# What is the cheapest way to convert regular sterling income to euro?



## Brendan Burgess (22 May 2011)

A friend of mine is coming to study in Dublin for a few years and will have to transfer money regularly from their sterling account in the UK to Ireland? 

I have seen some posts saying that transfers between from Danske Bank's UK bank to NIB are free of charges. But surely the biggest cost is in the exchange rate? 

How safe are these currency operators one sees advertising in the paper? Can they be trusted with a large amount of money? 

Is it better to transfer one large sum once a year or a monthly amount?


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## Brendan Burgess (26 May 2011)

Would anyone like to explain how these work? 

1) How the rate is calculated? 
2) The mechanics of transferring the money
3) How safe are they? Who guarantees or regulates them? 
4) A list of the major companies
5)How they compare with each other and with ordinary banks.
6) What to look out for.

For example, if I have a sterling cheque, can I lodge it to one of their accounts/ 

Can I get a bank draft from them? 


Effectively, a noddy guide.


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## candyflipper (5 Jun 2011)

Your friend is better off getting a sterling-based credit card that has no FX fees.  There are a couple listed here.  Money exchange services are a rip-off.


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## ccraig (5 Jun 2011)

Sterling credit card would not be a good idea, more expensive, worse rates, never mind fees


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## candyflipper (5 Jun 2011)

ccraig said:


> Sterling credit card would not be a good idea, more expensive, worse rates, never mind fees



Not if it's a Santandar Zero, for example.  No annual fee, and no forex markup (the FX rates are actually better than currencyfair, and currencyfair is as cheap as the currency exchangers get).  There's no overhead beyond what the merchant must pay in fees, and we don't care about that.  

The only way to screw that up is do a cash advance, in which case a credit card starts to get as costly as currency exchangers.


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## Brendan Burgess (6 Jun 2011)

> Is it safe ?? Well it has always worked seamlessly for me



Hi Bill

Interesting information generally, but the last sentence is worrying. Something isn't safe because it has worked well for the last few years. 

What we need to know is what happens if the company gets into financial difficulty. Is your money in a separate account? Is there a guarantee system in place?


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