A new fintech company which I was introduced to previously this year. Freeze Card Currensea…
It has actually won a few awards over current months for what it does (using you an inexpensive way to spend abroad) but what I like about is that it is simple as hell. This is a good idea.
is, effectively, a direct debit travel card. It is a Mastercard which sits between you and your existing current account. There is absolutely nothing to top-up or prepay. You simply spend as you would on a typical debit card and the cash is drawn from your bank account– simply without the normal 3% cost.
Oh, and is totally free to make an application for, which likewise assists.
There are also some interesting travel advantages if you select a paid plan, however the complimentary plan works fine. You can use here.
There is a business design in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo and so on have actually all followed:
launch by doing something well, and totally free or cheaper than the competition
add a growing number of functions which your existing customers don’t truly desire or need
add constraints, charges or charges to the function that made people get your product in the first place, removing any competitive advantage
is presently still in Stage 1 of this process and will ideally remain there. Monzo, curve and revolut are already in Phase 3 …
is simple enough that it passes my ‘Can you discuss it to your mate in the pub in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? Freeze Card Currensea
It is a free direct debit card to utilize 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 wish to get a card?
If you have a charge card offering 0% foreign exchange costs, then you do not require a card, unless you want complimentary ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Credit cards which provide benefits and charge 0% FX costs are few and far between. The only ‘points and miles’ choices which use a partial service are the Virgin Atlantic charge card which have 0% FX costs in the Euro zone.
IS perhaps for you if:
you do not have a credit card offering 0% FX fees and do not wish to impact your credit report by getting another credit card particularly to use abroad
you want a product which enables you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals monthly without any costs and just a very little FX mark-up (there is a little fee beyond �,� 500).
you want a product for you, your adult children, parents, partner or anybody else in your life who needs a simple, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when taking a trip.
How does operate in practice?
It is, as I stated earlier, an extremely easy procedure. You utilize your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in local currency (any currency, worldwide).
Your bank account bank instantly validates that you have adequate cash in your account and authorises the deal.
The transaction goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending on the currency. adds a 0.5% charge if you have the complimentary card. There are no costs if you have one of their paid cards.
You get an automated invest notification via the app, if you pick to install it.
The cash is taken from your bank account a couple of days later.
Here is an example. With no foreign travel in the diary, I chose to splash out and purchase 1,000 MeliaRewards points for EUR5.
This is what you see in the Currensea app, which shows �,� 4.33 scheduled to leave my HSBC account a few days later on:.
However transforming pounds was pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daytime robbery that is almost to happen (often in a different language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion fees taking place in the background. Don’t get me started. Anyhow back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
In recent years a handful of terrific travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other terrific cards Currensea assures big savings (85%) and a fantastic app.
I think the best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this indicates is you can invest money you have in your existing bank account with less worry about lacking money and the additional step. But that does not indicate it is best.
In this Currensea evaluation is the great, the bad, the ugly and the options, so that you can decide.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a small FX markup on our Essential Plan of 0.5% per deal, permitting us to make revenue from our Important Strategy whilst staying much cheaper than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the totally free quantity on all our plans, full details can be discovered on our prices strategies.
Subscription costs.
We charge an annual membership charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The subscription charge likewise eliminates all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Every time you invest with your card we receive a small % of the transaction, known as interchange, this comes directly from the merchant and will not be charged to you. Freeze Card Currensea