"Wise" Foreign Accounts

[Norbert]

"Wise" used to named "Transferwise".

wise.com/

The idea is to create an account in any currency; and to easily covert money to different currencies at excellent FX rates and low fees.

For example, I could open a Wise account in USD, but also hold money in Euros, AUD, Danish Krone, and Israeli Shekels.

So, if I'm in Denmark and need cash, I can use my Wise debit card to withdraw Krone at a cash machine without worrying about bad exchange rates; or, I can pay my restaurant bill in Krone without worrying about Visa's exchange rates.

Or, if Euros look cheap to me, I can pick my moment to convert USDs.

There don't appear to be any catches, though one issue is that money held in a Wise account doesn't earn interest. So, you probably wouldn't keep large sums in a Wise account for long periods.

Very useful for frequent travelers; or, say, collecting AirBnb payments from your UK rental unit in local currency, converting to USD or EUR at excellent rates at a moment of your choosing. No more having your bank or credit card company use an unattractive spread to skim money out of your account when doing currency conversions.

My daughter is a client and swears by them.

N.

[galeno]

We like Schwab International Bank's debit card. US persons would use Schwab Bank.

Excellent FX rates. They reimburse all ATM fees.

[FD1000]

Apr 8, 2022 22:21:14 GMT galeno said:

We like Schwab International Bank's debit card. US persons would use Schwab Bank.

Excellent FX rates. They reimburse all ATM fees.

+1
I have been using Schwab ATM for over 10 years.  It's a global ATM with excellent FX rates + No foreign transaction fees. They reimburse all ATM fees in the US and abroad. This card is also connected to Schwab bank.  When this account doesn't have money, Schwab pull money auto from taxable to the Bank checking account.
The nice thing, when I get abroad, I take out about $200-300 first and as I get closer to the end I take out $50, after all, ATM fees are zero.

BTW, Fidelity ATM falls short, it has the above but foreign transaction fee = 1%.

I also use Visa Penfed abroad. worldwide, zero fees.  5% cash back on any gas in the USA + 1% cash back worldwide on anything else.

See below, a big problem for wise. ATM withdrawals are free up to 200 GBP per month, above it, you will pay an additional 1.75%.

I Google best money transfer between countries, found the following (link). XE looks like the best. WISE at number 8th.

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[Norbert]

FD1000

Thanks for the tip about Wise ATM fees.