Most efficient way of extracting cash abroad

cepheus

I have a Santander credit card which I hope to use in Spain to get cash from a till.

Has anyone any idea what sort of exchange rate I could expect relative to the mid price? Anyone got a statement with the exchange rate stated on it, at a recent date?

How long does it take for the bank to register a cash withdrawal from a foreign till? I was thinking of using Santander zero credit card to extract cash and pay by Internet on the same day. (This card charges interest for cash withdrawals from the first day, but doesn't allow pre-loading to have a positive balance)

missile

I don't bank with Santander, they seem to do things .......... differently.

I don't know what you call mid rate, do you mean tourist rate? I can advise that most credit cards give business rate and I always get the exchange rate quoted on my statements. It appears as a debit on your credit card in a few days and just like any transaction in UK, the time varies.

Wherever possible, I would suggest you use your credit card to make purchases rather than withdrawing cash.

missile

AFIK, cash withdrawal is charge free from a Santander cash point only. Please be aware that Santander branches are not as common as you might expect in spain. You might like to check if there is one convenient to your destination.

Baldur

Although I have a Zero Credit Card, it's one of the last ones in my possession which I would use for foreign currency cash withdrawals, preferring my Metro Bank Debit Card (zero fees/charges) for ATM withdrawals or my Halifax Clarity Credit Card for purchases.

You can get some idea of the exchange rate which you will receive from the Mastercard Currency Conversion Tool. I am currently in Dubai and have received the stated rate, relevant to the posting of the transaction(s) on all withdrawals/purchases to date.

cepheus

There is less than 0.1% spread between buying and selling rates according to that list. It would be fantastic if any card offered these rates. I've just discovered my Santander card isn't operational anyway, probably lack of use. I thought of risking the Santander one to get cash out of a foreign cash dispenser instead of exchanging lots of money over here, good job I didn't.

I will be using my old Nationwide credit card for purchases.

Baldur

cepheus wrote: »

..... It would be fantastic if any card offered these rates....

My Metro Bank Card does offer those rates, just as the Nationwide Flex a/c Debit Card used to offer the corresponding VISA rates with no fees or charges.

missile

cepheus wrote: »

.... It would be fantastic if any card offered these rates..

As I said: Capital1 give the Master card business exchange rate.

Nationwide credit and flex account debit card give the Visa card business exchange rate.

At any given time Master card may be slightly better or worse than Visa. However the difference is negligible.

For your info:

Merchant InformationEL CORTE INGLES CIUDAD
ELCHE, ESP 03204 Country Code ES - Spain Transaction Date23 Feb 2011Posted On24 Feb 2011Transaction TypePurchaseAmount£73.06CurrencyUnited Kingdom, Pounds (GBP) Reference Number *deleted* MCC DescriptionDEPARTMENT STORES Source Amount€84.00Source CurrencyEuro (EURO)Conversion Rate1.149739939

cepheus

[SIZE=-1]You quote 1.149 on the 23rd February. [/SIZE]
These are Mid prices

[SIZE=-1][SIZE=-1]2011-02-22 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Tuesday, February 22 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]1.18226 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]EUR [/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]2011-02-23 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Wednesday, February 23 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]1.18217 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]EUR[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]2011-02-24 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]Thursday, February 24 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]1.17467 [/SIZE][SIZE=-1]EUR[/SIZE][/SIZE]

Taking the 1.18217 as the correct mid price figure for your date this implies a spread of 1.149/1.215 around 5.7%

This is the sort of spread I would expect from a card, far better than a bank cash but hardly trading account level. See a real spread here on the right demo before the suits have added on their 5.6% in this case

Without the Buy and Sell price the true costs are completely opaque.

Edit

Iv'e searched around for business exchange rates, these are from Nat west Can anyone find the buy and sell better than this (around 5%)?

http://www.natwest.com/tools/commercial/currency_rates/rates.asp

Compared with the 'tourist' exchange rates available on the high street for currency notes and coins, the Commercial Exchange Rate gives business customers a better deal when buying or selling foreign currency for non-cash transactions.

Euro Sell/Buy 1.1033 1.1553

Infidel

So, summer is here, and as always, time is a passing too fast too fast.
May as well jump on this thread rather than make another similar one, right?

I'm also looking at the cheapest way to draw cash in Spain. I was wondering if transferring cash to my Nationwide Flex account and then drawing from that is still the cheapest way to get Euros (as I know they started charging for this service from last year). Cheers.

stilltheone

Infidel wrote: »

So, summer is here, and as always, time is a passing too fast too fast.
May as well jump on this thread rather than make another similar one, right?

I'm also looking at the cheapest way to draw cash in Spain. I was wondering if transferring cash to my Nationwide Flex account and then drawing from that is still the cheapest way to get Euros (as I know they started charging for this service from last year). Cheers.

Travelex Cash Passport Globe

Infidel

stilltheone wrote: »

Travelex Cash Passport Globe

I'll certainly look into that. Has anyone here used it? Can you draw cash out from ATM's or do you have to use it like a credit card in shops?