Bank rate of exchange an outrageous rip-off

ONE day recently, when the interbank rate of exchange between the euro and US dollar was €1= $1.3041, AIB Visa card were using a conversion rate of €1 = $1.265.

Bank rate of exchange an outrageous rip-off

This is a 3% profit on sale. They also make a 3% profit on transactions moving in the other direction, which gives them a 6% spread between buying and selling.

The norm in this industry is a 3%-4% spread at retail, and sometimes less for larger amounts, especially for hard currencies. Wholesale works on an even tighter spread.

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