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Richard Berry
- Updated
Currency forward brokers let you buy currency now at the current exchange rate for a settlement date in the future. When you do the conversion, you put down a small deposit, then pay the balance on the date you need the full amount.
Currency forward contracts are one of the most common ways to reduce and hedge currency exposure for businesses or protect against adverse exchange rates when buying a property overseas.
Good Money Guide has hand-picked the best accounts for currency-forward contracts. You can also request multiple quotes from providers to compare currency forward contract rates to get the best exchange rates.
Compare Currency Forward Contract Accounts
| Currency Forward Provider | FX Forward Lengths | Number of Currencies | Min Transfer | Same Day | Currency Options | GMG Rating | Get Quote |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 24-months | 40 | £100 | ✔️ | ❌ | Request Quote | |
 | 12-months | 40 | £100 | ✔️ | ❌ | Request Quote | |
 | 12-months | 55+ | £250 | ✔️ | ❌ | Request Quote | |
 | 24-months | 30+ | £3,000 | ✔️ | ✔️ | Request Quote |
Our picks of the best accounts for currency forward contracts
❓ Good Money Guide chose the best currency forward contract providers based on:
- 20 years expertise and experience in the currency forward industry
- Interviews with the currency forward provider CEOs and senior management
- Over 30,000 votes and reviews in the prestigious Good Money Guide awards
- Thorough, hands-on analysis and testing of the platforms and pricing
Summary:
- Corpay: Best currency forwards for corporates
- TorFX: Great overall currency forward provider
- Currencies Direct: best FXforward provider for customer service
- OFX: best for tailored FEC strategies & high touch service
Corpay: Best Currency Forwards For Corporates
- Forward contract: 24 months
- Currencies: 30+
- Minimum transfer: £3,000
- Annual transfers: £6bn
- Number of customers: 30,000
Corpay (formally Global Reach) is one of the largest currency forward brokers for private clients and can help individuals and companies with currency forward contracts in a wide range of leading currencies as well as a selection of exotics.
Is Corpay good for currency forwards?
Corpay (formally Global Reach) offers a range of currency hedging solutions for individuals and businesses including currency forwards of up to two years. Corpay provides forwards on a wide range of leading currencies as well as a selection of exotics. Using their expert dealing team, you can handle important transfers overseas.
Corpay Currency Transfer Review
Name: Corpay
Description: Corpay is a currency broker that manages money transfers and currency exchange for corporate and business clients. Founded in 2001 in Canada, they have grown steadily and now handle more than £5bn in transactions each year. The platform covers all major currencies plus a host of ‘exotics’ and has an impressive 97% satisfaction rating on Trust Pilot.
Summary
Corpay is one of the few currency brokers that also offers currency options. Whilst they do provide excellent exchange rates for currency transfers, this also means they can help with personal and business currency exposure hedging.
Pros
- Excellent exchange rates
- Currency hedging facilities
- Personal service
Cons
- Suitable for large clients only
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Exchange Rates
(4.5)
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Available Currencies
(4.5)
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Online Platform
(4.5)
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Customer Service
(5)
-
Research & Analysis
(3.5)
Overall
4.4What next?
TorFX: Great Overall Currency Forward Provider
- Forward contract: 24 months
- Currencies: 40+
- Minimum transfer: £100
- Annual transfers: £7.5bn
- Number of customers: 325,000
TorFX won “best currency forward provider” in our 2023 awards. TorFX (founded in 2004) is better suited to those who need to transfer a large amount of money as they provide a personal service where you can ask for price alerts, advice on market timing and also protecting your budget through currency forward contracts.
Is TorFX good for currency-forward contracts?
TorFX offers forward currency contracts of up to twenty four months for those wanting to lock in the current exchange rate. They provide a personal service where you can ask for price alerts, advice on market timing and also protecting your budget through currency forward contracts.
TorFX Review
Name: TorFX
Description: TorFX is a currency specialist and currency broker founded in 2004 offering foreign exchange conversion services in 40 currencies. TorFX converts and transfers around £7.5 billion a year and is based in Cornwall, UK.
Summary
A good choice if you are buying a property abroad and want bank beating exchange rates and personal service to help with the tansfer.
