Can someone please explain exchange rates to me?

TheBardWest

Sorry for this long story, but please bear with me...

I make monthly transfers from my BoI account to a US account to pay bills in the US. Bank of Ireland gives me their US exchange rate before I enter the transaction on my account, guaranteeing that at the time I make the transaction, that amount is taken out of my account. Given the nature of the market, I can see the rate fluctuating between the time I initiate the transaction and the time it actually deposits (directly) to my account. That fluctuation normally accounts for about 1-3 cents over the course of 4-5 business days.

In the most recent transaction - I requested a transfer of $700 USD on July 30th from my BoI account. The exchange rate on that day was approximately $1.30USD/1 Euro. That worked out to around 550 Euro debited from my BoI account.

The exchange rate has gone up consistently since then, to approximately $1.32/1 Euro. And yet the deposit in my US account, excluding the $9 transaction fee, gives me an exchange rate of approximately $1.20 - a rate that hasn't been seen in over a month.

So my question is, why am I getting such a terrible exchange rate from my US bank?

Honestly, if the exchange continues to be this low, I'm going to find another way to pay my bills. My US bank has always been a great bank for me, but this service has consistently been a disappointment, and I would love for someone to explain how I can make a transaction 1 week at X exchange rate, and watch that rate increase in the market over the course of that week, and when the deposit is finally made in my account I get a rate that is considerably lower.

I've made several transactions like this since I've been in Ireland, and I am consistently seeing a deposit rate from the US bank that is anywhere from 4 to 10 cents lower than the market rate at the time of initiation and at the time of deposit.

The US bank is getting $9 per transaction already - that charge is above the board. Who is getting the other 4-10 cents on my dollar?

Thanks in advance for any clarity you can bring to this situation. I estimate that I've lost approximately 500USD in the past 2.5 months as a result of this, and I'm not looking forward to that continuing.

Also - please no responses like "the banks are just ripping you off" - even if that's true, I'd like to know how and who is doing it...

Blackjack

TheBardWest wrote: »

Sorry for this long story, but please bear with me...

I make monthly transfers from my BoI account to a US account to pay bills in the US. Bank of Ireland gives me their US exchange rate before I enter the transaction on my account, guaranteeing that at the time I make the transaction, that amount is taken out of my account. Given the nature of the market, I can see the rate fluctuating between the time I initiate the transaction and the time it actually deposits (directly) to my account. That fluctuation normally accounts for about 1-3 cents over the course of 4-5 business days.

In the most recent transaction - I requested a transfer of $700 USD on July 30th from my BoI account. The exchange rate on that day was approximately $1.30USD/1 Euro. That worked out to around 550 Euro debited from my BoI account.

The exchange rate has gone up consistently since then, to approximately $1.32/1 Euro. And yet the deposit in my US account, excluding the $9 transaction fee, gives me an exchange rate of approximately $1.20 - a rate that hasn't been seen in over a month.

So my question is, why am I getting such a terrible exchange rate from my US bank?

Honestly, if the exchange continues to be this low, I'm going to find another way to pay my bills. My US bank has always been a great bank for me, but this service has consistently been a disappointment, and I would love for someone to explain how I can make a transaction 1 week at X exchange rate, and watch that rate increase in the market over the course of that week, and when the deposit is finally made in my account I get a rate that is considerably lower.

I've made several transactions like this since I've been in Ireland, and I am consistently seeing a deposit rate from the US bank that is anywhere from 4 to 10 cents lower than the market rate at the time of initiation and at the time of deposit.

The US bank is getting $9 per transaction already - that charge is above the board. Who is getting the other 4-10 cents on my dollar?

Thanks in advance for any clarity you can bring to this situation. I estimate that I've lost approximately 500USD in the past 2.5 months as a result of this, and I'm not looking forward to that continuing.

Also - please no responses like "the banks are just ripping you off" - even if that's true, I'd like to know how and who is doing it...

Query it with your US Bank. Chances are that there are fees being taken along the way....

FLCP

Blackjack wrote: »

Query it with your US Bank. Chances are that there are fees being taken along the way....

It could well be a charges issue as suggested, but my guess is you're just being caught with rubbish retail bank rates. For my regular transfers I use an fx company who will guarantee you a fixed rate and do the exchange themselves and deposit your USD straight in i.e you send them the euros, they do the exchange and deposit dollars directly into your US bank directly from their own US bank. They should let you book a forward rate too. saved me a fortune over the last few years

fl

Mort5000

FLCP wrote: »

...For my regular transfers I use an fx company...

Who are you using?

FLCP

Mort5000 wrote: »

Who are you using?

Gcen, global currency exchange network.
Cheers
fl