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Thursday, 04 March 2010

  • The Iraqi Dinar old for new

    There is much talk about the zeros being dropped from the current Iraqi Dinar and how some people will make TONS and TONS of money FAST.

    With the replacement of every currency, there is ALWAYS a grace period to change the old for the new.
    The rate at which this takes place is usually 1,000 to 1. If you have a million dinars (1,000,000), it will be converted to 1,000 new dinars.

    Changing the bills from one to the other only happens in the country of origin, not outside. In this case, the new Iraqi notes will only be exchanged at a bank in Iraq. If you were to take the currency to a foreign exchange office, in or out of Iraq, they would certainly "BUY" your old notes and sell you the new bills. The reason is that we must keep an inventory of all the currencies bought or sold at certain rates. The old notes will still be bought, up and until we are informed otherwise, at the same rates at which they were exchanged. The new notes will be bought at the new rate.

    For example:
    If we are buying the old notes at .0007142 (1,400/$), this means that for every 10,000 you will receive 7.14 US dollars.
    If we are buying the new notes at .7142 (1.4001/$), your 10 (previously 10,000) will be worth $7.14 US dollars.
    The only thing that will change is the numerical figure, but the value will remain the same.

    For those of you looking to make money off of this currency, the only way to do it is if AFTER the zero's are dropped, the currency goes from .7142 to .9050. That would mean that the 1,000 dinar at 714.20 is now worth 905.

    Good luck.

Wednesday, 24 February 2010

  • Coins or No Coins?

    Hello again,

    For over ten years, I have told clients time and time again, don't bring coins back from your trip because they will be discounted if they are exchanged for dollars at all. Now, I've come to realize that coins are inevitable, but still a problem to exchange. My advice when it comes to coins, USE THEM WHILE YOU ARE STILL ON YOUR TRIP.

    One or two Euro or Pound coins as well as Aussie or Canadian dollars are good for tipping or buying small items. Bottled water, a soda pop, bag of chips, tipping your cab driver, the hotel bell man who carried your luggage, and so many other things can be paid with coins. Coins add up and when there is hardly anyone who will buy them, the pot can get up in the 100s of dollars worth. For that reason and that reason alone, we at International Currency Express, do not buy coins.

    Most websites inform you that paying you should always pay for your goods with a credit card, but they forget the small details.
    1. Cash advance Fees - These are what the bank will charge you every time you buy cash, unless the vendor is paying these fees upfront.
    2. Convenience Fees - This is what your bank will charge you because you were able to use your credit card outside of the US. (This happens every time you use your card)
    3. Conversion Fees - What your bank will charge you for converting US dollars to foreign currency (This happens every time you swipe your card)
    4. Exchange Fees - Charged by your bank if and when you charge anything outside of the US, even if the charge is in US dollars
    Through our website, www.foreignmoney.com, you are able to buy well over 30 currencies, if a currency is not listed, a quick phone call on our toll free 888.278.6628 will get you in contact with one of our agents who will either inform you on the availability of the currency you need or process an order for your currency.

    It may not be practical to carry thousands of dollars in your pockets, or safe for that matter, but that's not what I am saying. Take a couple hundred dollars in your pocket, for all the minor expenses, if and when you have a substantial purchase, pay with your credit or debit cards, depending of course on which offers the better rates and or percentages.

Tuesday, 23 February 2010

  • Visiting Italy - CHECK!

    Back from Italy from our honeymoon and glad to be back. We soaked up much of Italy, the beautiful history, enormous and ancient buildings and monuments and so much more. Had a terrific time thanks to Grand Circle Travel and the many who took part in the tour. The best part of course was being together, but having such great people to share in our adventure made the trip so much more fun. Thank you all.

    We couldn't go to Italy and not take notice of the many things the foreign exchange (cambio) houses had in common. Luckily, “no commission fee” signs were all over the cambio places for anyone who wanted to exchange their dollars into euro. Unfortunately, little did they know, because of the expensive rates of exchange, they exceeded the cost of any commission fees that could have been applied.

    While the dollar fluctuated daily, for the first week we were in Sorrento, it gained ground against the euro, for some reason the rates remained the same resulting in greater losses for our American travelers. At the same time a Thomas Cook affiliate was selling Euro at .64 euro cents per dollar (1.5625), our rate of exchange was .6897 (1.45). This means that for every 100 euro bought, tourists paid an extra $11 dollars, something that could very easily go towards their travel funds.


    A member touring with us, said since he used his Bank card to withdraw funds from his checking account, his first two were free of service fees, but for the others he was charged $8 plus other fees from the ATM he used, plus the difference in the rate of exchange.

    Working in foreign exchange, I always tell my clients to buy their currency before leaving, now I have experienced it first hand and can honestly tell you, do it before you go. While you are in the US, you have the option of shopping around for the best rate, but once you arrive in a foreign country, you will have little to no choice; especially, when everyone quotes the same rates of exchange.

Thursday, 10 September 2009

  • Gandola ride, Museums, The leaning tower of pisa, now what?

    I am getting married in January of the coming year, I know the place, the time, definitely the day, and I know where we want to spend it, but what else can we do?
    I am one that likes to walk, possibly even get lost and find that nice little hole-in-the-wall that has the absolute best dish EVER. Now I don't expect to find that quaint little place on our first ever trip to Italy, so, I come to you oh great TRIPCRAZED travelers. What do you suggest? We have not picked the hotel yet, but are looking into staying in Venezia. We may do the tour guide thing, but still need help in the event we have to go our separate ways.

    Money, I got it covered. After all, I do work at International Currency Express a foreign exchange company. I am certain that after working there for over 12 years, my boss is going to at least give me a good rate. :D Yes, I know, it's kind of silly, worked in foreign currency exchange, but have never gone outside my house, well, here we go.

    What do you suggest? No suggestions will be turned down, just questioned. :D

    Thanks,

    Noe

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unchalan

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    • Name: Noe
    • Country: United States
    • Birthday: 9/7/1974
    • Gender: Male
    • Member Since: 4/15/2009

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  • unchalan
    What do you think about the Bipartisan Travel Promotion Act becoming Lawhttp://www.ustravel.org/events/travelcomPersonally, I think this is coming at a great time. We can all argue that it should have come sooner, but hey, the dollar is a bit stronger now, so why not promote U.S.A. for travel?