What is the best way to transfer £20,000 to a Bangkok Bank account for retirement in Thailand?

@Zac *******

if you are talking about SWIFT transfer then your exchange rate was probably shocking.

@Ken *****

have to wait for the final government written law before we will know how this will affect each individual case.

@Ken *****

I noticed in April suprerich in airport was less then on my wise app

by which time I'd lost a fair bit on the rate. My money was from savings, so I couldn't provide a wage slip etc. They threatened to keep the money. Wise always easy.

On CurrencyFair and Wise, you can put a limit order, or automated transaction, that triggers if a rate reaches a given level. These need time and care, but are great for grabbing a rate that is only available briefly due to a momentary spike. With Wise, they leave a THB balance in Wise, which can be spent on the card absolutely free, or transferred to a Thai bank for 32 Baht (fixed charge, regardless of amount).

Santander Zero claims to be a zero fee card, but actually adds a 0.83% margin to the Mastercard rate, which already has a 1-2% margin on GBP.

Halifax is genuinely a zero fee card, gives you the Mastercard rate, but as mentioned that currently includes 1-2% for GBP.

The Visa rate is best, adds just 0.3% to the ECB interbank rate, which is what Wise gives. So spending on card too, Wise comes out a percent or two better than even fee free Mastercards. EDIT: MasterCard were adding a percent or two margin, just to GBP, probably due to the recent chaos in the UK. Visa and MasterCard are now competitive with each other, and it varies by day which edges ahead. So worth checking MasterCard and Visa rates on the day.

MasterCard rates:

Visa rates:

These are apparently the ATM limits:

Citi: THB 50,000, so THB 220 is 0.44% (plus MC 1%)

Krungsri: THB 30,000, so 220 is 0.73%

Bangkok Bank: THB 25,000, 0.88%

Krungthai: THB 25,000; (max 50,000 p/day)

SCB: THB 20,000, 1.1%

But if you're withdrawing money on a card, far better to go into the bank if you've time and do it over the counter. That way you are not subject to your card daily ATM limits, the Thai bank's transaction limits or the ridiculous 220 Baht fee.



If you use this to open your Wise account, you get fee free transfers for your first £500. If I get three people to transfer £200+ in one go, I get £50.

@Dana ******

great answer as in my case low bank fees and I make infrequent transfers so my bank is the better deal. Also my bank reimburses all ATM charges.