Revolut.com - Opinions
Discussion
DaveCWK said:
I may be missing something but why would using one of these services to spend abroad be preferable to just using a 0% fees on foreign transactions credit card?
I haven't found any credit cards that are truly fee free on foreign transactions anyway, not for spend outside Europe anyway. They all get you some other (pseudo-hidden) way, such as large monthly "membership" fees, or are only "fee free" in Europe, or as another poster says they get you through the FX rates.williaa68 said:
One other downside of Revolut when travelling, particularly in the US, is that as a prepaid card it is often either not accepted or charged up front by hotels or car hire companies. Avis flat out refused to accept it, hotel in Vegas charged the full amount of the stay up front, including an amount for "extras" and the refund took a week to come through. Id say if travelling an additional true credit card, something like a halifax clarity card, is essential.
For a big transaction like a car rental or a hotel stay you probably want to be using a proper but well chosen credit card anyway for the extra protection, in spite of the currency hit or transaction fees. Or pay for those in advance in the UK via expedia or whatever?I see Monzo/Revolut(/Starling) cards just for the day to day incidentals while travelling, i.e. food, bar bills, souvenirs, taxis etc just to avoid needless all the transaction fees for no benefit on those.
DonkeyApple said:
Ok. The first and only lesson to appreciate in regards to retail, physical fx is that you are a numbnuts to be milked. It’s a ghastly little corner of the retail market that is typically staffed by the kind of scrote far too filthy to do a face to face job like selling windows or tarmac.
All this ‘zero fee’ or ‘no commission’ stuff is part of the scam. The charge is in the spread and frankly the more a firm shouts about not charging a commission then the more they are probably charging in the spread. Most are also just skins and so adding their slug onto the spread on top of the clearer’s.
There are no best ex rules in physical fx. So that means that if I know the directionnof your trade then I am going to f
k you into next week on my quote. Sure, I’ll quote you the tightest spread in the market but what you won’t notice is that being th the bid and offer are 200 pips in my favour. I’ve lost count of the number of mates who have proudly told me they deal on sub 50 pip spreads but I then show them the spot at their timenof trade and it’s 100+ out of their favour.
So, just to cap that aspect off, the commission, fee aspect is marketing crap for the type of punter who puts their gold in envelopes and the ‘spread’ is often used to good advantage as the clients always reveal which direction they are trading. Always pull up a spot price from the internet before any trade so that you can actually see how much it is costing you.
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have fk all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way.
But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
Less technically competent as yourself but that was what my own experiences/research led me to conclude.All this ‘zero fee’ or ‘no commission’ stuff is part of the scam. The charge is in the spread and frankly the more a firm shouts about not charging a commission then the more they are probably charging in the spread. Most are also just skins and so adding their slug onto the spread on top of the clearer’s.
There are no best ex rules in physical fx. So that means that if I know the directionnof your trade then I am going to f
k you into next week on my quote. Sure, I’ll quote you the tightest spread in the market but what you won’t notice is that being th the bid and offer are 200 pips in my favour. I’ve lost count of the number of mates who have proudly told me they deal on sub 50 pip spreads but I then show them the spot at their timenof trade and it’s 100+ out of their favour. So, just to cap that aspect off, the commission, fee aspect is marketing crap for the type of punter who puts their gold in envelopes and the ‘spread’ is often used to good advantage as the clients always reveal which direction they are trading. Always pull up a spot price from the internet before any trade so that you can actually see how much it is costing you.
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have f
k all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way. But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
So, based on your experience, who is worthwhile using to transfer larger sums from Sterling?
DonkeyApple said:
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have fk all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way.
But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
They have a banking license now:-k all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way. But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/20...
kev1974 said:
For a big transaction like a car rental or a hotel stay you probably want to be using a proper but well chosen credit card anyway for the extra protection, in spite of the currency hit or transaction fees. Or pay for those in advance in the UK via expedia or whatever?
I see Monzo/Revolut(/Starling) cards just for the day to day incidentals while travelling, i.e. food, bar bills, souvenirs, taxis etc just to avoid needless all the transaction fees for no benefit on those.
This, I've had a Revolut card since 2016 and only use it to pay for incidentals and so far so good. Was in Italy at short notice last year, when I arrived I could very quickly transfer some Pounds to Euros to pay for food etcI see Monzo/Revolut(/Starling) cards just for the day to day incidentals while travelling, i.e. food, bar bills, souvenirs, taxis etc just to avoid needless all the transaction fees for no benefit on those.
