Best way to transfer medium/large amounts of EUR / GBP

[soundb0y]

Ok thanks for the info, I'll do some more digging.

 

[jimjamuk]

Used non sequential notes - preferably in a suitcase

then sell them Euro notes in the local pub.....

 

[joeyjojo]

What are the downsides of sending money using these companies like transferwise and currencyfair? Are they 100% secure?

Currently looking at importing some machinery from Finland and looks like it could save over £2k sending the money through one of these rather than the bank.

Downsides, none as far as I know. Bit more work compared to just asking your bank I suppose? Although you should still ask them for a quote for comparison.

Also note that for larger amounts there are usually better options in the brokers, which is probably you if the savings are £2k. (Currencies Direct, FC Exchange, Moneycorp, UK Forex, etc. etc.) MSE have a good guide here:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/foreign-currency-exchange#larger

Shop around to find the best quote.

 

[Ironic Namesake]

What are the downsides of sending money using these companies like transferwise and currencyfair? Are they 100% secure?

Currently looking at importing some machinery from Finland and looks like it could save over £2k sending the money through one of these rather than the bank.

No downsides really - as long as they're FCA regulated they need to keep clients funds segregated too, i.e. If they went bankrupt whilst holding your funds they can't be used to settle their liabilities.

If the saving is £2k I'm assuming the amount is larger and it's a company purchase? It's worth getting quotes from a few then approaching your bank and see if they'll match it.

 

[dowie]

Basically look at a few of the big brokers and see which is best for your trade.

^^^ this... grabbing a few sample quotes from each of them might give you a better idea of how much margin they're adding to their quotes

though I'd suspect that doing it yourself via a place like interactive brokers is likely to be cheaper than any of those currency conversion services...

 

[Ironic Namesake]

^^^ this... grabbing a few sample quotes from each of them might give you a better idea of how much margin they're adding to their quotes

though I'd suspect that doing it yourself via a place like interactive brokers is likely to be cheaper than any of those currency conversion services...

IB will always give the best rates (normally within 1 pip on GBPEUR)

But it's only really feasible if you can wait for 4 days or so, and if you use the platform for other trading.

If you have less than $100k equivalent with them there's a $10 a month fee, although trading charges are offset against this.

 

[achitophel]

I used them to move about £200k to euro for a house I was buying in Ireland 2 years ago - no problems at all, but I was moving about £20k a day, since I didn't see the point in paying bank fees for transfers.

They're FCA regulated, and equivalently in a lot of other jurisdictions. Their model is generally to fund match, so can't see a commercial risk, which leaves fraud. Always a risk with whomever you use.

 

[Skidder]

I've used Ebury for euro transfers and found them to be good.