PagoFX Reviews

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PagoFx was launched in 2020 by Banco Santander and aims to revolutionise FX money transfers. It’s an open market extension of Santander’s existing transfer service and represents their foray into the world of fast low cost money transfers. With just a smartphone app, you can quickly and affordably send money anywhere in the world. Businesses, sole traders and individuals can sign up to their system, enter their details and pick a currency to make a transfer in, all with just a few clicks.

With a simple eye-catching design, simple process and the opportunity to get real time mid-market rates, this is a formidable entry into the online forex world. It offers the speed and convenience of an online transfer service, together with the full backing of Santander.

PagoFX Currency Transfers

Transferring money with PagoFx is quick and simple. You can download the app, view live currency rates and pick from a selection of currencies. It provides full transparency of price and an open platform which can be used with a debit card from any financial entity. In doing so, it moves towards the model of fintech pioneers such as Transferwise (now known as Wise) and Azimo. However, it does this with the full backing of one of the world’s biggest banks, something they say is a unique proposition.

It aims, therefore, to offer a best of all world’s solution: the accessibility and transparency of a fintech startup with the power, reliability and reputation of a regulated bank. It believes this status gives it an edge over smaller, agile, competitors and may reassure some people who prefer the familiarity and reassurance which comes with an established, regulated bank.

PagoFX Charges and Fees

While many money transfers services have been viewed as opaque with complex fee structures, PagoFX aims to put everything out in the open. Their fees depend on where you’re sending your money to. For example, 0.5% for the Eurozone, 0.9% for Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, 1.9% for Brazil or 1.5% for Kuwait, Qatar or Saudi Arabia.

This fee will be charged from the money being sent to the recipient. This makes it one of the more transparent and affordable options out there. Recipient banks may charge separate fees which should show up as a charge on their statement.

PagoFX Currencies

One area of perceived limitation is in the currency options. Currently you can only transfer money from GBP to other currencies. Although they are adding currencies to their lists, there are still considerable gaps which are covered by other providers.

For the time being you can currently choose from: EUR, USD, the Argentine peso, Australian Dollar, Bulgarian lev, Bahraini dinar, Brazilian real, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, Colombian peso, Czech krona, HK dollar, Croatian kuna, Hungarian forint, Israeli shekel, Indian rupee, Kuwaiti dinar, Mexican peso, Norwegian krona, New Zealand dollar, Peruvian nuevo sol, Polish zloty, Romanian leu, Saudi riyal, Swedish krona, Singapore dollar, Turkish lira, South African rand.

They are expanding their reach with several currencies coming soon including the Japanese yen, Moroccan dirham and the UAE dirham.

PagoFX Euro Exchange Rate

At the time of writing, PagoFX was offering £1 for €1.1709 with a fee of £70. This means that if you were to transfer £10,000, the recipient would get €11,627.04 in return.

By comparison, Wise charges £35.08% at a rate of 1.17096 which means you would receive €11,668.52. Azimo offers flat fees of £1.99 and other low-cost currency providers offer no fees. Other services will take longer to come up with a quote and may involve additional bank fees and other hidden charges.

PagoFX US Dollar Exchange Rate

When sending £10,000 PagoFX charges £80. At the time of writing, the current rate between GBP and USD was £1 to $1.3943, which means the recipient should expect to get $13,831.46. This does not include any fees the receiving bank might charge. Exchange rates fluctuate throughout the day so this may change slightly depending on the direction of the markets.

Wise, offers a lower charge again of £35.64. At the time of writing their rate was £1 to $1.39415 which means you could expect your recipient to get $13,891.81. Azimo, meanwhile, offers flat fees of £1.99, while others such as OFX, TorFX and XE.com have no fees.

PagoFX App

Pago FX offers a simple online way to transfer money. You can quickly download the app for free to send money from your phone, tablet or mobile device. They do not have a telephone trading service. Everything can be done quickly and simply using any debit card from any bank online.

Getting started is easy. You can simply type in how much you want to send and in which currency. This will then show you precisely what the rate is, how much they will charge and how much your recipient will get. From there you can sign up and choose between whether you’re sending for business or personal reasons.

