HiFX vs Wise, formerly TransferWise

Choosing between any two competing service providers can be a very daunting task. This is what hits you when you want to choose between HiFX and Wise. Wise, originally TransferWise, is a British start-up money service company established by the founders of Skype and PayPal in 2011. They started an easy and new initiative to convey money between people instead of countries.

No one likes wasting timeHiFX was founded in 1998. It has its head office in UK Windsor, Berkshire. It was formed solely to solve the question why it cost so much to send money overseas and seek to provide a cheaper means to do so by offering better exchange rates. HiFX is privately owned. It was acquired in 2014 by NASDAQ listed Euronet Worldwide, Inc.

HiFX Review

You just need to sign up online. This is free and fast and can be done at any hour of the day or night. This paves way for one to access the information necessary to follow exchange rates. Upon signing up you receive a client number and create a username and password to access their online services. HiFX annual reports are available to anyone on the internet for the risk averse consumer.

HiFX is it safe?

Is hifx safe?HiFX Europe Limited is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Payment Services Regulations 2009, registration 462444, for the provision of payment services. HiFX Europe Limited is also a registered MSB with HM Revenue & Customs – registration number 12131222.

All money in HiFX is paid into and received into isolated Security Trust Accounts. It prioritizes client protection by giving a registered top rate security held by an independent trustee over all its accounts.

HiFX reputation is on the average great as it has been in the market for quite some time. Last year HiFX advised on and executed over £9billion in foreign exchange and is trusted by over 75,000 people and 5,000 corporate clients each year around the World.

HiFX Fees

For online and telephone transfers there is no fee for amounts equal to or greater than GBP3000 and a fee of GBP 9 for transfers less than GBP 3000. Regular transfers incur no fees.

The HiFX Exchange rate of GBP to EUR is 1.2685 USD but the rate is 1.26906 at Xe.com. Correspondingly, they charge 0.7879 EUR when exchanging GBP for EUR. Surprisingly, the rate at Xe.com is 0.788086. So here is their wage when they send big amounts of money “for free”

HiFX or Wise

left-or-rightAdvantages of HiFX over Wise
For regular transfers HiFX free transfer makes it cost effective while Wise charges 0.5% of all amounts larger than 200GBP/EUR cost and a fixed payment of £1 or €1 on small payments

HiFX money transfer favours large transfers while Wise favours relatively small ones making it easier for the average citizen to use

HiFX feedback from customers

Based on customer ratings and opinion, I would say that HiFX UK is an excellent system. At Trustpilot, it enjoys a comfortable 9.5 rating.

  • HiFX is very helpful give great service rates are very compatible.

thumbs upHiFX has always been very helpful ether on line or by the phone I have always had very good rates and it is very clear what they do for you, they transfer your money without any bother that means a lot today. I would always recommend them to anyone who wants to transfer money abroad
There web site is very good straight forward .The only thing I don’t think they should put the bank rates on their site because it is very confusing all people want is the rate that you are going to get, but all money sites do this.

  • By far the easiest and cheapest way to transfer money

thumbs upI have been a member of HiFX for three years. It has been a pleasurable experience. Once you open an account it a very simple process to transfer money on line. You can even trigger exchange rate alerts to take advantage of good rates. I was motivated to join be the extortionate cost charged by the Banks, even my own bank despite being a customer for over twenty years.

HiFX Complaints

  • Poor exchange rate

thumbs downI have recently returned from a trip to Cyprus. I was using my debit card to purchase meals and entertainment also withdrawing cash using an ATM. The rate I was getting was 1.25 to 1.26 Euros to the pound. On returning to the UK I needed to transfer some funds using HIFX. The best rate you gave me was 1.22 Euros to the pound and charged me £9 for the transfer so I was a bit disappointed with the costs.

  • No callback after 30 hours

thumbs downI’m sure they’re efficient if they were to call you back. Good for one-off payments, but you can’t make regular payments cheaply eg once a month unless you are willing to set the rate for a 6 months or so. If you wish to make a monthly payment using the rate at the time of transaction you have to pay a fee about the same as my bank would charge.

Conclusion

Both HiFX and Wise are excellent service money exchange platforms. You just need to choose the one that suits you best.

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