Banks vs money transfer companies
Elyas Hamati moved to Australia alone, while his parents and wife continue living in the West Bank. He found a job almost as soon as he arrived, because a relative had arranged one for him in advance. Since his family back home depended on him financially, he had to start sending money to them soon. To begin, he figured he could send them around $1,000 every two months.
While Elyas could use the bank he had an account with for the transfer, he felt he may get a better deal if he compared his options. He took to the Internet and this is what he found.
Australian bank | Money transfer service | |
---|---|---|
Exchange rate | $1 = ILS2.4822 | $1 = ILS2.6934 |
Transfer fee | $24 | $0 |
Amount received for $1,000 | ILS2,422.63 | ILS2,693.40 |
Transfer time | 3-5 days | 1 day |
Transfer options | Bank account | Bank account |
Difference of | ILS270.77 |
Not only did his bank charge a fee for the transfer, it also provided him with an unfavourable exchange rate, which is why Elyas decided to go with the money transfer company. Besides, the money transfer company got the money to his wife sooner than the bank.