A new fintech business which I was introduced to previously this year. Currensea Card Rates And Charges…
It has actually won a couple of awards over current months for what it does (offering you an affordable method to invest abroad) but what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is an advantage.
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 current account– simply without the usual 3% charge.
Oh, and is free to get, which also assists.
There are also some fascinating travel advantages if you choose a paid strategy, but the totally free plan works fine. You can apply here.
There is an organization model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo and so on have all followed:
launch by doing one thing well, and for free or less expensive than the competitors
add a growing number of features which your existing customers do not really want or need
add fees, charges or limitations to the function that made individuals get your product in the first place, getting rid of any competitive advantage
is presently still in Phase 1 of this process and will hopefully remain there. Revolut, monzo and curve are currently in Phase 3 …
is easy enough that it passes my ‘Can you discuss it to your mate in the club in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Currensea Card Rates And Charges
It is a free direct debit card to utilize abroad and which automatically charges all purchases to your existing bank account in Sterling, less a little 0.5% charge.
That’s it.
You do not (yet …) earn any airline miles or points for using it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a credit card offering 0% foreign exchange costs, then you don’t need a card, unless you desire complimentary ATM withdrawals. You can stop checking out now.
However, charge card which offer rewards and charge 0% FX fees are scarce. The only ‘points and miles’ options which offer a partial service are the Virgin Atlantic charge card which have 0% FX costs in the Euro zone.
IS possibly for you if:
you do not have a charge card offering 0% FX fees and do not wish to affect your credit report by getting another credit card particularly to utilize abroad
you desire a product which allows you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals monthly with no fees and just a very little FX mark-up (there is a small cost beyond �,� 500).
you want an item for you, your adult kids, parents, partner or anyone else in your life who needs a basic, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when travelling.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I said earlier, a very easy procedure. You utilize your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in local currency (any currency, globally).
Your current account bank automatically verifies that you have adequate money in your account and authorises the deal.
The transaction goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending upon the currency. includes a 0.5% cost if you have the totally free card. There are no costs if you have one of their paid cards.
You get an automated spend notice through the app, if you pick to install it.
The money is taken from your current account a couple of days later on.
Here is an example. With no foreign travel in the diary, I decided to splash out and buy 1,000 MeliaRewards points for EUR5.
This is what you see in the Currensea app, which shows �,� 4.33 scheduled to leave my HSBC account a couple of days later:.
Transforming pounds was expensive.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime break-in that is just about to occur (typically in a various language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion fees occurring in the background. Don’t get me began. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyway.
In recent years a handful of terrific travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other excellent cards Currensea promises huge cost savings (85%) and a terrific app.
I believe the finest bit may be what no other card does: connects to your existing high street bank account.
What this suggests is you can invest cash you have in your existing current account with less fret about running out of cash and the extra step. However that does not imply it is perfect.
In this Currensea review is the good, the bad, the ugly and the options, so that you can decide.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Necessary Strategy of 0.5% per transaction, allowing us to make income from our Essential Strategy whilst staying more affordable than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM use over the totally free amount on all our plans, complete details can be discovered on our pricing strategies.
Subscription fees.
We charge a yearly subscription charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Strategy. The subscription cost also removes all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Every time you invest with your card we receive a little % of the transaction, called interchange, this comes directly from the merchant and won’t be credited you. Currensea Card Rates And Charges