I just opened a new fx account through my bank here in the US. I need to send Euros to people I do business with in a number of European countries.
What do you think is the best way to mail a bank draft to Portugal or Italy? Is it possible to insure the money from the US post office?
I need to send 500 Euros, so I'm a bit nervous about how to send properly. The post office sometimes tells me the wrong information.
Thanks in advance for any and all good advice.
Linda
Rather than sending a draft through the mail, you should consider wiring the money from your bank to their bank in Europe. It will be quicker and cheaper. Have the people in Europe go to their bank, get the wiring instructions and forward the info to you and/or your bank. I have used this method and it works slick. good luck
Wiring a bank draft is definitely safer (can't get lost in the mail), easier and probably cheaper.
You just need to get the IBAN # (it's a long number which includes the bank account number, sort code and some other mysterious numbers) from the person/company you are wiring money to. The IBAN # contains everything your bank needs to know - so you would probably just need to put in writing (letter or fax) your permission to wire x amount of funds from your account number xxxx to the account with IBAN # xxx
Kate
You can also use a service like DHL or FedEx to send the check to Europe.
Bank to Bank is fine - as the other poster said - use the international banking number, the local bank code, and the account. Your local bank can help you - just make sure you have all the info from your destination (including address of hotel etc)
I have an account with www.xe.com/fx. I've always had them send a bank draft through the mail because they charge more for a wire transfer.
I wouldn't use regular mail. There are many problems all over Europe. EU Post office staff might steal the drafts and there will be nothing you can do about it or it will take long time.
If you can use a credit card, do it this way. It's the safest and US credit card companies will give you the money back if something happens.
Another option is to wire money. My bank charges $30 for any amount anywhere in the world.
Western Union is another option, but it's more expensive.
Wire the money. All my transactions between my Danish and US banks are through wires.
I agree that bank wire is the best. But if for whatever reason that won't work, I have another suggestion. There is a company called TravelEx. They can issue a check in almost any currency in the world and it's drawn on a local bank to where you are sending it. They charge a small fee which is reduced if you are a AAA member. My example: I needed to send 500euros to someone in Portugal. I went to TravelEx and got a check for 500euros drawn on ABN bank which I know is in Lisbon. I then used US Registered mail to send to my contact in Lisbon. Another option would have been FedEx but that was significantly more and I paid the bit extra to get the most secure, guaranteed service with US Postal which was still much less than Fed Ex.
Most of your bank to bank wire transfers will involve the SWIFT system. As above, you need to know the correct numbers. The problem I had at my bank (Bank of America) is that they hand you a strange form and you have to fill it out. They don't know how to do it and they don't want the responsibility for any errors. They couldn't even advise me on how to fill out the required fields. Make sure that somebody in the bank knows how to do this.
