A new fintech company which I was introduced to previously this year. Currensea Card Google Pay…
It has actually won a couple of awards over recent months for what it does (providing you an affordable way to invest abroad) but what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is an advantage.
is, effectively, a direct debit travel card. You simply spend as you would on a typical debit card and the money is taken from your existing account– simply without the typical 3% cost.
Oh, and is totally free to obtain, which likewise assists.
There are also some intriguing travel advantages if you choose a paid plan, however the totally free strategy works fine. You can apply here.
There is a company model in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo and so on have all followed:
launch by doing one thing well, and for free or more affordable than the competitors
add more and more functions which your existing consumers don’t really require or want
add charges, charges or restrictions to the function that made individuals get your product in the first place, removing any competitive advantage
is currently still in Stage 1 of this procedure and will ideally remain there. Curve, Revolut and Monzo are currently in Phase 3 …
is easy 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? Currensea Card Google Pay
It is a totally 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% charge.
That’s it.
You don’t (yet …) earn 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 charges, then you do not require a card, unless you want free ATM withdrawals. You can stop checking out now.
Nevertheless, credit cards which provide benefits and charge 0% FX costs are rare. The only ‘points and miles’ alternatives which use a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX fees in the Euro zone.
IS possibly for you if:
you do not have a credit card offering 0% FX charges and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another credit card particularly to use abroad
you desire a product which permits you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals monthly with no charges and only a very little FX mark-up (there is a small 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 travelling.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated previously, a really easy 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 bank account bank instantly validates that you have enough money in your account and authorises the deal.
The deal goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending on the currency. includes a 0.5% fee if you have the free card. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no costs.
You get an automated spend notice via the app, if you pick to install it.
The money is drawn from your current account a few days later on.
Here is an example. Without any foreign travel in the journal, I decided to sprinkle out and purchase 1,000 MeliaRewards points for EUR5.
This is what you see in the Currensea app, which reveals �,� 4.33 set up to leave my HSBC account a few days later on:.
Transforming pounds was expensive.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight robbery that is just about to occur (frequently in a different language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion charges occurring in the background. Don’t get me began. Anyway back to the positives for a bit anyway.
Fortunately over the last few years a handful of terrific travel debit cards have actually popped onto the scene … and like other terrific cards guarantees big savings (85%) and a fantastic app.
However I believe the best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street checking account.
What this means is you can spend money you have in your existing current account with less fret about running out of cash and the extra action. That does not suggest it is ideal.
In this Currensea evaluation is the great, the bad, the ugly and the alternatives, so that you can choose.
FX markup.
While our premium strategies have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Important Plan of 0.5% per deal, enabling us to make profits from our Vital Plan whilst remaining much cheaper than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM use over the complimentary quantity on all our plans, complete information can be found on our pricing strategies.
Subscription costs.
We charge a yearly membership cost of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Strategy. The membership fee also eliminates all FX markup on transactions.
Interchange.
Every time you invest with your card we receive a little % of the deal, called interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and won’t be charged to you. Currensea Card Google Pay