psychopomp1

Hi,

Just after peoples experiences re: exchange rates when sending QAR to a UK bank. I bank with Commercial Bank in Qatar and send around £3k to UK each month. Currently the mid-market GBP>QAR rate is 4.73, CB offer me 4.77 to convert from QAR to GBP which i guess isn't too bad. I'm fully aware that no bank will offer mid-market rates for personal money transfers but which bank in Qatar offers the closest rates to mid-market? I think HSBC Global transfers offer quite good x-rates but after experiencing shocking customer support in UK, i closed my HSBC account so Global Transfers is out of the equation. As the sums involved aren't huge, I don't want the hassle of using a currency dealer.

Cheers

Mogs

I would suggest the hassle of using a currency dealer is less hassle than changing bank accounts.

psychopomp1

Not according to my experience. For example i tried to open an account with Currencies Direct (UK dealer), they requested about a trillion documents from me (d/t anti money laundering regs) and then when i did manage to send them everything, they turned around and sorry we can't offer you an account!! They didn't even have the courtesy to let me know why but I suspect being in the Middle East played a big part. Now compare that with just filling out a simple Commercial bank application form, attach copy of Qatar ID and employer support letter and my account was opened in 48 hrs.

mission

I find it's cheaper to use the exchange houses - but that does involve physically taking the cash and doing the transfer over the counter, but I have always found they give the best fx rates.

psychopomp1

Suprisingly the fx rates in Qatar exchange centres/shops (eg Lulu exchange, UAE exchange et al) are worse than Commercial Bank rates yet if you go to such places in UAE they beat the bank's rates.

RI207

That is correct. the Qatar exchange centers/shops are not competitive for sending GBP. They seem to be targeting rupees / Philippians currently etc. I checked this yesterday after speaking to one of the managers to see if they will offer a better rate for say 100k QAR and he went from 4.82 on the display board to 4.81 and the commercial bank were offering a better rate yesterday.




Also, I have tried a couple currency dealers in the UK and still found commercial bank competitive.

Pulaski

If you have a UK address that you can prove ties to, I suggest you try again with another broker using your UK address to open the account.

Ultimately it's your call as to what is worth doing, but I would have thought that saving about 5% on every transfer would make it worth your while to jump through a few hoops to open an account with an on-line FX broker.

psychopomp1

Most UK currency brokers will only give you competitive fx rates when transferring high sums - typically more than 5k GBP. So in my case many of them will actually give me a worse rate than Commercial Bank. My main question: is Commercial Bank the best, the worst or the middle of the bunch amongst the Qatari banks when sending QAR>GBP?

Pulaski

That is simply not true. The smaller the amount, the relatively better the deal that on-line FX brokers offer. Banks are good for very large amounts, but give disgraceful rates on "tourist amounts".

psychopomp1

+1.

I also found that the likes of Lulu Exchange charge around 50 riyals to send funds to UK whereas CB (& all QR other banks) charge 15 riyals. Have you managed to compare fx rates of other Qatar banks v Commercial bank? Like i said in my first post, CB do offer what seem to be quite good fx rates but I'm curious to know if they can be bettered by other banks....

psychopomp1

I think you'll find its the opposite, ie better rates the greater the amount. Here's the proof taken from fxcompared.com

exchange 15k QAR to GBP: (eg Moneycorp offering 0.2081 or 4.80)



exchange 30k QAR to GBP: (eg Moneycorp offering 0.2091 or 4.78)



Anyway its a moot point as none of the UK currency brokers can match Commercial bank's rates for ~ 15k QAR.

RI207

I have only compared Doha bank and Commercial bank and commercial bank rate is better but very marginal and hardly worth talking about it.


Commercial bank will not charge the 10 QAR or 15 QAR for the transfer if you pay your utility bills using online banking.


What I do get charged is 12 quid inter banking charges by NATWEST / HALIFAX etc on the receiving end. Is this normal for most UK banks. Are there any banks that don't charge to receive money from abroad?

psychopomp1

After doing a little bit of research (incl calling banks themselves) there's not much difference in their exchange rates, however Qatar National Bank seems to offer the best rates. Their QAR > GBP rate was 4.75 yesterday when the mid-market rate was 4.72 which is excellent. So have decided to open an account there, they have a branch near our office on D Ring Road (The Mall) and best of all, they're open 7 days a week

Fortunately my employer pays all my utility bills so I have to cough up 15 riyals for every transfer. Not a huge amount to pay anyway.

Yes all banks in UK will charge you to receive international payments. My bank, First Direct charge 6 quid or 9 quid (can't remember which).

Pulaski

Sorry, I wasn't completely clear in what I meant by "relatively" - whether you use a bank or broker you'll get a better rate for a larger amount, but the difference between broker rates and bank rates is greater when you're sending a small amount. ......IOW Banks §çrew those who send small amounts.
Banks, not just British ones, charge to receive wires, but broker transfers often arrive as BACS credits which are free to the recipient (you may be offered a choice of credit by wire or BACS).

That said, the rate your bank is offering is a good rate - matching xe.com and .01 better than transferwise.

Meow

A decent currency dealer should be no hassle. It just adds a couple of days but for larger amounts there is money to be saved. Get the right account and you can do it all by email and bank transfer.

I work with a FCA (Financial Conduct Authority in the UK) registered currency broker that I refer all my clients to and use personally. Drop me a PM if you want an introduction to a named contact, a nice human being that will guide you the first time and will be your future point of contact.