A new fintech company which I was presented to earlier this year. Is Te Currensea Card Good For Traveling Vietnam 2019…
It has actually won a couple of awards over current months for what it does (offering you a low-priced way to invest abroad) however what I like about is that it is simple as hell. This is a good idea.
is, successfully, a direct debit travel card. You simply spend as you would on a normal debit card and the money is taken from your existing account– just without the normal 3% cost.
Oh, and is complimentary to apply for, which also helps.
There are also some interesting travel benefits if you pick a paid strategy, but the free plan works fine. You can apply here.
There is a company 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 competitors
include a growing number of functions which your existing consumers don’t actually want or require
add charges, limitations or charges to the feature that made people get your product in the first place, getting rid of any competitive advantage
is currently still in Phase 1 of this process and will hopefully remain there. Revolut, curve and monzo are currently in Stage 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? Is Te Currensea Card Good For Traveling Vietnam 2019
It is a free direct debit card to utilize abroad and which automatically recharges 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 using it.
Why would I wish to get a card?
If you have a charge card offering 0% foreign exchange costs, then you do not need a card, unless you desire complimentary ATM withdrawals. You can stop reading now.
Credit cards which offer benefits and charge 0% FX costs are few and far between. The only ‘miles and points’ alternatives which offer a partial option are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX charges in the Euro zone.
IS possibly for you if:
you do not have a charge card offering 0% FX charges and do not want to impact your credit report by getting another charge card specifically to use abroad
you desire an item which enables you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals per month without any charges and only a minimal FX mark-up (there is a little fee beyond �,� 500).
you want a product for you, your adult kids, moms and dads, partner or anybody else in your life who needs a simple, easy to understand payment card that will conserve them money when travelling.
How does work in practice?
It is, as I stated earlier, a really simple process. You utilize 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 automatically 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. includes a 0.5% cost if you have the totally free card. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no charges.
You get an automated spend notification via the app, if you select 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 chose to splash out and purchase 1,000 MeliaRewards points for EUR5.
This is what you see in the Currensea app, which reveals �,� 4.33 arranged to leave my HSBC account a few days later:.
Converting pounds was pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight burglary that is just about to take place (often in a different language) while not telling you about the expensive currency conversion costs happening in the background. Don’t get me began. Anyway back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Thankfully over the last few years a handful of great travel debit cards have popped onto the scene … and like other fantastic cards promises huge cost savings (85%) and a fantastic app.
However I believe the very best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street bank account.
What this indicates 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 imply it is ideal.
In this Currensea evaluation is the good, the bad, the unsightly and the options, so that you can decide.
FX markup.
While our premium plans have no FX markup, we charge a nominal FX markup on our Vital Strategy of 0.5% per transaction, allowing us to make earnings from our Essential Strategy whilst staying more affordable than other pre-paid cards and high-street debit cards. We also charge an FX markup on ATM use over the totally free quantity on all our strategies, full details can be found on our rates strategies.
Subscription fees.
We charge a yearly subscription fee of �,� 25 for our Premium Strategy, and �,� 120 for our Elite Strategy. The subscription charge likewise eliminates all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Whenever you invest with your card we receive a small % of the transaction, called interchange, this comes straight from the merchant and will not be charged to you. Is Te Currensea Card Good For Traveling Vietnam 2019