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At this rate...
Banks sure have a lot to answer for with fees and charges don't they? The exchange rate has dropped over the last week or two and the rate for a UK Pound is $2.11 Canadian for the base rate. That's not the rate you get when you go to the bank to buy cash, though. They always add a few cents on for profit if you're just going to buy enough for your holiday. I checked a couple of the online sites for local banks and found wildly different rates where i *could* find them. Don't ask me where the rates were on Cibc's website because without logging into their exchange rate section (why? it's not like i'm conducting a transaction! I only want to see what it's going to cost me!) i couldnt' find a thing. Anyway.
As I don't like Scotiabank (they're the rotten buggers that wanted to charge me 10 cents per roll of coin i wanted to change into paper money because i don't have an account there), i ran across the road to CIBC. They quoted me $2.16 and change but the Foreign exchange desk was closed for lunch. I popped down to my bank, Royal Bank, and they quoted me $2.1789!!! sod that! Back to Scotia Square where i work, grab a chai latte on the way. Oh hell, i'll see what Scotiabank is charging since it's right there. $2.143 Sold! The bank clerk was surprised there was that much difference as the base rate is the same and most banks, she thought, used the same buy/sell rates or pretty close to it. 5 cents on the dollar is a lot though.
Anyway i'm £100 richer and $214.31 poorer lol but i'll stash the cash for when i go over. If it goes down even further, by a lot, i may consider getting a bit more, maybe another 50. It's worth it. If i don't use it and the rate goes up as it usually does, i can just sell it back to the bank. It's all part of the holiday fund anyway. Considering i paid about $2.45 in December, i did very well. I wish the banks had UK Sterling bank accounts like they do for U.S. funds but i suppose there's not as much call for it.
The sun is finally out, the fog is almost lifted but it's not going to be a nice, sunny weekend.
As I don't like Scotiabank (they're the rotten buggers that wanted to charge me 10 cents per roll of coin i wanted to change into paper money because i don't have an account there), i ran across the road to CIBC. They quoted me $2.16 and change but the Foreign exchange desk was closed for lunch. I popped down to my bank, Royal Bank, and they quoted me $2.1789!!! sod that! Back to Scotia Square where i work, grab a chai latte on the way. Oh hell, i'll see what Scotiabank is charging since it's right there. $2.143 Sold! The bank clerk was surprised there was that much difference as the base rate is the same and most banks, she thought, used the same buy/sell rates or pretty close to it. 5 cents on the dollar is a lot though.
Anyway i'm £100 richer and $214.31 poorer lol but i'll stash the cash for when i go over. If it goes down even further, by a lot, i may consider getting a bit more, maybe another 50. It's worth it. If i don't use it and the rate goes up as it usually does, i can just sell it back to the bank. It's all part of the holiday fund anyway. Considering i paid about $2.45 in December, i did very well. I wish the banks had UK Sterling bank accounts like they do for U.S. funds but i suppose there's not as much call for it.
The sun is finally out, the fog is almost lifted but it's not going to be a nice, sunny weekend.