In December, we wrote about PSD2 (the Second Payments Services Directive) and its importance in bringing fairness to finance.
Well, the UK Government just asked consumers for their views in a consultation, and they haven’t included any measures to make foreign currency transactions as transparent as same-currency transactions.
That means they’ve ignored the measures in PSD2 which say that consumers should know the “real costs and charges” of making a transaction.
The way the Government has drafted the legislation means banks and brokers can still hide costs in poor exchange rates, which are much lower than the mid-market rate you’d see on Google, XE.com or Reuters.
It’s time you had your say. You can respond to the Government by sending an email to PSD2consultation@HMTreasury.gsi.gov.uk or if you prefer you could write to:
[your story - eg I am a consumer living in the UK who regularly sends money from the UK to Germany].
It is essential that we consumers know the “real costs and charges” of making a foreign currency transaction as set out in the Payment Services Directive. Payment providers should use the real exchange rate - the one I can find easily on google, xe.com, or Reuters - so that we can know the actual cost of sending money abroad.
I hope you make foreign currency payments as transparent as same currency payments in the final Payment Services Regulations.
For more information, read our primer on PSD2.
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Co-founded by Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus, Wise launched in 2011 under its original name TransferWise. It is one of the world’s fastest growing, profitable technology companies and is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the ticker, WISE.
16 million people and businesses use Wise globally, which processes £9 billion in cross-border transactions every month, saving customers around £1.5 billion a year.
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