Wires are high risk for banks, they will often set limits for online wires to help alleviate the risk. Banks are always being targeted for fraud, typically with identity theft and withdrawing through wires.
If you have it set up with your bank there are usually up to 3 ways to send wires.
1. In person - The authorized individual on an account is positively identified and signs the bank's form.
2. Fax - Banks normally have to have an agreement set up before accepting wires via fax. Often the wire request must be on the bank's form. It is also very common to call and verify the wire before it is sent out.
3. Online - Typically some kind of two-factor authorization is required and there will be a limit on number of wires and/or funds sent. If unusual activity occurs, the bank may hold back the wires and verify them with the account holder. Must be set up beforehand.
Any other method is probably not allowed by the bank.
Presumably, due to the nature of their account (money service business), MtGox has tight limits in place with their current bank(s) and others probably do not want to deal with them. Due to the current regulatory environment, most banks are looking to decrease risk from their depository accounts. Money service businesses are very high risk and thus banks are not very willing to work with them.
I don't know if this is good news or bad news, but it is certainly a big WTF regarding Japanese banks..:
11:05 < sturles> I noticed on the forum that Japanese domestic transfers come
from a new bank. I keep watching for reports of international
wires from a new bank as well. That would be a very good sign.
11:08 <@MagicalTux> sturles, the new bank we use for Japanese transfers is a
domestic only bank
11:16 < sturles> Oh. :-(
11:18 <@MagicalTux> they're the first bank we've seen in JApan that can do
domestic transfers without the need for faxes
Fax! In 2013! For a simple domestic transfer! Can you even buy fax machines any more? Must be years since I saw one of those. No wonder even Japanese transfers were slow during high volume periods. People still think SWIFT transfers from the same banks are fully automated?
Faxed wires are more common then you may think, as are all in one printer/scan/copy/fax machines.
