A brand-new fintech company which I was introduced to previously this year. Currensea Card Withdrawal…
It has actually won a few awards over recent months for what it does (offering you a low-cost way to spend abroad) but what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is an advantage.
is, successfully, a direct debit travel card. You merely invest as you would on a regular debit card and the money is taken from your current account– just without the typical 3% fee.
Oh, and is free to apply for, which likewise helps.
There are likewise some interesting travel advantages if you pick a paid strategy, however the totally free plan works fine. You can use here.
There is a company model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo etc have all followed:
launch by doing something well, and for free or less expensive than the competition
add increasingly more functions which your existing customers don’t truly require or desire
add limitations, charges or costs to the function that made individuals get your item in the first place, removing any competitive advantage
is presently still in Stage 1 of this process and will hopefully stay there. Revolut, monzo and curve are currently in Phase 3 …
is simple enough that it passes my ‘Can you describe it to your mate in the pub in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Currensea Card Withdrawal
It is a complimentary direct debit card to use abroad and which automatically recharges all purchases to your existing bank account in Sterling, less a small 0.5% cost.
That’s it.
You don’t (yet …) earn any airline miles or points for using it.
Why would I wish to get a card?
If you have a credit card offering 0% foreign exchange fees, then you do not need a card, unless you desire free ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Nevertheless, charge card which use rewards and charge 0% FX costs are rare. The only ‘points and miles’ alternatives which provide a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX fees in the Euro zone.
IS potentially for you if:
you do not have a credit card offering 0% FX costs and do not wish to impact your credit report by getting another credit card specifically to use abroad
you desire an item which permits you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals monthly with no costs and only a very little FX mark-up (there is a little charge beyond �,� 500).
you want an item 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 taking a trip.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated previously, a very basic process. You use your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in regional currency (any currency, worldwide).
Your bank account bank immediately validates that you have sufficient 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. If you have the complimentary card, adds a 0.5% fee. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no costs.
You get an automated spend notification through the app, if you choose to install it.
The cash is taken from your bank account a couple of days later.
Here is an example. Without any foreign travel in the journal, 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 scheduled to leave my HSBC account a couple of days later:.
But converting pounds was pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime burglary that is almost to occur (often in a different language) while not telling you about the inflated currency conversion fees happening in the background. Do not get me started. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Fortunately recently a handful of great travel debit cards have actually popped onto the scene … and like other great cards guarantees huge savings (85%) and a fantastic app.
However I believe the best bit might be what no other card does: connects to your existing high street savings account.
What this means is you can invest money you have in your existing current account with less fret about lacking money and the additional step. But that does not mean it is ideal.
In this Currensea review is the good, the bad, the awful and the options, so that you can choose.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Vital Plan of 0.5% per deal, allowing us to make profits 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 complimentary quantity on all our strategies, full details can be found on our prices strategies.
Subscription fees.
We charge an annual subscription charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The membership charge likewise eliminates all FX markup on transactions.
Interchange.
Whenever you spend with your card we receive a small % of the transaction, known as interchange, this comes directly from the merchant and will not be credited you. Currensea Card Withdrawal