Even if they now are a fully fledged bank I'm still going to stick with First Direct for my current/credit accounts.
AndrewEH1 said:
This, I've had a Revolut card since 2016 and only use it to pay for incidentals and so far so good. Was in Italy at short notice last year, when I arrived I could very quickly transfer some Pounds to Euros to pay for food etc
Even if they now are a fully fledged bank I'm still going to stick with First Direct for my current/credit accounts.
That’s how I use Revolut. Having said that I used it to transfer £2600 to my son’s USA account recently. Much better exchange rate/fees than my bank.Even if they now are a fully fledged bank I'm still going to stick with First Direct for my current/credit accounts.
Shnozz said:
DonkeyApple said:
Ok. The first and only lesson to appreciate in regards to retail, physical fx is that you are a numbnuts to be milked. It’s a ghastly little corner of the retail market that is typically staffed by the kind of scrote far too filthy to do a face to face job like selling windows or tarmac.
All this ‘zero fee’ or ‘no commission’ stuff is part of the scam. The charge is in the spread and frankly the more a firm shouts about not charging a commission then the more they are probably charging in the spread. Most are also just skins and so adding their slug onto the spread on top of the clearer’s.
There are no best ex rules in physical fx. So that means that if I know the directionnof your trade then I am going to fk you into next week on my quote. Sure, I’ll quote you the tightest spread in the market but what you won’t notice is that being th the bid and offer are 200 pips in my favour. I’ve lost count of the number of mates who have proudly told me they deal on sub 50 pip spreads but I then show them the spot at their timenof trade and it’s 100+ out of their favour.
So, just to cap that aspect off, the commission, fee aspect is marketing crap for the type of punter who puts their gold in envelopes and the ‘spread’ is often used to good advantage as the clients always reveal which direction they are trading. Always pull up a spot price from the internet before any trade so that you can actually see how much it is costing you.
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have fk all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way.
But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
Less technically competent as yourself but that was what my own experiences/research led me to conclude.All this ‘zero fee’ or ‘no commission’ stuff is part of the scam. The charge is in the spread and frankly the more a firm shouts about not charging a commission then the more they are probably charging in the spread. Most are also just skins and so adding their slug onto the spread on top of the clearer’s.
There are no best ex rules in physical fx. So that means that if I know the directionnof your trade then I am going to f
k you into next week on my quote. Sure, I’ll quote you the tightest spread in the market but what you won’t notice is that being th the bid and offer are 200 pips in my favour. I’ve lost count of the number of mates who have proudly told me they deal on sub 50 pip spreads but I then show them the spot at their timenof trade and it’s 100+ out of their favour. So, just to cap that aspect off, the commission, fee aspect is marketing crap for the type of punter who puts their gold in envelopes and the ‘spread’ is often used to good advantage as the clients always reveal which direction they are trading. Always pull up a spot price from the internet before any trade so that you can actually see how much it is costing you.
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have f
k all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way. But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
So, based on your experience, who is worthwhile using to transfer larger sums from Sterling?
We will definitely be using them in future.
Only fly in the ointment was Barclays computers falling over on the day we wanted to exchange.
You book your transferwise rate, then move the money to their account, in bank branch in our case due to the amount.
You have 24 hours to move it - if it turns up after the cutoff, you get the prevailing rate - not ideal with brexit blah blah.
Brokers were 1% to 2% worse, all sounded shady on the phone and just didn't inspire confidence.
Yes, I have been using Transferwise thus far and have yet to see better. Wondered if I was overlooking anyone else.
With T/W also giving me a debit card I am wondering whether to ditch off all the Monzo/Revoluts and use my Euro account when that applies (filling that via T/W transfers monthly) and then the T/W debit card when outside of Euro zone.
With T/W also giving me a debit card I am wondering whether to ditch off all the Monzo/Revoluts and use my Euro account when that applies (filling that via T/W transfers monthly) and then the T/W debit card when outside of Euro zone.
bad company said:
That’s exciting. Going to be some pressure now to be GDPR, AML and KYC compliant on all those accounts now. And the cost that comes with that. Although the fact that they have used Bank of Lithuania to achieve it suggests they don’t intend to 
Shnozz said:
Less technically competent as yourself but that was what my own experiences/research led me to conclude.
So, based on your experience, who is worthwhile using to transfer larger sums from Sterling?
