Bob

Not really...set up two paypal accounts, one for the US, the other for the UK, linked to bank on respective side of the fond, transfer money to paypal, and then transfer the money to other account as a cash purchase, then transfer to the bank...only problem is it takes a few days as you have to wait for money to go through to paypal, to the other account, and then on to the bank....but for small somes of money it's good way of doing it cheaply.

BritGuyTN

before you confirm the transaction on xe.com you know the rate - they send as the currency you need at the other end

Eskimo

yeah I think being called Pablo Escobar always causes me an issue but its a cross I have to bear - damn you mum !

Phone interview started 3 months ago apparently ..

psb182

just checked WF and XE.com rates and the actual rate is .57 pence per $ at xe but am wondering what their cut would be?..........you can actually buy pounds from WF for 54.27 pence per $

dunroving

That's a decent sized difference - 27 quid per thousand dollars ...

Search for posts using xe.com as a search term, with Pulaski posting. I think Pulaski has answered that one several times (he uses XE.com to transfer his riches).

My recollection is that there is no "cut" - xe.com makes money from their exchange rate (i.e., per dollar based on distance between their rate and the mid-rate), so what you see (the rate quoted) is what you get, period. But don't take my word for it - I suggest you do the search to be sure.

BigDavyG

Yep, with xe it seems that the rate is there fo you to see and they charge no fee that isn't incorporated into the rate. If you chose eft to give then the cash and get paid by draft there are no hidden charges.
I haven't looked at wf but lots of other places I've looked at quote something similar to the spot rate but then fleece you with fees, then there are the 'hidden' ones on top like they only accept wires from you so your bank charges for that and they send the cash to its destination via a wire, so yet more fees.

Like I said, when I checked xe.xom out earlier you were getting a few points of spot and no other charges. I'm phoning then up to set up an account tomorrow so I'll post back once I find out more.

Glad I putthis thread up, that's for sure.

BritGuyTN

i'll be honest - i've never used xe to transfer money to the UK, only the other way round. from uk to the usa I have never incurred any costs other than their small percentage from the 'spread'

BigDavyG

Completed the online form to register in 10 minutes.
Took me 45 minutes to work out how to use the sh*tty fax machine in the office but once I faxed the docs I got a mail back in 15 minutes.
Replied to that and scheduled an interview for tomorrow morning.
Total time taken so far (excluding fax machine shenagans) 25 minutes.

psb182

good info please keep us updated thanks

Eskimo

more luck than me .. they would'nt call me at work as I put my home number on the form, then my reference didnt reply as she was ill. To be honest I wanted a quick transfer as I'm so unorganised and they took four days so I'm not sure it suited me anyway..always thought their web site looks v dodgy as well

BritGuyTN

its true that the transfers don't happen instantaneously and the website is a bit 1990's, but at the end of the day it seems to be the cheapest safe option for transferring funds when time-sensitivity is not an issue

In fact, i've yet to hear of someone having a bad experience with a money transfer (when I say yet, I mean in the last 3.5 years which is how long i've been using it)

BigDavyG

Ok
Interview completed today in 10 minutes. They called promptly when I asked them to and it was no hassle at all.
Not really sure what the poin of it was as they already ask all the questions when you apply online.
I've now added by US bank details to my account. Once I get an email saying that my xe account has been activated (which should arrive tomorrow) I'll set up the first transfer. I intend to keep this one small and it may take longer than normal as they have to verify my bank account first time round.
I've got to be honest - I'm a bit concerned about giving these punters my hard-earned but I've scoured the web and the only complaints I can find about them are all to do with the sign up process. In addition I used to be a web-developer and all their security stuff checks out. I guess its always going to be a worry sendng large sums of cash over the web no matter who's involved.

Next update when I set the transfer up followed by one when it works or fails :scared:
I'm having the funds sent to the UK by draft by the way so this will take a bit longer than a wire transfer, but I'm in no rush.

Good luck

BigDavyG

Got the email authorizing me to start trading using my new account today.
Set up the first trade using EFT and draft for $1000. This is the slowest option and could take up to 19 business days. They'll send me a mail once they take my cash and then the sweat begins until the draft arrives in the UK.
At the time I processed the trade spot was 1.76950 and I got a rate or 1.794937. This is miles better than the rate my bank would have given me plus I would have had to stump up for wire fees at both the sending and receiving banks. I think this way I lose about 1.5-2% on spot - bank way I lose 10%.

Only transferring a small amount but still quite addictive to sit there refreshing the rate before submitting the trade. If this trade is successful and I step things up a bit it could take up most of my day watching the rates change.

More updates when I get them.

BritGuyTN

I find that transferring to the US using natwest online transfer and eft, a transfer takes about 5 days max

BigDavyG

What sort of a rate do they give you ??
My US and UK banks are after a pound of flesh to do this for me, though the fact that I'm only transferring 4 figure sums may have something to do with it.
Anyway hopefully I'll never be in a massive rush to shift cash back to blighty so as long as it gets there in 2-3 weeks I'm happy (for a change )