PagoFX & Santander

Pago FX was launched by Santander to compete with the growing number of online money transfer services. It aims to open up their existing money transfer service to users from other banks. In other words, you can use a debit card from any financial entity to send money on their platform. It’s quick, easy and much more affordable than sending money using traditional banks.

It is effectively Santander and the traditional bank system waving the white flag against the rising tide of fintechs.

Platforms such as Wise cut out the middleman providing the benefit of lower fees and more transparency. PagoFX does the same thing offering a simple online service or mobile app, cheaper fees and same day transfers. Wise still has the edge on price, but Santander hope to counter that with their scale and influence they can bring as a major global bank.

PagoFX Security & Regulation

Pago FX is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK. Any company that wishes to engage in the transfer of funds over the value of €3 million per month must have authorisation under the payments services regulation of 2017 and the electronic money regulations 2011. The FCA ensures the provider is a suitable and responsible provider for handling client money and that there is some degree of protection in place. Using an FCA regulated firm means you are using someone who has been assessed and shown to meet a certain standard of quality, reliability and suitability.

PagoFX For Individuals

Pago FX offers a simple, affordable and fast way to transfer money overseas. Users can download an app to their mobile phone or use the website to move money quickly and simply using their debit card. It offers the speed and affordability of an online money transfer service with the full backing of a major bank. You can register on the site quickly and simply and start sending money abroad almost immediately. It offers transparent and affordable transfer fees which vary depending on the currency involved. Eurozone transfers attract low fees of 0.5% while currencies outside Europe can rise beyond 1%. This is a much more affordable option than other traditional banks, but still lags behind the likes of Wise and Azimo.

PagoFX For Businesses

A secure and fast way to make international payments for businesses and sole traders. You can register a business account and access bank rate transfers with the full backing of a major global financial institution. Costs vary depending on your currency. For example, if you’re sending to the Eurozone, you’ll pay a fee of 0.5%. If you’re sending to Brazil, you’ll pay £1.6. To use their business service you will have to enter and validate your business information and verify your identity with an ID card and a quick photo.

They also offer a substantial knowledge centre for business owners with a range of guides offering advice about starting a business.

PagoFX Currency Forward Contracts

PagoFX do not offer currency forward contracts. Currently PagoFX only offers transfers using debit cards, but a number of their competitors do offer forward contracts such as MoneyCorp, TorFX and World First. However, you can purchase forward contracts through Santander.

The value of your currency can rise and fall depending on market conditions. Currency forward contracts are a way to avoid this risk. They represent an agreement between two parties to buy or sell a currency at an agreed rate. They can be taken out up to a year before the transfer for most currency pairs with around 10% of the value of the contract usually being payable upfront.

PagoFX Pros

PagoFX has a lot to like about it.

• Speed: Everything happens quickly and smoothly. You can go online sign up, choose a currency and transfer money with your debit card.
• Reliability: The service comes backed with the impressive power and performance of Santander. It caters to people’s desire to gain a better rate than they currently receive from their banks with a natural caution regarding fintech startups.
• Affordability: You get real time mid-market exchange rates. This is the rate at which banks lend to themselves. In the past this was denied to ordinary people who had to make do with the opaque charges of money transfers.

PagoFX Cons

It might be a bold move towards the faster, cheaper world of online money transfers, but it still a work in progress and, as such, is limited. Cons include:

• Limited currency options: Currently you can only transfer money from GBP to other currencies and it excludes some popular remittance destinations such as Bangladesh.
• Debit card only: Transfers can only be made with a debit card which restricts the flexibility of services on offer and the app is still new and relatively untested.
• Fees: Although its fees are cheaper than traditional money transfers, they are less competitive when compared against other online money transfer services.

PagoFX is expanding its offering all the time. For example, new currencies are in the pipeline. Many of these issues, therefore, may well be addressed in time.

PagoFX Alternatives

PagoFX brings the power of big banks to the world of low-cost currency exchange. This is what Santander thinks makes it unique. It comes with the trust, reliability and familiarity which comes from an established big bank provider. The clean cut website is much easier to use than its competitors making it ideal for someone who just wants to sign up and send money overseas. However, it arrives at a packed marketplace where the likes of Wise and Azimo have already developed a firm footing. It stands well against these especially in the ease of use and transparency of the app, but many of these are more established and have done more work on developing their product services. The fact that the likes of Wise can still beat them on price is a serious problem.