Revolut

[Wilbro]

@A.N.Other and
No I don't. All I did was change money and immediately go to the Wise site to compare. Every time higher, not by much, but it definitely shows competitiveness.
I have no axe to grind here, just offering my experience.

[glazedallover]

Very interesting. Just applied for an account so see how it goes.

We are skint at the mo after a v recent exchange at an excellent rate .. but will be delighted to read how you get on with your first exchange gao.

Well a very positive start Sue , and as @Headers suggested previously it is very like HIFX used to be. So I received a call from Optimal and spoke with a real person ! It is not app based but for PC or laptop use. The main difference that I can see is that I will have to log in to my UK account and make a bank transfer to them each time I trade. With Wise I use the open banking function which may be a bit quicker.

So, a good start and I like the fact that they call to get to know you. I will report back on my first trade - probably when my state pension arrives next week.

onwrds and upwards!

P.S. Cheers @ Wilbro

[Sparkle]

I recently signed up to Xe.com (previously HiFX) and very pleased with the rate and speed which almost immediate. I had to laugh when I received an email from Alex who said 'Hello, I'm your account manager if you have any problems don't hesitate to contact me' It's not as if I convert thousands of £s to Euros just my pension!

[glazedallover]

So the account has been set up (just needed to provide a photo of my passport and a recent bill showing address) . I haven't yet traded but I had both Optimal and Wise up at the same time and the net rate was identical....Optimal just give you the net rate , whilst Wise shows the gross market rate and then deducts the fee.

I guess I would need to get used to Optimal, but Wise seems a bit more slick, although to be fair I have been using it for several years so that is to be expected.

[DaveW]

Maybe there should be a different thread for currency transfers because the Revolut part has been drowned.
I use Revolut and it is really useful to transfer currency as you travel. For example I went to Australia and Singapore in February and made sure I had topped up the local currency on my Revolut card to save on transaction charges. Australia is a giant rip off they insist on card swipes for everything and add a charge on top, if you used a euro card you would be getting fleeced. Also useful for the UK because it will always default to £’s if you have enough in the account; no additional charges.

However, beware to check your account status with Revolut, with me they also gave me a UK bank account although the primary is a French account. I have only just realised that and need to update my tax form to declare it.

[glazedallover]

Although the thread title is 'Revolut' the OP was experiencing problems with a currency transfer, hence the alternative suggestions I guess...;it didn't seem to me at least, a thread about the merits or otherwise of Revolut.

[elsie]

Revolut now have now received a “authorisation with restrictions” UK banking licence - which is the usual status for new banks and allows it to build the UK new banking operations before launching them. There will be a "mobilisation" period where it will only be allowed to hold up to £50,000 of a customer’s deposits.
So there is now full UK protection for the UK accounts and ECB (though Lithuania) for the EU accounts.

[Sparkle]

I found this article today very interesting.
https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/sav ... -cost.html

[elsie]

I can't remember the last time I deposited cash into any of my bank accounts? I suspect it must be a requirement (or function) as part of the full banking licence? Monzo and Starling also have some charges associated with paying cash into an account.

If I did need to get funds from cash into my Revolut bank account, I'd pay the cash into my Lloyds account without any charges and then just make a free bank transfer from Lloyds to Revolut.

[Blaze]

Interesting article on the BBC about Revolut.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj6epzxdd77o

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