CurrencyFair Review

CurrencyFair is an online peer-to-peer currency exchange service. The company enables customers to send money abroad while converting currencies for a small fee. Based on your preferences, you can either send money instantly or you can deposit money in your CurrencyFair account while selecting your own exchange rate and waiting for that rate to be met before your money transfer takes place.

What Are CurrencyFair’s Transfer Fees?

Customers pay both an international transfer fee and an exchange rate margin.  

- The international transfer fee is a fixed cost and is the currency equivalent of three Euros, which is roughly $3.18 in USD.

- The exchange rate margin can vary, ranging from 0% to .6% depending on the exchange rates set by users in the CurrencyFair marketplace. On average, customers pay 0.35% of the amount exchanged.   

How Fast Are CurrencyFair's Transfers?

Process times can vary depending on the currencies involved and your bank.

- When transferring money into your CurrencyFair account, often the funds appear instantly but there may be a longer wait time. For example, GBPs have an estimated arrival time of zero to one business day while AEDs have an estimated arrival time of four to five business days.

- When transferring money out of your CurrencyFair account, the processing speed can vary. For example, GBPs may take one to two business days before becoming available while AEDs have an estimated transfer time of four to five business days.

CurrencyFair's Backstory

Founded in 2009, CurrencyFair started out as a simple answer to the common problem of expats looking for an easy and affordable way to move money to and from the country they now call home. Today, CurrencyFair is one of Ireland's fastest growing companies. The company is headquartered in Dublin, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland and is also registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

Who Can Benefit From CurrencyFair?

CurrencyFair was originally designed for expats who face a routine need for currency-converting money transfers. The digital platform makes it easy to initiate international transactions and the peer-to-peer marketplace allows customers to negotiate until they find a deal that’s right for them. The company boasts its ability to save you up to 90% on international transfer fees and, as more individuals use CurrencyFair, the average savings are expected to continually increase.     

What Are The Advantages and Disadvantages Of CurrencyFair?  

This is what we love about CurrencyFair:

- The peer-to-peer marketplace offers competitive rates.  

- CurrencyFair lets you hold a balance until the rate of your choice is available.

- Processing speeds are reasonable.

- You can make transfers online or via the company’s app.

What We do not Like About CurrencyFair:

- CurrencyFair supports exchanges in only 18 currencies.

- You have to fund a transfer using a bank account rather than a debit or credit card. (The only exception to this rule occurs if a debit card is issued by a bank in Ireland, in which case the card can be used to fund a transfer.)

- There are no physical locations to make money transfers.