A brand-new fintech business which I was presented to previously this year. Currensea Card Standard Vs Premium…
It has actually won a few awards over current months for what it does (offering you an affordable way to invest abroad) however what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is a good thing.
is, successfully, a direct debit travel card. You just spend as you would on a regular debit card and the cash is taken from your present account– simply without the usual 3% charge.
Oh, and is free to obtain, which likewise assists.
There are also some fascinating travel benefits if you choose a paid plan, but the complimentary strategy works fine. You can use here.
There is a business model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo etc have all followed:
launch by doing something well, and free of charge or cheaper than the competition
add a growing number of functions which your existing consumers do not actually need or desire
include fees, charges or limitations to the function that made people get your product in the first place, eliminating any competitive advantage
is presently still in Phase 1 of this process and will ideally stay there. Curve, Revolut and Monzo are currently in Stage 3 …
is easy enough that it passes my ‘Can you explain it to your mate in the club in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Currensea Card Standard Vs Premium
It is a free direct debit card to utilize abroad and which immediately recharges all purchases to your existing bank account in Sterling, less a small 0.5% cost.
That’s it.
You do not (yet …) earn any airline company miles or points for using it.
Why would I wish to get a card?
If you have a credit card offering 0% forex fees, then you don’t need a card, unless you want complimentary ATM withdrawals. You can stop checking out now.
Nevertheless, credit cards which provide rewards and charge 0% FX costs are rare. The only ‘miles and points’ options which provide a partial solution are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX charges in the Euro zone.
IS possibly for you if:
you don’t have a charge card offering 0% FX costs and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another credit card specifically to use abroad
you desire an item which allows you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month with no charges and only a very little FX mark-up (there is a little fee beyond �,� 500).
you desire a product for you, your adult kids, moms and dads, partner or anyone else in your life who requires a simple, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when taking a trip.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated previously, a really basic 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 bank account bank automatically confirms that you have sufficient cash in your account and authorises the deal.
The deal goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending on the currency. adds a 0.5% fee if you have the free card. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no fees.
You get an automated invest alert by means of the app, if you select to install it.
The money is taken from your current account a few days later.
Here is an example. Without any foreign travel in the diary, I chose to splash out and buy 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:.
But converting pounds was costly.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight burglary that is almost to happen (often in a different language) while not telling you about the expensive currency conversion costs taking place in the background. Do not get me began. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Fortunately in recent years a handful of fantastic travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other great cards promises big savings (85%) and an excellent app.
But I believe the very best bit might be what no other card does: connects to your existing high street savings account.
What this means is you can invest cash you have in your existing current account with less worry about lacking cash and the extra action. That does not suggest it is best.
In this Currensea review is the excellent, the bad, the unsightly and the alternatives, so that you can choose.
FX markup.
While our premium strategies have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Essential Strategy of 0.5% per deal, enabling us to make income from our Essential Strategy whilst remaining more affordable than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the complimentary quantity on all our plans, full details can be found on our rates strategies.
Membership fees.
We charge a yearly membership charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Strategy. The membership cost likewise eliminates all FX markup on transactions.
Interchange.
Whenever you invest with your card we get a little % of the deal, called interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and will not be credited you. Currensea Card Standard Vs Premium