International wire transfers are quite common nowadays, as people’s needs to send (and receive) money from one country to another are becoming greater. This may be for a variety of reasons, including paying for tuition fees, accommodation, supporting a family member who is traveling abroad, or simply investing overseas.
One thing is for sure – wire transfers are among the first choices when moving money electronically from one bank account to another account elsewhere in the world. That is because they are typically fast and safe transactions. Nevertheless, they come with some downsides represented by the financial institutions’ fees. Surely, costs vary based on the amount of money sent, the country from where you send it, the country where your money goes, and, of course, the legal requirements on international wires applied in each state. Even so, you might be looking for cheaper solutions and lower fees.
That is why we will discuss in the following the very essence of international wire transfers, as well as the associated bank fees in several parts of the world, including Europe, the USA, Australia, and the UK. Since bank costs on international wires in America are categorized as some of the highest globally, this requires a deeper analysis of the phenomenon.
Money Transfer Comparison conducted thorough research on international bank wire fees
In quest of finding out the actual cost of an international wire transfer and answering some of the most prevalent questions as regards this subject, Money Transfer Comparison conducted comprehensive research on international bank wire fees, analyzing the status of many major countries around the globe. Their main points of interest were the UK, the US, Europe, and Australia, so let us start with the first on this list – England.
International bank wire costs in the UK
Banks all around the globe charge a mix of fixed payment fees and an exchange rate markup designating the discrepancy between the rate given to customers and the actual interbank rate. UK banks are no exception in this case, although the UK and implicitly London are considered the global center of finance, especially as regards Forex (FX). Moreover, England has been categorized as a global leader in neobank (Internet-only) development and FinTech. Surprisingly or not, London is the world capital where people trade currency massively, perhaps more than anywhere else. Nevertheless, the UK’s current status in terms of international bank transfer fees has not influenced England banks towards significantly lower money transfer costs. Indeed, commissions for international wire transfers are usually lower than the costs associated with other countries’ banks, but they are still considerably higher than no-bank options.
Furthermore, UK banks’ exchange rate markup applied to small businesses and personal clients continues to be high, meaning that these customers risk losing significant sums of money as a result of broad foreign exchange margins. For example, the exchange rate margin for a GBPUSD, GBPEUR, and one exotic currency transfer can reach up to 3,55 per cent, depending on each bank’s costs of charging. For this reason, customers are encouraged to calculate their own exchange rate margin to see how much could be lost on a particular transfer.
