# Transferwise



## Dunpleecin (Dec 20, 2012)

I have no affiliation with them, apart from having used them for the first time to transfer money just recently. They are excellent and much better than any other service I have used, which include GCEN (useless) and Currencies Direct (Not bad but rates not brilliant and they have a minimum transfer)

That is all.


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

Dunpleecin said:


> I have no affiliation with them, apart from having used them for the first time to transfer money just recently. They are excellent and much better than any other service I have used, which include GCEN (useless) and Currencies Direct (Not bad but rates not brilliant and they have a minimum transfer)
> 
> That is all.


Totally agree. Cheapest way I have found to transfer money from UK bank to Spanish bank. Fast, efficient and unbelievably good rate.


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## alborino (Dec 13, 2014)

Dunpleecin said:


> I have no affiliation with them, apart from having used them for the first time to transfer money just recently. They are excellent and much better than any other service I have used, which include GCEN (useless) and Currencies Direct (Not bad but rates not brilliant and they have a minimum transfer)
> 
> That is all.


Dunpleecin tx as always good to compare. Just my thoughts after having a look:

For me the most important thing is security of my money. The backers here appear to be individuals (in some cases individuals who can afford to lose) and not a spread of international financial institutions. Promoting that the founders have experience in other industries didn't instill confidence for me. Not into Jack of all trades 

But the rates look ok. Perhaps 4 or even 5 Euros for 1400 Euros better than CurrencyFair (who aren't the best by some way) so not a lot in it. (I assume both transfer in and out are free from the transferwise end ??).

While plenty of happy punters (as you would expect, if any transfer works it works) but when people have issues Travelwise do not seem the most helpful. But seen complaints about other players to be fair.

Might give them a try for smaller amounts 

Tx


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

This (recent) article compares CurrencyFair and TransferWise. TW has a more user-friendly interface, but CF has a slightly lower average mark-up. No difference on exchange rates.

Best Peer to Peer Currency Exchange & Money Transfer


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

alborino said:


> Dunpleecin tx as always good to compare. Just my thoughts after having a look:
> 
> For me the most important thing is security of my money. The backers here appear to be individuals (in some cases individuals who can afford to lose) and not a spread of international financial institutions. Promoting that the founders have experience in other industries didn't instill confidence for me. Not into Jack of all trades
> 
> ...


My last transfer with Transferwise was on June 24. I transferred GBP 1,000 from my UK bank account to my Spanish bank account. On June 26 I checked my Spanish account and €1,404.90 had been deposited, after Transferwise had deducted their GBP 4.98 fee. Before discovering Transferwise I was arranging transfers from my own bank. For each transfer I was charged GBP 20 and given a lousy exchange rate. Tried Currencies Direct a few years ago and, in fact, set up a monthly standing order. It worked well at first, with a good exchange rate, but gradually the rate deteriorated until it became a total rip-off. I later discovered that they, like other fx companies, use software that gradually erodes the exchange rate after you have been lured into a false sense of security. Banks and fx companies have cheated me out of thousands of pounds over the years ... if only I had discovered Transferwise earlier!


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## warty56 (Dec 6, 2012)

i use FAIRFX. you can ask them to fix the rate even overnight and then transfer the amount next day
commission free
ive had no problems so far


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

warty56 said:


> i use FAIRFX. you can ask them to fix the rate even overnight and then transfer the amount next day
> commission free
> ive had no problems so far


Just been online to compare the rates offered by Fairfx and Transferwise to transfer GBP 1,000. Transferwise gives €20 net gain.


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## alborino (Dec 13, 2014)

The Skipper said:


> Just been online to compare the rates offered by Fairfx and Transferwise to transfer GBP 1,000. Transferwise gives €20 net gain.


Skipper I can't believe anyone who knows anything expects in general the banks to be competitive.

So looking at the currency exchange focused players if all that is important is the cheapest then like yourself most people don't find it difficult to find the best rate for the amount they have to exchange.

But when changing tens/hundreds of thousands I would suggest security moves up the priority list. Yes the chances of anything going wrong are small and most miss-placed funds (the usual complaint) do eventually get returned but the loss of say a house transfer amount could destroy lives.

Interesting though that you raise the issue of eroding rates and the need to keep checking every now and again. Especially if you do a standing order it is easily forgotten


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

The Skipper said:


> My last transfer with Transferwise was on June 24. I transferred GBP 1,000 from my UK bank account to my Spanish bank account. On June 26 I checked my Spanish account and €1,404.90 had been deposited, after Transferwise had deducted their GBP 4.98 fee. Before discovering Transferwise I was arranging transfers from my own bank. For each transfer I was charged GBP 20 and given a lousy exchange rate. Tried Currencies Direct a few years ago and, in fact, set up a monthly standing order. It worked well at first, with a good exchange rate, but gradually the rate deteriorated until it became a total rip-off. I later discovered that they, like other fx companies, use software that gradually erodes the exchange rate after you have been lured into a false sense of security. Banks and fx companies have cheated me out of thousands of pounds over the years ... if only I had discovered Transferwise earlier!


I use Currency Fair myself. They charge a flat fee of €3 (not pounds) for however large a sum you want to transfer, and as Alcalaina's link shows, give the same exchange rates as Transferwise. 

I used my own bank at first, for a few years, then started using xe.com but for some reason they stopped handling transfers to Spain. Anyway they did me a favour really as Currency Fair are better. I can't believe how much money I wasted by using my High Street bank, they are a real rip off, although mine (First Direct) only charged 9 pounds for a standard transfer, but their exchange rate was rubbish by comparison.


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## Madliz (Feb 4, 2011)

I got 1.41 from CurrencyFair today and the fee is a flat €3.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

The good thing about the peer-to-peer services like TransferWise and CurrencyFair is that the exchange rate is the same regardless of how much you are transferring, unlike the big FX companies who only offer the top rate on large sums.


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## andrea1968 (Feb 27, 2014)

xe.com have great rates, I use them regularly.


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

andrea1968 said:


> xe.com have great rates, I use them regularly.


I just looked on their web site for a quote and this message appeared: "Sorry, we are currently not licensed to provide currency transfer services in your region." By region, I assume they mean the whole of Spain.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

The Skipper said:


> I just looked on their web site for a quote and this message appeared: "Sorry, we are currently not licensed to provide currency transfer services in your region." By region, I assume they mean the whole of Spain.


Yes, as I mentioned earlier in the thread I opened an account with xe.com but only had it for a few months before they notified me that they could no longer provide the service for Spain.

However, I find the exchange rates I now get from CurrencyFair to be better than those I used to get from xe.com anyway. As an example, if the mid market rate was €1.4050 to the pound, I would normally get €1.40 from CurrencyFair (with a €3 per transfer flat fee, regardless of the amount transferred).


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## Desiato (Jun 1, 2015)

I used World First for many years as their rates always seemed to be the cheapest. Not quite as competitive last year and switched to HiFX. For instant cash-in-the-hand Euro's in the UK the best rates tend to be at the pawn brokers. I've never seen a good rate from a high street bank in 10 years.


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## andrea1968 (Feb 27, 2014)

I trade xe.com from a UK to Spanish account.


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