A new fintech company which I was introduced to earlier this year. How To Use Currensea Without A Card…
It has actually won a few awards over recent months for what it does (using you an affordable method to invest abroad) however what I like about is that it is easy as hell. This is an advantage.
is, efficiently, a direct debit travel card. It is a Mastercard which sits in between you and your existing bank account. There is nothing to top-up or prepay. You simply spend as you would on a normal debit card and the cash is drawn from your bank account– just without the usual 3% fee.
Oh, and is free to look for, which also helps.
There are likewise some interesting travel benefits if you choose a paid strategy, but the free strategy works fine. You can use here.
There is a company design in fintech which Curve, Revolut, Monzo and so on have all followed:
launch by doing something well, and free of charge or more affordable than the competition
include more and more features which your existing clients do not actually require or desire
include fees, charges or constraints 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 stay there. Monzo, revolut and curve are currently in Stage 3 …
is basic enough that it passes my ‘Can you describe it to your mate in the pub in 30 seconds?’ test:
What countries can I use Currensea? How To Use Currensea Without A Card
It is a free direct debit card to use abroad and which automatically charges all purchases to your existing bank account in Sterling, less a small 0.5% cost.
That’s it.
You do not (yet …) earn any airline company miles or points for using it.
Why would I want to get a card?
If you have a charge card offering 0% forex charges, then you don’t require a card, unless you want free ATM withdrawals. You can stop checking out now.
Nevertheless, charge card which offer benefits and charge 0% FX charges are few and far between. The only ‘points and miles’ alternatives which use a partial service are the Virgin Atlantic credit cards which have 0% FX charges in the Euro zone.
IS perhaps for you if:
you don’t have a credit card offering 0% FX charges and do not wish to impact your credit report by getting another credit card specifically to use abroad
you want a product which enables you to make �,� 500 of foreign currency ATM withdrawals each month with no fees and just a very little FX mark-up (there is a small cost beyond �,� 500).
you desire a product for you, your adult kids, parents, partner or anyone else in your life who needs a basic, easy to understand payment card that will save them cash when taking a trip.
How does work in practice?
It is, as I said earlier, an extremely easy procedure. You utilize your Currensea card in the same way as your existing debit card.
You make your purchase in regional currency (any currency, internationally).
Your bank account bank automatically verifies that you have enough cash in your account and authorises the transaction.
The deal goes through at either the interbank rate or the Mastercard rate, depending on the currency. If you have the free card, includes a 0.5% charge. If you have one of their paid cards, there are no costs.
You get an automated invest notice through the app, if you choose to install it.
The cash is taken from your bank account a few days later.
Here is an example. Without any foreign travel in the journal, I chose to sprinkle out and buy 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 pricey.
A pet peeve of mine is when ATMs forewarn you about the daylight break-in that is almost to occur (frequently in a different language) while not telling you about the outrageous currency conversion charges taking place in the background. Do not get me began. Anyway back to the positives for a bit anyhow.
Luckily over the last few years a handful of terrific travel debit cards have actually popped onto the scene … and like other fantastic cards guarantees big savings (85%) and a terrific app.
However I believe the very best bit might be what no other card does: links to your existing high street savings account.
What this implies is you can invest cash you have in your existing current account with less fret about running out of money and the extra action. But that does not mean 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 strategies have no FX markup, we charge a small FX markup on our Vital Plan of 0.5% per transaction, permitting us to make profits from our Necessary Plan whilst staying more affordable than other prepaid cards and high-street debit cards. We likewise charge an FX markup on ATM usage over the free quantity on all our plans, complete details can be found on our prices strategies.
Subscription fees.
We charge a yearly subscription charge of �,� 25 for our Premium Plan, and �,� 120 for our Elite Plan. The subscription fee also removes all FX markup on deals.
Interchange.
Each time you spend with your card we receive a small % of the deal, referred to as interchange, this comes directly from the merchant and will not be credited you. How To Use Currensea Without A Card