Travelex Supercard

LesD

Anyone got any comments

https://www.supercard.io/

bagand96

Seems too good to be true! Still looking for the catch.

You link your UK Credit/Debit card to your Supercard. You use your supercard abroad, Travelex exchange the transaction at the Visa rate, and charge your UK card as a UK transaction.

The only current question is cash withdrawals if you've linked to a Credit Card. I guess it depends how Supercard propose to process the transaction to your credit card, as a cash advance or just as a retail transaction.

I've got a Clarity and a fee free Debit Card but I'm registering my interest.

adindas

Here is direct quotation:

- Link your existing debit or credit cards to Supercard through the app
- Pay with Supercard
- Use Supercard to avoid foreign-transaction fees when you spend money abroad.

Where is here saying that they are using "VISA GLOBAL exchange rate" .
Yes "avoid foreign-transaction fees is stated clearly", but they might be using their own conversion. If this is the case, it will undoubtedly lower than "VISA GLOBAL exchange rate".

Also like other memebr has said the transaction to your credit card, could be tagged as a cash advance.

Knowing the Travelex business background I pretty much doubt that they are using VISA GLOBAL exchange rate".

VISA GLOBAL exchange rate" is the rate you will get if you are using the specilist no fee for non-sterling trasaction to be used abroad for CC (e.g clarity card, Santander Zero) or DC.( e.g Metro bank to be used in the EU, N&P, Santander Zero).

The term "Visa rate" might not be the same as Visa Global Exchange rate,,

We will need to hear testimony from pepole who have used it and compare it with the result of other well known specialist CC or DC.

Please free to discuss it ...

bagand96

The Supercard site says on its FAQs: (my bold)

All transactions charged to Supercard are processed by your bank as domestic payments, rather than foreign ones – saving you bank roaming charges whether you’re in Bali or Berlin. To get started, add at least one of your existing credit or debit cards to your in-app Supercard mobile wallet - you can add up to 5. Once your Supercard arrives in the post you’re ready to spend! Your bank card is only charged when you use your Supercard, so you don’t have to preload your card with foreign currency, or buy any foreign currency upfront. Supercard processes transactions using the Visa Exchange Rate, with no commission or foreign-exchange fees added on

Granted it doesn't use the word "global" but I can't see what else it would mean.

Also with the ability to do more than one card you might be able to choose where the payment goes, so if you withdraw cash you could choose it to go to a debit card so you don't get charged a cash advance.

benjus

The obvious question is, how do they make any money from this?

Bank accounts that offer/offered this either did it as a perk to entice customers and hope that they use the profit-making services (and tend to withdraw or limit the perk if this doesn't work, e.g. Nationwide Flexaccount, Metro Bank), or apply conditions (e.g. N & P current accounts). This appears to be just the perk with no profit-making services for customers to use, so I can't see where they are making any money.

Still, I think I'll sign up just out of curiosity.

Rollingstart

adindas wrote: »

Here is direct quotation:

- Link your existing debit or credit cards to Supercard through the app
- Pay with Supercard
- Use Supercard to avoid foreign-transaction fees when you spend money abroad.

Where is here saying that they are using "VISA GLOBAL exchange rate" .
Yes "avoid foreign-transaction fees is stated clearly", but they might be using their own conversion. If this is the case, it will undoubtedly lower than "VISA GLOBAL exchange rate".

Also like other memebr has said the transaction to your credit card, could be tagged as a cash advance.

Knowing the Travelex business background I pretty much doubt that they are using VISA GLOBAL exchange rate".

VISA GLOBAL exchange rate" is the rate you will get if you are using the specilist no fee for non-sterling trasaction to be used abroad for CC (e.g clarity card, Santander Zero) or DC.( e.g Metro bank to be used in the EU, N&P, Santander Zero).

The term "Visa rate" might not be the same as Visa Global Exchange rate,,

We will need to hear testimony from pepole who have used it and compare it with the result of other well known specialist CC or DC.

Please free to discuss it ...

Santander Zero? That's mastercard bud.

rolo1_2

Interesting -its got my attention - Can't see any catch.

adindas

Rollingstart wrote: »

Santander Zero? That's mastercard bud.

Metro Bank Debit, Halifax clarity is also Mastercard, I know that as I personally have them. In general Visa and Master card global exchange rate is equivalent and could be said that they provide the same exchange rate sometimes Visa is better slgihtly sometimes, Mastercard. I am using it as Illustration of the best exchange rate that an individual could get.

eDicky

It looks very interesting, if they really use Visa Exchange Rate - it is spelled with capitals so presumably it's the real thing. Let's see when they actually roll it out and issue cards.

For some reason the daily Visa and MasterCard rates seem to be even more favourable, when your base currency is GBP, than the mid-market rates indicated on xe.com and such.

As for how they will make a profit, I can only imagine that they take a cut of the percentage that Visa charges retailers, as most card issuers probably do. Also, they may charge a one-off fee to issue the card, maybe even a monthly fee - I think it only says there are no fees for transactions.

The phone app might be a headache to use at first, until they get the bugs out.

Anyway I signed up - perhaps they will send us free cards to try out and help them test the system...

baby_frogmella

adindas wrote: »

The term "Visa rate" might not be the same as Visa Global Exchange rate,,

I think you need to stop being so (text removed by MSE Forum Team). It clearly says on their website

Supercard processes transactions using the Visa Exchange Rate, with no commission or foreign-exchange fees added on

This implies that they add on 0% commission to the Visa wholesale rate.

callum9999

Incredibly unnecessary... Hopefully you can just put that down to your poor English...

The website says that they use the Visa exchange rate - PERIOD. Yes, there might be a hidden catch somewhere else, but they were correct to call you paranoid on this point. A point you did in fact make - "they might be using their own conversion".

That's not remotely a trick as it's your bank not Travelex charging interest, so they wouldn't benefit from it. I don't know if they will flag ATM transactions as cash and the rest as purchases, but as you will still earn your normal credit card rewards, it certainly won't all be flagged as cash.