Foreign Currency Accounts

dick_moss

Heya,

I've been living and working abroad for a while and still have a bank account there. However the bank charges abroad increase if not living in the country (will be ~£20/month), so I was looking into alternatives to hold the currency: the exchange rates are currently not the best and experience seasonal fluctuations, so I'd rather wait a few more months before I convert...

So I came up with these foreign currency accounts. There are a few banks that do them for personal banking (HSBC / Barclays etc) but citibank seems to be the best deal: it's free of charge above a certain threshold, online banking, and no charges for incoming traffic if in currency of the account. If transferring the currency out again, the outgoing charges are similar when comparing banks: ~£25.

I was wondering whether anyone has experience with these, not sure if I am missing something but it seems quite a good solution. Does anyone have one of these accounts and has had bad (or good) experiences? I take it the money is still protected if the bank goes bust even if in foreign currency.

Thanks for your insights!

Cheers,

dr_adidas01

!!!!!!_moss wrote: »

Heya,

I've been living and working abroad for a while and still have a bank account there. However the bank charges abroad increase if not living in the country (will be ~£20/month), so I was looking into alternatives to hold the currency: the exchange rates are currently not the best and experience seasonal fluctuations, so I'd rather wait a few more months before I convert...

So I came up with these foreign currency accounts. There are a few banks that do them for personal banking (HSBC / Barclays etc) but citibank seems to be the best deal: it's free of charge above a certain threshold, online banking, and no charges for incoming traffic if in currency of the account. If transferring the currency out again, the outgoing charges are similar when comparing banks: ~£25.

I was wondering whether anyone has experience with these, not sure if I am missing something but it seems quite a good solution. Does anyone have one of these accounts and has had bad (or good) experiences? I take it the money is still protected if the bank goes bust even if in foreign currency.

Thanks for your insights!

Cheers,

Yes I have a Citibank UK account I have the US$ and the Euro account attached. There very good if you go to the US and Europe as you can transfer money from your citibank Sterling account to the accounts and use your card and withdraw money free of charge and use your debit card without incurring any fees.

What you cant do however is have your salary paid into the euro or US$ account it has to be paid into the sterling account then transferred to the account you want to spend it from.

You can pay in US$ cheques to the US$ account but only via the clearing system in the UK.

The account must also be funded with £1,850 a month and also have 2 monthly active direct debits, otherwise you will have to pay an £8 monthly fee if you don't meet these two requirements.

gt94sss2

!!!!!!_moss wrote: »

I've been living and working abroad for a while and still have a bank account there.

Where? What currency?

Regards
Sunil

dick_moss

gt94sss2 wrote: »

Where? What currency?

Switzerland / CHF

dick_moss

dr_adidas01 wrote: »

The account must also be funded with £1,850 a month and also have 2 monthly active direct debits, otherwise you will have to pay an £8 monthly fee if you don't meet these two requirements.

Must be slighty different for "Foreign Currency Deposit Accounts". Here you get it for free above an equivalent balance of £2000, and I haven't read anything about the direct debits - I'll ask though. I suppose because it's a deposit account they don't expect to move money around. Also if conditions are not fulfilt they'd charge £5 / month. Anyway, great to hear your good experiences. Thanks,

The_Corrupt_Banker

Another benefit with Citibank is free SEPA transfers, HSBC charge £9 and Barclays £14 I think. Unfortunately that's only for Euros, depends on how much going EUR/CHF is going to cost you as to whether it's going to be any use.

dick_moss

Heya, thanks to all for your replies. I understand that citibank is 100% protected by FSCS, but just to make sure, does this also include foreign currencies parked there?

Thanks!

jonesMUFCforever

!!!!!!_moss wrote: »

Heya, thanks to all for your replies. I understand that citibank is 100% protected by FSCS, but just to make sure, does this also include foreign currencies parked there?

Thanks!

I don't know for definite but I would suggest not.
Currency accounts are normally based offshore and would not be covered.
This information should be available on their website - have you looked at all?

dick_moss

Heya, thanks, I found the information on their website. So foreign currency accounts are covert, see bullet point number 3.


Important information about deposits and the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme
Citibank International plc is covered by the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS can pay compensation to depositors if Citibank International plc is unable to meet its financial obligations. Most individual and small business depositors are covered by the FSCS.

• In respect of deposits, an eligible depositor is entitled to claim up to £85,000.
• For joint accounts each account holder is treated as having a claim in respect of their share so, for a joint account held by two eligible depositors, the maximum amount that could be claimed would be £85,000 each (making a total of £170,000).
• The £85,000 limit relates to the combined amount in all the eligible depositor's accounts with Citibank International plc, including foreign currency accounts and any share in a joint account, and not to each separate account.
• The compensation limit applies per customer per authorised bank. Citibank N.A. London Branch which is also part of Citigroup is separately authorised and a separate member of the FSCS. This means, for example, that if you are a customer with savings at Citibank International plc and Citibank N.A. London Branch your deposits are covered up to £85,000 per customer of each authorised bank (making a total of £170,000).