A new fintech business which I was presented to previously this year. Using Currensea Card Abroad…
It has won a few awards over current months for what it does (offering you a low-priced method to spend abroad) however what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is a good idea.
is, successfully, a direct debit travel card. It is a Mastercard which sits between you and your existing bank account. There is absolutely nothing to top-up or prepay. You merely spend as you would on a normal debit card and the cash is taken from your current account– simply without the normal 3% fee.
Oh, and is free to apply for, which likewise helps.
There are also some intriguing travel benefits if you choose a paid plan, but the free strategy works fine. You can apply here.
There is a business model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo etc have actually all followed:
launch by doing something well, and totally free or less expensive than the competition
include increasingly more features which your existing clients do not truly desire or require
add charges, restrictions or charges to the function that made individuals get your item in the first place, eliminating any competitive advantage
is currently still in Stage 1 of this process and will hopefully remain there. Curve, Revolut and Monzo are already in Stage 3 …
is simple 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? Using Currensea Card Abroad
It is a free direct debit card to use abroad and which immediately charges all purchases to your existing bank account in Sterling, less a little 0.5% fee.
That’s it.
You don’t (yet …) make any airline miles or points for utilizing it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a charge card offering 0% forex costs, then you do not need a card, unless you desire complimentary ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
However, charge card which provide benefits and charge 0% FX costs are scarce. The only ‘points and miles’ choices which offer a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX costs in the Euro zone.
IS possibly for you if:
you do not have a credit card offering 0% FX charges and do not wish to affect your credit report by getting another charge card specifically to use abroad
you desire a product which allows you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month with no costs and only a very little FX mark-up (there is a little cost beyond �,� 500).
you desire an item for you, your adult children, parents, partner or anyone else in your life who requires an easy, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them cash when travelling.
How does work in practice?
It is, as I said earlier, a very basic process. You use your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in local currency (any currency, globally).
Your bank account bank automatically confirms that you have sufficient cash in your account and authorises the transaction.
The deal goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending upon the currency. If you have the complimentary card, includes a 0.5% charge. There are no charges if you have one of their paid cards.
You get an automatic spend notice through the app, if you select to install it.
The cash is taken from your current account a couple of 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 scheduled to leave my HSBC account a few days later:.
Transforming pounds was pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime robbery that is practically to occur (often in a different language) while not telling you about the inflated currency conversion charges taking place in the background. Don’t get me began. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyway.
In current years a handful of excellent travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other great cards Currensea assures huge savings (85%) and an excellent app.
I believe the best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this means is you can invest cash you have in your existing bank account with less stress over running out of money and the additional step. That does not suggest it is best.
In this Currensea review is the great, 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 Strategy of 0.5% per transaction, permitting us to make earnings from our Important Plan whilst remaining much cheaper than other pre-paid cards and high-street debit cards. We also charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the totally free quantity on all our plans, complete details can be discovered on our rates strategies.
Membership fees.
We charge an annual subscription fee of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Strategy. The membership charge likewise eliminates all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Every time you spend with your card we get a little % of the transaction, known as interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and won’t be credited you. Using Currensea Card Abroad