A brand-new fintech business which I was introduced to earlier this year. Currensea Charges…
It has actually won a few awards over recent months for what it does (providing you an inexpensive method to invest abroad) but what I like about is that it is simple as hell. This is an advantage.
is, efficiently, a direct debit travel card. You simply spend as you would on a normal debit card and the money is taken from your current account– simply without the typical 3% charge.
Oh, and is complimentary to obtain, which likewise assists.
There are also some interesting travel advantages if you select a paid strategy, but the free plan 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 totally free or more affordable than the competitors
add a growing number of functions which your existing customers do not actually want or require
add charges, restrictions or fees to the feature that made individuals get your product in the first place, removing any competitive advantage
is presently still in Phase 1 of this procedure and will hopefully stay there. Revolut, curve and monzo are already in Stage 3 …
is simple 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? Currensea 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 small 0.5% fee.
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 charge card offering 0% forex costs, then you do not require a card, unless you want free ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Credit cards which provide rewards and charge 0% FX fees are few and far in between. The only ‘miles and points’ options which provide a partial solution are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX costs in the Euro zone.
IS potentially for you if:
you don’t have a charge card offering 0% FX charges and do not wish to affect your credit report by getting another charge card specifically to use abroad
you want an item which permits you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month with no fees and just a minimal FX mark-up (there is a little fee beyond �,� 500).
you want a product for you, your adult kids, parents, partner or anybody else in your life who needs a basic, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when taking a trip.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated earlier, a really simple 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 validates 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 upon the currency. If you have the free card, adds a 0.5% cost. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no charges.
You get an automatic spend alert by means of the app, if you choose to install it.
The cash is taken from your current account a few days later.
Here is an example. With no foreign travel in the journal, I decided to sprinkle out and buy 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:.
Transforming pounds was expensive.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime break-in that is just about to take place (frequently in a different language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion costs happening in the background. Do not get me started. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyway.
Luckily over the last few years a handful of terrific travel debit cards have actually popped onto the scene … and like other fantastic cards guarantees huge savings (85%) and a terrific app.
But I think the very best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this indicates is you can spend money you have in your existing current account with less fret about lacking money and the additional step. However that does not mean it is perfect.
In this Currensea review is the excellent, the bad, the ugly and the alternatives, so that you can decide.
FX markup.
While our premium strategies have no FX markup, we charge a small FX markup on our Necessary Plan of 0.5% per transaction, allowing us to make revenue from our Important Plan whilst remaining more affordable 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 found on our prices strategies.
Subscription charges.
We charge a yearly membership charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The membership cost likewise eliminates all FX markup on transactions.
Interchange.
Whenever you spend with your card we receive a little % of the deal, referred to as interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and won’t be credited you. Currensea Charges