- Pay bills, transfer funds, and deposit checks via the mobile app
- Unlimited deposits (Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking)
- No ATM fees at over 37,000 MoneyPass ATMs
How Hanmi Bank Stacks Up With Its Competitors
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|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
N/A |
$2 per deposit after the first 15 deposits |
None at Hanmi Bank ATMs and over 37,000 MoneyPass ATMs; operator fees apply at non-Hanmi Bank ATMs |
$100 |
| Visit Hanmi Bank | ||||
 |
N/A |
Up to $7,500 per month free, then 30 cents per $100 |
None at 16,000+ ATMs nationwide; $2.50 per transaction out-of-network |
$100 to open; no requirement to maintain |
| Visit Bank of America | ||||
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N/A |
Up to $10,000 per month free, then 17 cents per $100 |
None at Citibank ATMs and over 60,000 ATMs in the US, including MoneyPass ATMs |
$1 |
| Visit Citibank | ||||
When Hanmi Bank Is a Good Fit
- You need a fee-free basic business checking account: With Smart Business Checking, you don’t need to pay a monthly maintenance fee as long as you enroll in eStatements.
- You want to benefit from fee-free unlimited deposits: The bank’s Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking accounts come with unlimited deposits.
- You want low and waivable monthly fees: Regular Business Checking charges $8 monthly, whereas Business Super Plus checking charges $6 monthly. These can be waived if you meet the required maintaining balances.
- You’re looking to earn debit card rewards: Hanmi Bank offers a business debit card program, allowing you to earn points and redeem them for gift cards, travel points, and even cash back.
When Hanmi Bank Is Not a Good Fit
- Your business is located outside Hanmi Bank’s service area: The bank has branches in nine states―California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia, and Washington―but if your business is located outside of it, you may consider Chase, Bank of America, or U.S. Bank for their nationwide branches.
- You don’t want to pay fees for account opening: If your business needs can be served by online banks or fintech institutions, you can opt to open at Mercury, Novo, Bluevine, or Axos Bank, where accounts have no required opening deposits.
- You need higher free transaction limits and a low opening deposit: Hanmi Bank’s Smart Business Checking account offers limited free transactions and requires an opening deposit of $100. While higher tiers offer 100 debits per statement cycle and unlimited deposits, they have steep opening deposits. You may consider Citibank, which has a free transaction limit ranging from 250 to 500. Its minimum opening deposit is also only a dollar for all business checking accounts.
Hanmi Bank Business Checking Overview
Hanmi Business Checking Requirements
You can visit the Hanmi Bank website to open a business checking account. However, if you have one of the following business types, you need to visit a branch for account opening:
- Property management
- Unincorporated organization (including nonprofit organization)
- Money service business
- Business based in a foreign country
For additional requirements, click the header that corresponds to your company structure.
Sole Proprietorship
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name statement if doing-business-as (DBA)
- Business operations declaration
- Sole proprietorship resolution
Partnership
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name statement (if DBA)
- Partnership resolution
- Business operations declaration
Limited Partnership (LP)/Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name statement (if DBA)
- Certificate of LP or LLP
- Partnership resolution
- Business operations declaration
Limited Liability Corporation (LLC)
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name Statement (if DBA)
- Articles of organization of LLC
- Operation agreement
- Current statement of information
- Certificate of good standing
- LLC resolution
- Business operations declaration
Corporation
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name statement (if DBA)
- Articles of incorporation
- Current statement of information
- Certificate of good standing
- Corporate resolution
- Business operations declaration
Nonprofit Corporation
- Photocopy of ID card
- Fictitious business name statement (if DBA)
- Articles of incorporation
- Certificate of good standing
- 501(C) (3) form (if applicable)
- All controlling interests statement of information
- Corporate resolution
- Business operations declaration
Before opening an account, see our guide on how to open a business bank account. It features a free downloadable checklist of required documents.
Hanmi Bank Business Checking Features
Hanmi Bank’s business checking accounts provide a Visa debit card that earns rewards, online and mobile banking access, and fee-free withdrawals with the MoneyPass network.
No Fees at MoneyPass ATM Network
Business owners can withdraw cash free of charge at more than 37,000 MoneyPass ATM networks.
Interest-Bearing Account
For businesses preferring a checking account that generates interest, the Business Super Plus Checking account is ideal. The interest is compounded and credited to the account monthly. We recommend that you contact the branch nearest you for the current interest rate and APY since they’re subject to change at any time without notice.
Free Business Debit Card With Rewards Program
Hanmi Bank provides uChoose Rewards, which lets you earn reward points when you use your debit card for purchases. You earn one point for every two dollars you spend, and the points can be redeemed for travel points, gift cards, and cash back. You can start redeeming upon reaching 1,500 points, and the unredeemed points expire after three years.
For a limited time from Aug. 19, 2022, to Feb. 28, 2023, the bank has a “x2 Rewards Promotion,” where you gain one point for every dollar you spend for signature-based transactions. Bonus points will be reflected on your uChoose Rewards account six to eight weeks after the promo period ends. This program is available to open and active accounts, and customers must enroll their cards and create login information to redeem the points.
Online & Mobile Banking
Hanmi Bank allows you to view your transaction history, transfer funds, pay bills, and deposit checks securely using your mobile device. Reviews for its mobile app are excellent on the App Store (4.1 out of 5) and Google Play (4.3 out of 5). Users find it easy to use, convenient, and time-saving, although some gave lower ratings for lacking confirmation notices upon depositing checks and experiencing crashes upon logging in.
