Fineco Bank multicurrencies account

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  • eshroom
    eshroom Posts: 136 Forumite
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    OK, thanks! And what about fees for international transfers from the various currency accounts?

    And regarding spending on my EUR card when I only have a GBP balance - presumably I won't be able to spend until I convert the money into EUR within my account right (even if the transaction is in GBP)?
  • eshroom
    eshroom Posts: 136 Forumite
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    Fee sheet here: https://finecobank.com/uk/public/fogli-informativi/dettaglio?categoria=76210&cartella=contoeuro&area=pubblica

    Still a bit ambiguous - euro transfers free (from euro account), but international transfers £19.95.

    I'm assuming international euro transfers are free then...
  • Marchitiello
    Marchitiello Posts: 1,266 Forumite
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    eshroom wrote: »
    I'm a bit confused about their multi currency offering.

    I received my Fineco Euro Debit Card, but in the app my primary currency appears to be GBP.

    Can I load euros directly into my Fineco account via bank transfer or am I only able to wire GBP (in other words if I wire euros in will they be converted on arrival to GBP)?

    What about the other way around - can I wire euros out of my account to another bank's euro account? And are there any fees for this?

    Finally what if I have a GBP balance in my account, and in the UK I spend using my Fineco Euro Debit Card? What are the fees then?

    The main account is GBP with sub accounts in the other three currencies. If you transfer any of those currencies in your IBAN account, it will Credit in the right sub- account automatically. For reporting purposes only, it will give you an idea of your overall balance in GBP even for the other currencies applying a "reporting" exchange rate that vary throughout the trading day, but if you look in each of the 4 accounts, each will only have the real value in (not sure if I have explained it clearly enough).

    Have not tried any outward payment yet, but I think it should be possible to make payment in the chosen currency based on the available balance for that currency.

    Italy has a lot of anti money laundering laws, and until recently was one of the EU country with the lowest limit for any cash purchase, which was recently increased. I was also told by Fineco that it is no possible to deposit cash, only swift/ SEPA or UK bank transfers.
  • Marchitiello
    Marchitiello Posts: 1,266 Forumite
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    SouthLondonUser wrote: »
    You get multiple accounts : EUR GBP USD CHF, each with a separate IBAN. You can send money from / receive into each account

    Yes, but was told by Fineco that any payment to the GBP IBAN in one of the other 4 currencies will be credited in the right account
  • Marchitiello
    Marchitiello Posts: 1,266 Forumite
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    eshroom wrote: »
    Fee sheet here: https://finecobank.com/uk/public/fogli-informativi/dettaglio?categoria=76210&cartella=contoeuro&area=pubblica

    Still a bit ambiguous - euro transfers free (from euro account), but international transfers £19.95.

    I'm assuming international euro transfers are free then...

    If the Euro account receiving is in a SEPA country then would be free, but if you send EURO to a US bank account the you pay the fee
  • eshroom
    eshroom Posts: 136 Forumite
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    I spoke to Fineco and they confirmed SEPA transfers are all free.

    In testing I am unable to transfer to my TSB account, i get error "It is not possible to order the bank transfer to the BIC provided." both on app and desktop. I got the same error with my Starling and Revolut account details.

    However, HSBC, Halifax and Lloyds TSB worked fine.

    I am not too surprised about Revolut. Starling is a proper bank so I am surprised that didn't work and the fact transfers to TSB don't work I think is really poor. Customer care were not able to provide a reason but said they would raise a ticket.

    There was also confusion around transfer time as customer care told me they use Lloyds in the UK for their transfers and so they are same day if initiated in the morning, otherwise next day. I pointed out that online banking gives an earliest Debit date of 4 days time, which left them a bit stumped.

    I also got conflicting info regarding changing pin, one person said I could another said I couldn't. I tried to change pin at a cash point and got an error message, so I assume it can't be changed.

    All in all, for me wanting a current account in euros with a debit card to match, this works and is easier than opening an account in the eurozone, but overall there is still a lot of work to be done.
  • SouthLondonUser
    SouthLondonUser Posts: 1,425 Forumite
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    I have a Fineco EUR debit card. I tried to use it to pay in euros at a restaurant (in Italy, of all places) and it was declined because of ‘insufficient funds’. I also got text notifications telling me as much. I called the bank; they first said the card was linked to my GBP account, which does in fact have an insufficient balance for the transaction. I pointed out they were wrong: the card should be linked to the EUR account – the words EUR are very clearly written on the card. The call centre guy put me on hold, did some checks, then apologised, acknowledge I was right, but said they have to look into it with their technical team. Not sure how long this will take, because all the Fineco staff is based in Italy, which is notorious for shutting down in August, especially today and this week (August 15th is a big holiday).
  • Marchitiello
    Marchitiello Posts: 1,266 Forumite
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    It may be just a glitch. I have used the card in two Euro countries so far, the latest being Italy last week on a business trip with a supplier. I have used the card for paying restaurants, supermarket shopping and toll roads, all without glitches, just making sure I transferred the funds at least two days in advance as it takes that long to really show the exchanged amount in the Euro account balance, albeit it shows in the available balance almost immediately but without details of the transaction. To this purpose, I have started to "print screen" from the app the confirmation of the currency exchange value so that I know exactly how much it was streight away.
  • eshroom
    eshroom Posts: 136 Forumite
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    Their rates are very competitive. ��
  • SouthLondonUser
    SouthLondonUser Posts: 1,425 Forumite
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    Has any one done the homework of comparing Fineco's trading fees with those of ordinary UK brokers? Or should this go in the investment section? Last time I checked, brokers which offered trading in currencies other than GBP tended to apply considerably higher forex fees than Fineco, so that alone might be a selling point.

    @Marchitiello, sure it's a glitch, but a rather serious one! There was no ATM nearby; in the end I paid with a UK card, but what if Fineco's had been the only card in my wallet? Would I have had to wash dishes at the restaurant? :)
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