Should I convert my USD to THB in Wise before transferring to Bangkok Bank?

February 8, 2023
2 years ago
Lewis *********
ORIGINAL POSTER
Hello, I just opened an account at Bangkok Bank today. I plan to use Wise to transfer money to the account. Should I transfer the USD to THB in the app first before sending it to the bank?
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TLDR : Answer Summary
The community suggests that for transferring money from Wise to Bangkok Bank, you have the option to either convert USD to THB in the Wise app before sending it, or transfer USD directly to your Thai bank account in baht. Most users recommend using Wise for better exchange rates and lower fees compared to traditional banks, and highlight that you can choose to convert your currency beforehand for better control over the exchange rate.
Frank-Steven ***********
Wise offers you both ways. You can send money directly to your Thai bank account (e.g. from a credit card). But you can also „top up“ wise in USD or EUR first, then convert it into THB and then send THB to Bangkok bank. The first way is a bit more convenient. The latter way is a bit cheaper (and you could make use of automatically converting when the exchange rate is good / meets a chosen threshold). I usually do the latter.
Gary **********
I do both
Anthony ********
Yes wise converts your dollar to baht and puts it in your bankok bank account. It's a better rate than normal. And charge less than your USA bank.
Marcos **********
Transfer by Cryptocurrency. You will save a lot of money on fees
Marcos **********
I do it like this:

1. I transfer money to Binance and buy BUSD

2. Send BUSD to my wallet BitazzaTH No transfer fees.

3. Do Withdrawal between BiazzaTH to Bangkok Bank (fee 20 THB)

Fast, safe, cheap

Via wise I would pay something around 100 dollars fee
Stuart *********
Send USD to your wise account. Then transfer to THB from there.
Sean *********
You get a better exchange rate through wise than the bank
Lewis *********
ORIGINAL POSTER
Thanks
Phil ******
@Lewis ********
transfer USD to wise. Wise converts to tbht and transfers to your thai account. Its quite simple
Tom ******
I have FX account in dollars at Bangkok Bank which allows me to transfer money to baht account when I need it or when exchange rates look good.
Alex *******
@Tom *****
But Bangkok Bank at any given amount of time will give you a much worse rate than Wise
Brandon ************
No, just do the transfer straight from USD to your Thai bank account in baht.

Don't transfer the money to Wise, then convert, then transfer.
Phil ******
@Brandon ***********
hi the transfer process through wise is much quicker than doing the bank to bank transfer. The fees are much higher bank to bank than wise and sometimes the receiving bank receives less money too. My transfers also take seconds
Lewis *********
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Phil *****
Thank you everyone. I just processed my fist Wise transfer.
Phil ******
@Lewis ********
great news. Use payid if its from an Aussie bank and its in seconds
Brandon ************
@Phil *****
my response was to use wise to transfer directly from bank to bank, not transfer to wise. Convert in wise. Then transfer from wise to Thai bank.
Phil ******
@Brandon ***********
ok I didn't read that correctly but certainly bank to wise to bank is the best
Charles ********
@Brandon ***********
... You can though and some advantages.

Fund USD and then set auto conversion to thb at a target rate. Then you can move onward when you want.

I also noticed the total fee is actually slightly less moving it step by step rather then as a single operation.
Brandon ************
Graham ******
@Brandon ***********
I've been using Wise for years (GBP >THB), am I Missing something?
Brandon ************
@Graham *****
no, I assumed the person was asking about transferring USD to wise. Then converting to THB. Then transferring to Thai bank account. There's no need for that complication.
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