A brand-new fintech company which I was introduced to previously this year. Can I Use My Currensea Card Abroad At An Atp…
It has actually won a couple of awards over recent months for what it does (offering you an inexpensive method to spend abroad) but what I like about is that it is basic as hell. This is a good idea.
is, effectively, a direct debit travel card. It is a Mastercard which sits in between you and your existing current account. There is absolutely nothing to top-up or prepay. You simply invest as you would on a regular debit card and the cash is taken from your bank account– just without the normal 3% charge.
Oh, and is free to get, which also assists.
There are also some fascinating travel benefits if you select a paid plan, however the complimentary strategy works fine. You can use here.
There is an organization design in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo etc have all followed:
launch by doing one thing well, and for free or cheaper than the competition
add increasingly more functions which your existing consumers do not really desire or require
include limitations, charges or charges to the feature that made people get your item in the first place, removing any competitive advantage
is currently still in Stage 1 of this process and will ideally remain there. Revolut, curve and monzo are already in Phase 3 …
is basic enough that it passes my ‘Can you explain it to your mate in the bar in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Can I Use My Currensea Card Abroad At An Atp
It is a complimentary direct debit card to use abroad and which instantly charges all purchases to your existing current account in Sterling, less a little 0.5% cost.
That’s it.
You do not (yet …) make any airline miles or points for using it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a credit card offering 0% forex fees, then you don’t need a card, unless you desire free ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Credit cards which use benefits and charge 0% FX costs are couple of and far between. The only ‘points and miles’ options which offer a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic charge card which have 0% FX charges in the Euro zone.
IS potentially for you if:
you do not have a credit card offering 0% FX fees and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another charge card specifically to use abroad
you desire an item which permits you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month without any charges and only a very little FX mark-up (there is a little fee beyond �,� 500).
you want an item for you, your adult children, moms and dads, partner or anybody else in your life who needs an easy, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them cash when taking a trip.
How does work in practice?
It is, as I said earlier, a very easy process. You use your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in regional currency (any currency, globally).
Your current account bank automatically verifies that you have sufficient money in your account and authorises the deal.
The deal goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending on the currency. includes a 0.5% charge if you have the free card. There are no fees if you have among their paid cards.
You get an automated invest notification through the app, if you choose to install it.
The money is taken from your bank account a few days later.
Here is an example. With no foreign travel in the diary, I chose to sprinkle out and purchase 1,000 MeliaRewards points for EUR5.
This is what you see in the Currensea app, which shows �,� 4.33 arranged to leave my HSBC account a few days later:.
However transforming pounds was pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime robbery that is just about to happen (typically in a different language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion fees occurring in the background. Do not get me began. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Fortunately over the last few years a handful of great travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other great cards promises big savings (85%) and an excellent app.
I believe the best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this suggests is you can invest cash you have in your existing bank account with less fret about lacking money and the extra action. That does not imply it is best.
In this Currensea evaluation is the excellent, the bad, the unsightly and the alternatives, so that you can decide.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Necessary Plan of 0.5% per deal, permitting us to make earnings from our Essential Plan whilst staying much cheaper than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We also charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the free quantity on all our strategies, full details can be discovered on our prices strategies.
Membership costs.
We charge a yearly membership charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The subscription cost also gets rid of all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Whenever you invest with your card we get a small % of the deal, referred to as interchange, this comes directly from the merchant and will not be credited you. Can I Use My Currensea Card Abroad At An Atp