Business Services
- Merchant services: Clover POS system
- Treasury Management: Automated clearing house (ACH) collections, remote deposit capture (RDC), Hanmi Remote Cash Depositor (HRCD), commercial cash vault (CCV), lockbox, ACH payments, wire transfer, business bill pay, tax payment, payroll service, and fraud prevention tools (Payee Positive Pay and ACH Positive Pay)
- Korea Desk (exclusive to professionals working with Korean companies): Asset-based lending, equipment financing, credit loans, real estate investments, and more
Other Banking Products
Hanmi Bank offers a savings account, a money market account, and several lending options that include Small Business Administration (SBA) loans. Note that business savings and money market accounts’ APYs stated below are accurate as of Nov. 9, 2022. Rates are subject to change:
- Business savings: For a minimum opening deposit of $100, you can open a regular savings account and earn 0.05% APY. Interest is compounded daily and credited to your account every quarter. You can waive the $5 monthly fee if you maintain a daily balance of $500 each statement cycle.
- Money market: For a minimum opening deposit of $2,500, you can open a money market account and earn 0.05% APY. Interest is compounded and credited to your account every month. You can waive the $6 monthly fee if you maintain a daily balance of $2,500 each statement cycle.
- Credit cards: The bank offers the Hanmi Bank World Elite and Platinum Credit Card from Mastercard to complement your business needs.
- Business World Elite Credit Card provides access to capital for your business purchases.
- Business World Elite Plus Credit Card lets you enjoy personal concierge service and earn up to $200 airline credits.
- Business Platinum Payback allows you to earn 1% cash back for all your qualifying purchases.
- Business Platinum Preferred gives out reward points for your qualifying everyday purchases.
- SBA lending: Hanmi Bank is a preferred SBA lender, offering a fast loan approval process, longer maturity terms, and competitive interest rates. It offers two types of SBA loans.
- SBA 7 (a) Loan can be used for buying a business property, performing renovations, refinancing existing debt, or acquiring a business. You can borrow up to $5 million with terms ranging from 10 to 25 years.
- SBA 504 Program can be used for purchasing business property or equipment or refinancing qualified debt. The first loan has a 10-year maturity term while the second loan has a range of 20 to 25 years maturity term.
- Commercial lending: Hanmi Bank offers customized lending solutions for your business financing needs.
- Commercial real estate (CRE): Business owners planning to purchase or refinance a commercial property or multifamily property with more than five units can apply for a loan amount of up to $75 million with either a fixed or variable interest rate for up to seven years’ term.
- Construction: To help finance the construction of various commercial properties, you can apply up to $75 million in loan amount with a variable interest rate and up to 24 months term.
- Business term loan: If you plan to refinance or consolidate all your current business debts or finance your acquisition, you can apply for a loan amount of up to $75 million with a fixed or variable interest rate and up to a seven-year term.
- Lines of credit: To support your business cash flow, you can apply for short-term financing up to $75 million with a variable interest rate and up to a year or less term that you can renew every year.
- Equipment leasing: Hanmi Bank offers financing solutions to acquire business equipment in different industries such as healthcare, industrial, construction, and manufacturing.
- Specialty lending: The bank also has Charter School Lending, Healthcare Lending, and Entertainment Lending.
- Trade finance: If you plan to build an international market, Hanmi Bank offers a Letter of Credit, Import/Export Financing, and Documentary Collection.
- Professional loans: Licensed professionals―medical professionals, certified public accountants (CPAs), and attorneys―can apply for loans up to $300,000 with maturity terms of up to seven years.
Hanmi Bank Business Checking Pros & Cons
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Unlimited deposits for Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking | Minimum opening deposit runs from $100 to $2,500 |
| Low monthly fees for Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking | No welcome bonus |
| Wide array of business loan products | No free wire transfers |
Hanmi Bank has excellent business checking accounts with low monthly fees. Additionally, its Regular Business Checking and Business Super Plus Checking accounts feature unlimited deposits, allowing you to save more. The bank also provides multiple lending options if you need more business financing.
However, its opening deposit requirements can be steep, going as high as $2,500 if you plan to open a Business Super Plus Checking account. It also doesn’t provide free wires and a welcome bonus to new business checking account holders.
Hanmi Bank User Reviews
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Friendly staff offering grade A service | ACH transfer limit not indicated on the online application |
| Excellent work ethic and culture; prioritizes customers | Business hours too short; closed on Saturdays |
| Professional customer service | Limited number of branches |
| Web bill pay service is simple and secure | Long time to fix bank account issues |
Hanmi Bank only has a few reviews, with mixed ratings on DepositAccounts under LendingTree (4.5 out of 5), Google reviews (1.9 out of 5), and Yelp (2.0 out of 5). Positive feedback points to reliable web bill pay service and outstanding customer service, while the negative reviews mentioned no branch service on weekends, few branches, and delays in account resolutions.
Alternatives to Hanmi Bank Business Checking
If you seek in-person banking outside Hanmi Bank’s service areas, want to benefit from more fee-free transactions, and favor receiving a high APY, here are three alternatives to consider:
- Chase is best for business owners needing in-person banking with its solid branch presence in 48 states.
- Capital One is best for businesses wanting to maximize fee-free unlimited transactions since Hanmi Bank offers only unlimited deposits.
- Bluevine is best for businesses looking to earn a high 2.0% APY for their qualifying deposits.
Check out more providers in our list of the best small business checking accounts if you need additional recommendations.
Bottom Line
Hanmi Bank is a superb choice for business owners who have a low monthly transaction volume and want to save on monthly fees through its Smart Business Checking account. As your business grows and your transactions increase, you can shift to Regular Business Checking to maximize its unlimited deposits feature. If you want to earn interest on top of that, then Business Super Plus Checking is suitable. For business financing needs, Hanmi Bank provides multiple lending options, including SBA loans.
