3 minute read
Supporting money-saving currency transfers for 20 years
1. Hi Peter, firstly, congratulations on your 20th anniversary with Currencies Direct! That’s an incredible achievement. Things have changed a lot over the last two decades, but what would you say have been the biggest changes for Currencies Direct?
Currencies Direct was established back in 1996, making it one of the first specialist currency providers in Europe.
Since then the company has experienced phenomenal growth, expanding across the world.
We now have branches across Spain (20+ and counting!) as well as branches in Portugal, the UK, South Africa, the US and India.
As the number of Currencies Direct branches has increased, so has the number of currency experts we employ to support our customers. In Spain alone we have a team of over 100, and watching our presence in Spain grow has been a pleasure.
As we’re always investing in our people and technology, our service offering has changed a lot over the years as we’ve adjusted to meet our customers’ changing requirements. A number of years ago we launched a marketleading online service and app, so while our customers can still come to see us in branch or give us a call, they also have the flexibility to manager their money on their terms and make 24/7 currency transfers.
While I’ve seen the number of currency providers increase during my time with Currencies Direct, we’ve managed to stay ahead of the curve by changing with the times and always putting our customers first. However, one thing that hasn’t changed in the last 20 years is the unrivalled level of personal support we provide.
2. From an industry level perspective, what is the biggest change you’ve seen?
Brexit undoubtedly inspired a huge amount of change in our industry. The EU referendum and everything that followed created historic amounts of volatility in the currency market and extreme uncertainty for our customers.
Preparing for Brexit and the end of the transition period was a mammoth undertaking, but the measures we took (such as obtaining the required authorisation to operate in the EU from the Bank of Spain) meant that our customers experienced no disruption or loss of service.
3. How did Covid change your business?
Covid had a significant impact on all of us, but as a business our priority was to acclimatise to support customers as much and as safely as we could.
While we really missed being able to in teract with customers in person in our branches, we found many of our customers embracing our online service and app for the first time. The convenience of being able to check live exchange rates and make transfers 24/7 meant that our online service and app continued to be extremely popular even after restrictions were lifted.
However, we’re really enjoying seeing customers back in our branches again. There’s no substitute for real interaction!
4. In your opinion, what makes Currencies Direct different from other currency providers?
Factors like the exceptional exchange rates we offer, the fact we don’t charge transfer fees and our exclusive relationship with CaixaBank all help us stand out from the crowd, but it’s our individual account management and customer service that truly set us apart.
When customers register with us they’re assigned a personal Account Manager, a dedicated currency expert to work with them throughout their lifetime with our company. We take the time to really get to know our customers, understand their requirements and help them get more for their money. The success of this approach has led to multiple award wins (like MoneyAge Money Transfer Provider of the Year four times) and the highest TrustScore in our industry. We have an ‘Excellent’ fivestar Trustscore on Trustpilot and thousands of wonderful reviews from happy customers, something which really means a lot to us.
5. Why have you been proud to work for Currencies Direct for so long?
Working for such a customercentric company is a big source of pride for me, and I’ve really enjoyed playing a part in our evolution it’s amazing to think of where we started to where we are now.
One of the best things about working for Currencies Direct has been working with such an incredible team. Without the dedication and exceptional performance of our employees the company wouldn’t have seen the success it has.
6. Looking to the future, has Currencies
Direct got anything on the horizon that our readers might be interested in?
We’ve actually got a very exciting development to share. In late March we’ll be introducing our customers to a better way to pay with the launch of our multicurrency debit card. Customers will be able to put funds in their EUR, GBP, AUD or USD currency wallets and spend seamlessly in over 200 countries.
They’ll also be able to withdraw money from ATMs and keep track of their spending in our app. We can’t wait to provide our customers with this great new service, and it marks another exciting chapter in our history.
7. Finally, how did you celebrate your anniversary?
I was taken out for a lovely meal and presented with a wonderful gift a Spitfire experience for me and my son!
STAT OF WEEK €257 billion
is the record-breaking amount paid to Spain’s tax authority Hacienda last year, just over 15 per cent more than in 2021, and outstripping a predicted 8 per cent.
