What is the best current account for overseas spending?

exceptionalsleeper

Hi,
Could anyone help? Basically, I am in the RAF and I am posted to the USA for a year later on this year. I will still be paid by the MoD via my Lloyds TSB current account. My question is regards the exchange rate. Are there any current accounts or even credit cards where I can get a preferential rate or discount when either spending or withdrawing over there?

Thanks in advance.

benjus

Have a look at this article: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money

I'd be looking at the Metro Bank (https://www.metrobankonline.co.uk/) current account (which I have myself) or the Gold Classic/Gold Light account from the Norwich & Peterborough (http://www.nandp.co.uk/current-account/) (which comes with a Visa debit card rather than a Mastercard one, which I think is slightly preferable).

In terms of credit cards, the Halifax Clarity is good because it also allows you to withdraw cash without charges, unlike most credit cards.

Any of these cards will give you the wholesale exchange rate (i.e. the rate you see reported on the business news), although in the US it's quite common for the ATM to charge for the withdrawal (there are some free ones though).

inmypocketnottheirs

Citibank offer accounts in dollars, euros and sterling, see https://www.citibank.co.uk. The best feature is that you can have all three currencies in separate accounts with the facility to switch between at reasonable rates and have a Visa debit card that can be operated from any account.

If you withdraw euros or dollars overseas from a citi cash machine there is no withdrawal charge.

jen245

Another vote for Citibank. Open the US $ current account, and when you get paid into your Lloyds account, just transfer it to the Citi account, and you can use the Visa debit card to pay for goods and withdraw cash. Apparently as wells Citi ATMs being fee free, the ATMs at Publix supermarkets and 7eleven stores are also fee free for Citi customers. I have found their rates the best, I pay into mine from my Natwest account and always get the market rate or thereabouts (sometimes slightly more sometimes slightly less, depending on how long it takes them to update their rates), last few weeks I was getting $1.59 and $1.60 before the rate dipped, so just as good as a credit card.

[Deleted User]

I have a citibank $ account but have just been informed they will start charging for the account from June of this year so may not be the best one to get.

jen245

Yes I noticed it on the website the other day, very annoying, but there are a few ways round the new charge, either keep £2000 in foreign currency accounts with them, or open a sterling current account, set up a couple of unimportant DD's, and just cycle the money through. I'm going to do the latter, I do it with a few of my other accounts, so it won't be any hassle adding Citi. I love my dollar account, got just over $1.60 today, and I want to open a few other foreign currency accounts for some planned trips, so that when the rates are good I can take advantage. Combining Citi along with my Clarity credit card, means I get the best rates before, and when I'm travelling

seriousDFW

I'm going to close my Citibank Euro account as a result of this change and just use my Halifax Clarity credit card and N&P debit card.