A new fintech business which I was introduced to previously this year. Do I Sign My Currensea Card…
It has actually won a couple of awards over current months for what it does (using you a low-cost method to invest abroad) but what I like about is that it is simple as hell. This is a good thing.
is, effectively, a direct debit travel card. It is a Mastercard which sits in between you and your existing current account. There is nothing to top-up or prepay. You merely invest as you would on a typical debit card and the cash is drawn from your current account– just without the normal 3% charge.
Oh, and is totally free to request, which likewise assists.
There are likewise some intriguing travel advantages if you choose a paid strategy, however the totally free strategy works fine. You can apply here.
There is a service model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo and so on have all followed:
launch by doing one thing well, and totally free or more affordable than the competition
add increasingly more functions which your existing consumers don’t actually desire or require
include restrictions, charges or charges to the function that made individuals get your product in the first place, eliminating any competitive advantage
is currently still in Stage 1 of this procedure and will hopefully stay there. Curve, Revolut and Monzo are already in Stage 3 …
is easy enough that it passes my ‘Can you describe it to your mate in the club in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Do I Sign My Currensea Card
It is a complimentary direct debit card to utilize abroad and which immediately charges all purchases to your existing current account in Sterling, less a small 0.5% fee.
That’s it.
You don’t (yet …) earn any airline company miles or points for using it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a charge card offering 0% foreign exchange costs, then you don’t need a card, unless you desire free ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Nevertheless, credit cards which offer rewards and charge 0% FX charges are scarce. The only ‘miles and points’ choices which provide a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX charges in the Euro zone.
IS perhaps for you if:
you don’t have a credit card offering 0% FX fees and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another charge card particularly to use abroad
you desire a product which enables you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals monthly with no costs and only a minimal FX mark-up (there is a little cost beyond �,� 500).
you want a product for you, your adult children, parents, partner or anyone else in your life who needs a basic, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them cash when travelling.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I said earlier, a very easy process. You utilize your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in regional currency (any currency, internationally).
Your current account bank instantly verifies that you have enough 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. If you have the totally free card, includes a 0.5% charge. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no costs.
You get an automatic invest notice via the app, if you choose to install it.
The money is drawn from your bank account a couple of days later.
Here is an example. With no 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 reveals �,� 4.33 set up to leave my HSBC account a few days later on:.
Converting pounds was expensive.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight break-in that is almost to take place (frequently in a different language) while not telling you about the exorbitant currency conversion costs happening in the background. Do not get me began. Anyway back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Fortunately in the last few years a handful of fantastic travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other excellent cards assures big savings (85%) and an excellent app.
I think the finest bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this indicates is you can invest cash you have in your existing current account with less worry about running out of money and the additional step. However that does not mean it is ideal.
In this Currensea evaluation is the good, the bad, the unsightly and the alternatives, so that you can choose.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a small FX markup on our Vital Plan of 0.5% per transaction, enabling us to make revenue from our Important Strategy whilst staying much cheaper than other pre-paid cards and high-street debit cards. We also charge an FX markup on ATM use over the complimentary amount on all our strategies, full information can be found on our rates plans.
Subscription fees.
We charge an annual subscription charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The membership fee likewise gets rid of all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Each time you invest with your card we receive a small % of the deal, called interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and won’t be charged to you. Do I Sign My Currensea Card