I’ve used Citibank for years for USD, EU and GBP current accounts and move funds into them via a boggo physical FX firm but where the broker is a client of mine so appreciates that I will know the exchange rate. So, based on your experience, who is worthwhile using to transfer larger sums from Sterling?
DonkeyApple said:
bad company said:
That’s exciting. Going to be some pressure now to be GDPR, AML and KYC compliant on all those accounts now. And the cost that comes with that. Although the fact that they have used Bank of Lithuania to achieve it suggests they don’t intend to 
As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
bad company said:
I wonder.
As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
Indeed. They got their license in Lithuania. If there is another financial meltdown, could it be like the next Iceland?As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
bad company said:
I wonder.
As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
That’s my view entirely. A few hundred quid here and there would be the sane sort of activity to be using it for. It has clear benefits for minor activity but you’d have to be a bit mental to put any real money anywhere near. As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
This tells me everything that I need to know about the operation:
Russian billionaire Yuri Milner's DST Global led the funding round. https://www.businessinsider.com/fintech-revolut-se...
Marry that up with Bank of Lithuania’s relaxing of regulation in 2008 to rapidly attract funds and you know that it’s a world of filth they are swimming in.
Fairly new to it and happy with it.
Currently have it as a 'holiday spending' card. Just sits in my travel bag with passport.
Had a couple of places it didn't work so I usually carry another card or some cash
The main benefit for me is security. It has no more then a few hundred on it at any time and I can freeze the card between transactions.
I use the virtual card too. I tend to use that with companies that I'm less confident of their data security, such as Ryanair.
Also good for insurers that like to set up a regular payment even though you have contacted them to cancel.
Use it, freeze it.
I'd really like the disposable virtual card but for me the chargeable account isn't worth it just yet.
Currently have it as a 'holiday spending' card. Just sits in my travel bag with passport.
Had a couple of places it didn't work so I usually carry another card or some cash
The main benefit for me is security. It has no more then a few hundred on it at any time and I can freeze the card between transactions.
I use the virtual card too. I tend to use that with companies that I'm less confident of their data security, such as Ryanair.
Also good for insurers that like to set up a regular payment even though you have contacted them to cancel.
Use it, freeze it.
I'd really like the disposable virtual card but for me the chargeable account isn't worth it just yet.
colin79666 said:
bad company said:
I wonder.
As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
Indeed. They got their license in Lithuania. If there is another financial meltdown, could it be like the next Iceland?As I said I like my Revolut card, it’s handy for small purchases and overseas use. Banking license or not I would not want to putting a large sum of money into my account,
The ECB wants to end deposit protections. The ECB has proven a desire to bail in customer deposits. The ECB has a proven track record with small member states.
In the event of an EU banking crisis or one within a small member state I would not take bets that any overseas customer would be seeing any funds again. What clout does the U.K. have any more to force inclusion of U.K. customers etc?
From a institutional perspective, once a bank your customers become creditors and you can lend out your customer’s money. And if you had to bet where a Lithuanian regulated entity, part owned by a Russian State backed entity would be lending that money you just have to have a gut feeling that you know.
As with all overseas and lightly regulated financial entities, just only use money that if lost has no material impact on your life whatsoever.
bad company said:
DonkeyApple said:
Now on to Revolut. They are not a bank. You have fk all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way.
But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
They have a banking license now:-k all protection and I have a wholly unfounded suspicion that like a lot of firms set up by Eastern Europeans to milk dumb Westerners they may have cut some corners along the way. But, for tiny sums the product is good. It’s simple, robust and flexible and for small sums it simply isn’t worth investigating if you can get a better fx deal.
https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/20...
I don’t think there is any such thing as an ECB banking licence. I think you have to be licensed in a member state. Then certain banks are regulated by the ECB?
williaa68 said:
I checked. Their banking licence is via Lithuania. Nothing particularly wrong with that but the European deposit protection scheme is not yet live and I don’t know anything about Lithuania’s deposit protection regime....
The article mentioned they are about to apply for a UK banking licence IIRCAndrewEH1 said:
The article mentioned they are about to apply for a UK banking licence IIRC
There’s nothing to stop you from publishing an article saying that you plan to apply for something, or even applying for it. They’ve used the crypto market to attract a lot of consumers and have avoided what seems to be rather a lot of the basic regulatory requirements re AML etc. I’m not sure they are permitted to still offer cryptos if they have a U.K. license? I’m not even sure it’s kosher under ECB governance?
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