Pros
- Personal service
- Bank beating exchange rates
- Currency forwards
Cons
- Not great for small transfers
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Pricing
(4)
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Market Access
(4.5)
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Online Platform
(4)
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Customer Service
(4.5)
-
Research & Analysis
(3.5)
Overall
4.1What next?
Currencies Direct: Best FX Forward Provider For Customer Service
- Forward contract: 12 months
- Currencies: 40+
- Minimum transfer: £100
- Annual transfers: £7.5bn
- Number of customers: 325,000
Currencies Direct has built up a network of 22 offices (since 1996) around the world and serves more than 325,000 personal, business and online selling clients. You can transfer money online, through the company’s app, in one of its branches or over the phone with the help of an account manager.
Is Currencies Direct good for currency forwards?
Currencies Direct offers forwards on over forty currencies of up to 12 months through a network of 22 offices worldwide and serves more than 325,000 personal, business and online selling clients. You can do forwards online, through the company’s app, in one of its branches or over the phone with the help of an account manager.
Currencies Direct Review
Name: Currencies Direct
Description: Currencies Direct is a specialist award-winning currency broker that can help you send large amounts of money abroad. They were founded in 1996 and are now part of a group that processes around £10bn in international money transfers per year.
Are Currencies Direct a good currency broker?
Yes, Currencies Direct offer a good service for large international money transfers. They are a well-established and competitive currency broker for buying a property abroad or for international business payments at bank-beating exchange rates.
Pros
- Great for large currency transfers
- Get a dedicated account executive to help with transfers
- You can send money over the phone or do transfers online
Cons
- Better for large transfers
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Pricing
(4.5)
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Market Access
(4.5)
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Online Platform
(3)
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Customer Service
(4.5)
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Research & Analysis
(4)
Overall
4.1What next?
OFX: Best For Tailored FEC Strategies & High Touch Service
- Forward contract: 12 months
- Currencies: 55+
- Minimum transfer: £250
- Annual transfers: £2.4bn
- Number of customers: 1,000,000
OFX does not charge any fees on top of the exchange rate you get. Exchange rates are of course bank-beating and are based on size, so the larger your transaction the better the rate you will receive.
Is OFX good for currency forwards?
OFX offers currency forwards up to 12 months and does not charge any fees on top of the exchange rate you get. Exchange rates are of course bank-beating and are based on size, so the larger your transaction the better the rate you will receive.
OFX Review
Name: OFX
Description: OFX is a leading currency broker offering currency services to more than 170 countries around the world. Originally known as OzForex, it was launched by Matthew Gilmour in 1998 as an information only website. Since then, it has grown rapidly handling more than AUD$2000bn transfers for more than a million individual and business customers worldwide.
Is OFX a good currency broker?
Yes, we rate OFX as a very good currency broker as they offer discounted exchange rates, personal service for individual buying a property abroad of for businesses needing more complex services like integrated Amazon payments or currency hedging strategies.
Pros
- Bank beating exchange rates
- Personal service and good tech
- Currency hedging solutions
Cons
- Better for larger transfers
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Exchange Rates
(4.5)
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Available Currencies
(4.5)
-
Online Platform
(4.5)
-
Customer Service
(5)
-
Research & Analysis
(4)
Overall
4.5What next?
What Are Currency Forwards?
Currency forwards are very simply a ‘buy now, pay later’ form of currency transaction. There are many ways to protect yourself from FX price moves, but the most popular for people buying holiday homes or managing business currency exchange rate exposure is to use a currency forward.
Request Currency Forward Exchange Rate Quotes
To find the best currency forward exchange rates you can compare quotes from our panel of currency brokers. Each FX forward provider will send you a quote based on the currency exchange rate and your forward settlement date.
Note: It’s important to note that currency forward quotes will change as the underlying currency exchange rate moves and the individual interest rates associated with the currency pair’s country change.
What Can Currency Forwards Be Used For?
