Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Give a better currency rate

I used to convert my Singapore dollars into foreign currency with my bank. I learned recently that the spread (i.e. difference between the buy and sell rate) is about 1.3% compared to 0.3% charged by an online stockbroker. The difference of 1% is for a two way trade. For one way, the difference is 0.5%.

If the amount is $100,000, the difference in charges of 0.5% is $500. I have to pay a TT fee of $10, so I can save $490 by going through the online stockbroker. I hope that my bank can give a better currency rate, so that I do not need to go through another source (which is quite troublesome).
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2 comments:

Bernard said...

Hi Mr. Tan,

I am one of your supporter and has always been visiting your blog for invaluable insights and views.

I would like to talk about your topic "Give a better currency rate".

What you've been offered by your present bank is the "board rate" . That can be 100-500 pips depending on the forex amount;hence the >1% spread.

Currently for my valued clients, I offer them the following:

- 10-20 pips for buy/sell forex
i.e AUD/SGD 1.3020
eg. to buy AUD, the quote will be 1.3040 (20 PIPS)~ 0.154%
to buy SGD, it will be 1.3000 (20 PIPS)
- preferential rates for foreign currency deposits (typically 0.10- 0.20 basis points off "cover rates")

Let me know if you are satisfied on the above and would like to bank with me.

Best regards,

Bernard

*I can be contacted at +65 9668 6895

June 04, 2008 8:36 PM
Raymond T said...

One stock broker is Phillips, and you need to open an account with Phillips Futures @Raffles City

June 04, 2008 9:52 PM

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