A new fintech business which I was presented to previously this year. Is Currensea Prepaid Card…
It has actually won a few awards over current months for what it does (using you a low-cost way to invest abroad) but what I like about is that it is simple as hell. This is a good thing.
is, successfully, a direct debit travel card. You simply spend as you would on a regular debit card and the money is taken from your present account– just without the normal 3% fee.
Oh, and is complimentary to apply for, which likewise assists.
There are also some interesting travel advantages if you choose a paid plan, but the totally free plan works fine. You can use here.
There is a business 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 competitors
include more and more features which your existing customers don’t actually want or require
add restrictions, fees or charges to the function that made people get your product in the first place, getting rid of any competitive advantage
is presently still in Stage 1 of this procedure and will hopefully stay there. Revolut, monzo and curve are already in Phase 3 …
is basic enough that it passes my ‘Can you explain it to your mate in the pub in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Is Currensea Prepaid Card
It is a totally free direct debit card to use abroad and which instantly recharges all purchases to your existing current account in Sterling, less a small 0.5% charge.
That’s it.
You do not (yet …) make any airline company miles or points for utilizing it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a credit card offering 0% foreign exchange charges, then you do not require a card, unless you want totally free ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
However, credit cards which provide rewards and charge 0% FX charges are few and far between. The only ‘points and miles’ options which provide a partial service are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX costs in the Euro zone.
IS perhaps for you if:
you do not have a charge card offering 0% FX fees and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another credit card specifically to utilize abroad
you want an item which permits you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month with no costs and only a minimal FX mark-up (there is a small cost beyond �,� 500).
you want an item for you, your adult children, moms and dads, partner or anyone else in your life who needs an easy, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when travelling.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated previously, a really simple procedure. You use your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in local currency (any currency, worldwide).
Your current account bank instantly validates that you have enough money in your account and authorises the transaction.
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 totally free card. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no fees.
You get an automatic spend alert via the app, if you choose to install it.
The money is drawn from your current 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 reveals �,� 4.33 arranged to leave my HSBC account a few days later on:.
However converting pounds was expensive.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight burglary that is almost to take place (often in a different language) while not telling you about the expensive currency conversion costs occurring in the background. Don’t get me began. Anyway back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
In current years a handful of great travel debit cards have actually popped onto the scene … and like other terrific cards Currensea guarantees 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 bank account.
What this implies is you can invest money you have in your existing bank account with less worry about running out of money and the additional action. That does not indicate it is ideal.
In this Currensea evaluation is the great, the bad, the awful 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, permitting us to make income from our Necessary Strategy whilst remaining much cheaper than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the free amount on all our plans, full details can be discovered on our rates strategies.
Membership costs.
We charge an annual subscription cost of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The membership cost also gets rid of all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Every time you spend with your card we receive a little % of the transaction, known as interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and will not be charged to you. Is Currensea Prepaid Card