M&S Credit Card for buying Currency

redux

chuckley wrote: »

there will always be a newer, whizzier and more fancy prepaid card. but there should just be a general comparison list of as many as possible. MSE even dropped Caxton from its list.

Strange. I got the card once it switched to mastercard with the multiple currency load. I would've thought that was a bonus, but hey he probably wasn't banking commission to list them.

I don't think Kalixa is new. My card is nearly 3 years old, and I'm certainly not an early customer. I believe it launched in 2010 or possibly 2009.

Admittedly it has taken MSE some years of not noticing it being mentioned here on the forum before eventually adding it to their articles.

As for exchange rate, even with a transaction fee an ATM cash withdrawal with Kalixa is cheaper than Caxton for amounts over £80 equivalent. And no loading in any currency, instead of just for one.

bigadaj

chuckley wrote: »

'much worse rate' let's not get silly here and pretend these overseas cards give you double cash back on exchanging. You can get a slightly better rate yes...

but on the flipside...

Withdrawing on these cards incurs fees, regardless of how fast it's repaid. which like I said defeats the purpose of a credit card. whichever way you look at it, you're paying to withdraw cash, no matter how small... a feature I refuse to accept or use no matter how 'pretty' the other features are.

It's not the cashback that's important here it's avoiding the exchange rate loading, or the spread on changing cash. Normal cards will have 2.75% loading fee, and the spread on cash exchange can be significantly larger than this.

I tend to use clarity, though now have no fee nationwide which I've used for drawing cash. Clarity will charge me around 1% a month, so assuming a fortnight and paying off on return gives a fee of 0.5% on cash, saving 2% on many cards and potentially 5% or so on cash.

I think it's worth having that, and worth my inconvenience or horror at having to pay a little credit card interest, but it's personal choice.

grumbler

chuckley wrote: »

so what is the point of the cash withdrawals on the card?

The same as for any cash withdrawal from any card, including your prepaid one.

what do you gain when you automatically get charged interest from that day?!

I gain the best rate available at the time of the withdrawal. The interest rate is ~0.03% per day, i.e. 3p/£100. In the worst case scenario it will take me 2 weeks to make a payment to the CC, in which case the cost will be ~0.4%. Usually I can do this faster.

Withdrawing on these cards incurs fees, regardless of how fast it's repaid. which like I said defeats the purpose of a credit card.

No fees in fact, only the interest.

No fees and no interest for some debit cards (your comment was about debit cards as well), but I CBA to get a debit card to save a fraction of % on typically pretty small withdrawals abroad.

photome

chuckley wrote: »

so what is the point of the cash withdrawals on the card? what do you gain when you automatically get charged interest from that day?!

last week I used my Clarity card in belgium and got just over 1.4 to the pound, the guys i was with got 1.33 just before we left .

I got the best rate at the time and paid it off 2 days later

Clarity works best for me

I dont think you understand how the Clarity card works

Maelwys

chuckley wrote: »

Aqua rewards is much better for overseas, personally as I have ZERO interest and will never withdraw cash on a CC. to me the Clarity just defeats the purpose of a CC, considering you're paying interest until paid, even if it's small.

Umm... The Clarity works exactly the same way as an Aqua for purchases. I've had both cards - Aqua in the past and Clarity currently, and I regularly use it for transactions involving purchases in Euros.

You ONLY incur interest on ATM cash withdrawls on the Clarity - which you mention above that you'll never do. Purchases are interest free until your next invoice date when you have the option to pay off the balance in full or the minimum payment, same as with any other credit card

The benefit to picking up the Aqua or Clarity over any other payment method for foreign transactions is that the currency conversion rate they offer is the Mastercard base exchange rate - the best rate achievable for a standard consumer. It'll comfortably beat the rate you'll get in any moneychanging place and the vast majority of "top-up" cards. Because you don't pay interest or fees it works out to be the best bang for your buck by a considerable margin.

The Aqua Card offers 0.5% cashback on top of this, making it slightly more cost effective than the clarity, but the clarity will tend to have a higher credit limit and Fee-free ATM withdrawls (the Aqua charges 3% and a higher interest rate). Yes you'll be charged daily interest on any cash taken out as an ATM withdrawl, but it's a nice option to have in a pinch... and even with the interest charge it'll usually still work out as the cheapest way to get instant-access travel cash in your hand!

chuckley

grumbler wrote: »

I gain the best rate available at the time of the withdrawal. The interest rate is ~0.03% per day, i.e. 3p/£100. In the worst case scenario it will take me 2 weeks to make a payment to the CC, in which case the cost will be ~0.4%. Usually I can do this faster.
No fees in fact, only the interest.

No fees and no interest for some debit cards (your comment was about debit cards as well), but I CBA to get a debit card to save a fraction of % on typically pretty small withdrawals abroad.

sorry I did mean 'interest' when talking fee's.

so if you withdraw a 2k overseas using the card whats your rough interest (based on when you usually repay)?!

chuckley

photome wrote: »

last week I used my Clarity card in belgium and got just over 1.4 to the pound, the guys i was with got 1.33 just before we left .

I got the best rate at the time and paid it off 2 days later

Clarity works best for me

I dont think you understand how the Clarity card works

this exact thing happened to me. however you're comparing apples to oranges as they were two completely different days. When I left I got 136, but the day I was using the card I was 140, so they were both the better rates for said days.

Now if it was the same day then obviously you got the better deal as it was via card (or was it a cash advance?!) and I assume ur mates was cash via the 'boosted' airport rate...

I have an Aqua Rewards card so I know a bit about this overseas spend card thingyy. I'm just not down with the Clarity as it stands.

grumbler

chuckley wrote: »

sorry I did mean 'interest' when talking fee's.

so if you withdraw a 2k overseas using the card whats your rough interest (based on when you usually repay)?!

fees

Regardless of the amount it is ~0.03% per day, ~0.42% per 2 weeks like I said above. I never in my life needed £2K cash abroad, but if I needed I'd try to repay the very same day the transactions appear in my online statement. For my typical £100 I wouldn't bother to rush for saving 3p/day.

chuckley

fees/fee's/fleas. who really cares?

in short you're paying to withdraw cash abroad, at a smaller rate yes, but it's still there.

Mind you that's a lot of daily checking and paying and such on holiday. I really don't have the time to constantly repay a few grand's holiday spends at a daily/every few days.

just spend (cash/debit) or card spend and repay on statement (Aqua). The way you guys have to 'work' the Clarity, leaves a lot less holiday time. For that I have no time.

To be honest though I only got the aqua for a transaction that only accepted cc's. I don't really have plans to live on it for overseas spends.

photome

chuckley wrote: »

fees/fee's/fleas. who really cares?

in short you're paying to withdraw cash abroad, at a smaller rate yes, but it's still there.

Mind you that's a lot of daily checking and paying and such on holiday. I really don't have the time to constantly repay a few grand's holiday spends at a daily/every few days.

just spend (cash/debit) or card spend and repay on statement (Aqua). The way you guys have to 'work' the Clarity, leaves a lot less holiday time. For that I have no time.

To be honest though I only got the aqua for a transaction that only accepted cc's. I don't really have plans to live on it for overseas spends.

you still dont get it

I use my ClarityC when in the USA for a couple of weeks. I get the best rate available and pay it off when I get home.

No hassle whatsoever, no checking daily, no paying when on holiday (not that that is a hassle), no "working" the card just a better rate than most other methods