Best ways to recieve money from abroad

[The Surveyor]

I have just agreed a sale of a car to a guy in Holland. Its a decent amount (over 100k Euros) and I'm looking for the most cost effective options for us to transfer his payment in Euros to me.

Clearly I'm looking for the best exchange rate and we would like to be able to monitor when the payment is processed so I have the comfort of knowing the funds are safely deposited on the day he comes over to collect the car without leaving him or I exposed.

Any suggestions?

[ComoEstas]

If you do not already have a direct contact with a trader at your bank then take ten minutes to register online with two FX brokers you like the look of:

Travelex
HiFX
Transferwise (more of a marketing firm than an FX broker but still pretty good)
MoneyCorp
World First
Caxton

to name a few.

Only you can decide what is the best time to move the money into GBP. If you think that might take you longer than a few weeks to decide, get the money over to the UK anyway after you've opened a EUR account with your UK bank. There may be a monthly charge for this or they'll do it for free and charge you per transaction. If this is a one off you can always shut the account post moving it to a broker when you've fixed a rate.

Remember, if you decide to have the buyer of the car send the money to your bank/broker directly for the FX trade (if you don't want to open an EUR account with your bank) then you should let the bank/broker know first as they will need to do their due diligence on that person. No matter if the money is coming from the buyer or you (from the EU or in the UK) then allow up to three working days for the money to reach the bank/broker before they then CHAPS the funds to your nominated GBP account.

Enjoy.

[anonymous-user]

Transferwise, I use them monthly to send money home and also to send a lump sum back for my AM (although my bank limited what I could send / trade). Trustworthy with relatively low fees, I did mess up one transfer and you can speak to real people 24/7 so rather reassuring.

[DonkeyApple]

The Surveyor said:

I have just agreed a sale of a car to a guy in Holland. Its a decent amount (over 100k Euros) and I'm looking for the most cost effective options for us to transfer his payment in Euros to me.

Clearly I'm looking for the best exchange rate and we would like to be able to monitor when the payment is processed so I have the comfort of knowing the funds are safely deposited on the day he comes over to collect the car without leaving him or I exposed.

Any suggestions?

To be honest, if your car was priced in GBP then he ought to be the one wearing the coat and risk of conversion not you.

That way you get to receive Sterling into a UK account directly from the buyer and probably have far more protection than receiving Euros overseas where the your guarantees and security is likely to be different.

[The Surveyor]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, very helpful.

DonkeyApple said:

To be honest, if your car was priced in GBP then he ought to be the one wearing the coat and risk of conversion not you.

The deal was agreed in Euros.

[DonkeyApple]

The Surveyor said:

Thanks for the suggestions guys, very helpful.

DonkeyApple said:

To be honest, if your car was priced in GBP then he ought to be the one wearing the coat and risk of conversion not you.

The deal was agreed in Euros.

Ok. But why does that mean you must receive Euros? You've agreed a price in Euros but he can send you GBP. It's actually easier for him to convert and wire at source than for you to receive and convert.