Currency forwards are used for locking in the currency exchange rate for a currency conversion in the future. The most common reasons for using a currency forward are:
- Buying a property abroad
- Locking in profits from an upcoming foreign property sale
- Budgeting for foreign income
- Budgeting for recurring international payments
- Locking in an exchange rate for an upcoming foreign invoice
Pros
- Reducing risk – Protecting your budget from currency prices moving against you
- Locking in profits – If you are budgeting you can use a currency forward to lock in profits on a foreign transaction or make sure that an upcoming foreign property purchase does not cost you more than the currency exchange rate
- Cost effective – Currency forwards generally shouldn’t cost any more in (exchange rate) fees than a normal transaction. They are cheaper than buying a full amount of currency outright
- Flexibility – You can draw down early on a currency forward by reducing the position if you need some foreign currency early
Cons
- Loss of positive gains – If you buy a currency forward contract early then you miss out on exchange rates potentially moving in your favour. Of course, no one can predict where a price may be in the future so with large foreign exchange transactions it is often prudent to err on the side of caution
- Deposit protection – Currency brokers are not covered by the FSCS so if a currency broker defaults your deposit and position are not protected by UK regulators
- Commitment – Unlike futures and options currency forwards must be carried to settlement. You cannot close a currency forward before the settlement date without incurring significant costs
How To Buy Currency Forwards
To buy a currency forward you need to:
- Open an account with a currency broker that offers currency forwards (like OFX, or Currencies Direct)
- Select a date in the future that you want the forward to settle (this can be up to 24 months)
- Request a quote – your broker will then give you a forward price (this will be based on the interest rates of the two currencies you are exchanging)
- If the quote is acceptable, agree to the deal. You will have to put down a small deposit of the value of the transaction to cover market fluctuations
- When the settlement date arrives, deposit the remainder of the funds with your broker and withdraw or transfer the foreign currency
For more information, you can watch our video discussion on how forward currency contracts work.
Individuals & Currency Forwards
Individuals can use forward contacts if they have an upcoming purchase and want to fix the current exchange rate. The process is very simple and can be done online in a few clicks.
For example, let’s say you are buying a property abroad and have to make a final payment of EUR500,000 in three months time.
But, if you think the EURGBP rate will move against you over that period, you can use a currency forward to buy the EUR now, but not have to pay the GBP for another three months.
- Related Guide: Personal forward exchange contract example
Businesses & Currency Forwards
If your business is importing, exporting or exposed to foreign currency in any way, then using forward currency contracts to hedge and manage the risk of fluctuations is essential. Businesses can use forward contracts to lock in a current foreign exchange rate for overseas transactions.
The key benefits for companies is that they are able to account accurately for international business in forecasts and budgets.
- Related Guide: Business forward exchange contract example
Currency Forward Contract FAQs
Between 12 and 24 months. Of the brokers we feature, Corpay and TorFX offer the longest-dated currency forwards up to two years.
Currency forwards are quite complex to price, so the best way is to compare one currency brokers quote against another. You can do this in our currency forward contract account comparison table.
Yes, once you have an account with a currency broker that offers forward contracts you can request live quotes and get currency forward quotes online 24 hours a day for up to a year in advance. You can also check currency forward rates over the phone with experienced dealers who can also advise on currency forward pricing potential movements.
Currency forward contract prices are based on the difference between the underlying interest rates of the currency pairs involved in the transaction and added or subtracted from the spot rate.
Customers can drawdown funds on currency forwards before they are due to settle. But, all currency forward contracts have to be ultimately settled. This can be done by opening currency forward to net off the contract and effectively have two forward contracts running to the same settlement date, making you flat, which is the equivalent of closing a forward.
Yes. If a customer requires funds later for settlement, the forward contracts can be rolled over ahead of settlement (essentially bought and sold for different dates).
Yes, you can buy or sell a currency for a forward date essentially protecting from up and downward currency moves.
Currency forward contract fees are built into the exchange rate and marked up from where a currency broker buys or sells the currency forward.
You can trade currency forward contracts on most G10 currencies. However, some currency brokers offer more currencies than others, OFX for example offers over 55 currencies.
Richard Berry
This article contains affiliate links which may earn us some form of income if you go on to open an account. However, if you would rather visit the forward currency contract providers via a non-affiliate link, you can view them directly here: