A Reputation for Service Excellence

Over the years, the business has gained a solid reputation for secure, convenient and cost-effective foreign exchange services, as demonstrated by their loyal client base.  Now in their 10th year, 1st Contact Forex facilitates more than 100,000 transactions a year, with 40,000 registered clients. These include migrants transferring money home, paying off debt and purchasing property; expats repatriating funds; individuals investing overseas; and SMEs importing and exporting goods.

Gemme Cloete of 1st Contact Forex believes the reason for their popularity is because they truly take the client into consideration.

“1st Contact Forex started as a solution-focused company and this ethos is still evident in everything we do,” says Gemma. “We really want to make our clients’ lives easier by finding the most affordable and most convenient solutions. We are also able to secure excellent exchange rates and when people compare, they realise just how much they can save.”

Product with Real Benefits

1st contact Forex offers products that truly benefit the client, including highly competitive exchange rates that beat the banks; a secure online portal, online, telephone and sms support and a transparent exchange rates and fees.

Their travel money card is also steadily growing in popularity, and allows those going to the USA, Europe or South Africa to transfer money online and then use the card as a local debit card – saving money and avoiding the need to carry large amounts of cash.

A recent addition to the many solutions they offer is the Debit Card transfer facility. This service lets clients transfer from the Euro-zone to anywhere in the world, using their debit card online, negating the need for a credit card or visit to a bank or agency.

1st Contact Forex has their head office in London, with offices in Melbourne, Australia and Cape Town, South Africa. To find out more about their foreign exchange and money transfer services, visit www.1stcontactforex.com or call +44(0) 808 141 2335 (Free from within UK).

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Which can save you up to AUD 65 per 1000 you transfer?

If you guessed that the banks are the cheapest way to transfer money from the UK to Australia or South Africa (or anywhere else for that matter) you’d be wrong.

A comparison by 1st Contact Forex has shown that a transfer of £1000 from the UK to Australia would save you as much as AUD 65 – you save on the better exchange rate, the much cheaper transfer fee and the receiving fee, which is AUD 10 through the banks and FREE through 1st Contact Forex.

If you were sending money home to South Africa and transferring £1000, you would save a whopping R562, while transferring the same amount to India through 1st Contact Forex would amount to a saving of INR 2666.97!

“There’s still quite a misconception among most people that the banks are the cheapest, fastest way to send money,” says Gemma Cloete of 1st Contact Forex. “This is simply not true. And, while most banks take between 3 and 7 days to transfer the money, 1st Contact Forex does so within 1-3 days.”

To compare the fees and exchange rates, or to do your money transfer simply and at the best exchange rates, visit www.1stcontactforex.com. 1st Contact take pride in their exceptional service, as well as the fact that they offer the most transparent transfer service in the market – the rate you see when you buy your foreign exchange is the rate you get.

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It is estimated that £300 million per year is lost to these monopolies. The anomaly occurs because a huge number of consumers of Foreign exchange and remittance services are not aware that there are better options in the market. These consumers shoulder the burdens of the façade monopoly which the banks hold; High fee’s, hidden costs, poor rates of exchange, lack of transparency on exchange rates, poor service, and slow turnaround times from staff who aren’t really interested. In fact, dealing with the banks is a travesty of 21^st century customer service.

Enter the independent Foreign exchange and Remittance providers. These small to medium sized companies specialize in completely and utterly beating the banks on value for money and solid customer service with a smile. They also simplify the money transfer process into something which the layman can understand and execute easily. These companies offer exchange and remittance services at a fraction of the fee’s (if any), zero hidden costs, very competitive and guaranteed rates of exchange, complete transparency, excellent and friendly service from people who want to hear from their clients, and fast secure online systems which ensure cleared funds in any globally nominated account as fast 1 working day. If only the consumers knew about these better options.

Ironically consumers have direct and easy access to these services. Most independent companies run online, and offer their full service as an online package. Therefore if a person has access to the web via a PC, internet café or mobile phone; it is very easy to capitalize on the benefits these providers create, from anywhere on the globe. Welcome to the 21^st century.

2 such companies are 1^st Contact and the Sable Group. Both companies offer a range of accounting, wealth, legal, visas, tax and payroll services, along with their much honed expertise on foreign exchange and international remittance services.

It’s a no-brainer.

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The move is part of 1st Contact’s ongoing quest to bring savings to all their clients, across all divisions and business units.

“Transfers to Europe have been on the increase and we wanted to find a way to save our Forex clients money”, says Gemma Cloete of 1st Contact Forex.  “So we have been looking at various ways to streamline our Euro transfer process, cut down on our costs and thereby cut down on our fees.  We have been working very hard to cut our transfer costs – before, each euro transfer was processed individually whereas now we are able to batch the payments together, which allows for a huge saving on our side. And as always, when we save, we like to pass that saving on to our clients.”

1^st Contact processes over 100 000 transactions each year and has over 40 000 clients world wide. They can transfer to almost any European account, including to Ireland, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Italy, France and the Netherlands. Transfers to Switzerland and Sweden are possible; however these are done in Swedish Krona and Swiss Franks, and are therefore still £15. But as 1^st Contact is always finding new ways to bring savings to their clients, there might be changes to these fees in the future too.

Additional benefits include:

• You are able to transfer securely online yourself
• You can use your UK debit card and secure the exchange rate
• The service is entirely transparent; the rate you see is the rate you get
• 1st Contact offers excellent exchange rates
• 1st Contact Forex is fully compliant by Regulating Bodies
• If you use your debit card before 12:00 GMT (on working days), your money will be sent that same day.
• Once 1st Contact has received the money, it will clear in the recipient’s account within 1 – 3 working days.
• 1st Contact is able to send to almost any country that has a recipient account in US Dollars or Euros.

To enjoy a substantial saving on Euro transfer fees, visit www.1stcontactforex.com or call +44 (0) 808 141 2335 to speak to a foreign exchange consultant.

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1. You may think that the game of Chess originated in Russia, but it was in fact invented in India, where an early version of the game – called Chaturanga - flourished in India by the 6th century.
2. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism – the four religions that began in India – are today followed by more than a quarter of the world’s population.
3. India has the 3rd largest military force in the world, yet the country has never in its history invaded another country.
4. India is the largest English speaking nation in the world.
5. India has more Post Offices than any other country in the world, around 156 000 in total!
6. The value of pi was first calculated by an Indian mathematician Baudhayana, who is also credited with discovering what is now known as the Pythagorean theorem.
7. Cricket is the most popular sport in India and the Indian team recently lifted the ICC Cricket World Cup trophy when they won the final match in their own country.
8. The largest single employer in the world is Indian Railways, with more than a million employees!
9. The Indian Film Industry, otherwise known as Bollywood, is the largest film industry in the world – even bigger the Hollywood!
10. The world’s first granite temple is the Brihadeswara Temple at Tanjavur, Tamil Nadu. It was started in 1004 AD and is made from 130 000 tons of granite.
11. The boardgame Snakes & Ladders was created in India as Mokshapat by the 13th century poet saint Gyandev. The ladders in the game represented virtues (good deeds lead you up to heaven) and the snakes represented vices (evil deeds lead to a cycle of re-births).
12. The material that was required to build the Taj Mahal was brought in from different regions in India by a fleet of 1000 elephants.
13. Ayurveda, which was developed in India, is the earliest school of medicine known to mankind and the fastest growing alternative medicine system all over world.
14. Martial Arts were first created in India, and later spread to Asia through the Buddhist missionaries.
15. Yoga also started in India – more than 5000 years ago.
16. India is home to 27 of the world’s UNESCO world heritage sites.
17. Every year India hosts around a thousand festivals!
18. India is credited with inventing the number system.
19. The World’s first ever university was established in Takshashila in India, in 700 BC.
20. India has the second largest pool of Scientists and Engineers in the World.

To find out about the cheapest, easiest and most transparent way to transfer money to India, visit www.1stcontactforex.com.

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Is Cash Still King?

The cash option often seems to come out tops as it is convenient to use and is accepted everywhere. (Provided you’re carrying the correct currency of course). However, it’s also the easiest to lose or have stolen.

Cash is definitely worthwhile if you are getting a good exchange rate; it’s something you can shop around for and one might argue that whatever format you decide to use to carry the bulk of your travel cash, you should give serious thought to carrying a small emergency cash reserve as well – perhaps hidden away on your person.

Carrying cash is undoubtedly a risk but with some careful thought and proper precautions it needn’t be totally disregarded as an option.

Pros: Convenient; can be cost-effective; widely accepted
Cons: Very Risky

Travellers’ Cheques: Still a Viable Option?

You can’t really pick up a restaurant bill with a travellers’ cheque, nor can you use it to pay your cab driver.

You will need to convert your cheques to cash periodically during your travels and it’s worth remembering that you will be charged commissions each time you make an exchange. Also, once you’ve converted a cheque to useable cash you’ve got the very same situation you would have had with cash in the first place, except it might have cost you a bit more to get there.

On the plus side, while there is a fair amount of risk carrying travellers’ cheques, if you are organised and photocopy your cheques or make a note of the cheque number (as long as you don’t lose that too) you can travel with relative peace of mind.

Pros: Safer than cash
Cons: Inconvenient, can be expensive

Travel Money Cards: The Power of Pre-paid Plastic

A relative newcomer to the travel money market, prepaid travel money cards offer major advantages over their predecessors in terms of cost-saving and convenience for travellers.

Pre-loaded with your destination’s currency, it works exactly like a local debit card. So no more bother with having exchange travellers’ cheques or the dangers of carrying around large wads of cash.

With a reputable provider, you should have around-the-clock support services. This means you can cancel the card and possibly get refunded on your losses if you were to lose your card while travelling.

You can also load your card with your choice of currency when rates are most favourable and since you are using it as an ATM card there are no big commissions to worry about. This makes a travel money card a rather cost-effective option.

Pros: Safe, convenient, cost-effective
Cons: less convenient than cash

__________

1st Contact Forex offers both conventional travel cash and a pre-paid travel money card. Either option will allow you take advantage of our great rates.

Why use the 1st Contact Travel Money Card?

The 1st Contact Travel Money Card is a MasterCard debit card, but because it’s pre-loaded with your destination’s currency – at great exchange rates – you can pay like a local and save money for more important things, like savouring the local cuisine or enjoying the sights.

• Excellent exchange rates, guaranteed
• No fees for paying at shops or restaurants while abroad
• No commission charges on transactions
• Standard low charge for ATM withdrawals

To get your Travel Money Card or view our great exchange rates, visit www.1stcontactforex.com or call 0808 141 2309 to find out more.

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How does it work?

The 1^st Contact Euro Travel Money Card is essentially a MasterCard Debit Card pre-loaded with Euro, so you’ll be paying like a local and saving on high bank charges and commissions, leaving you more cash to spend on your travels!

A money-saving fee structure

Unlike many other foreign exchange products, the 1^st Contact Travel Money Card charges no commission, and there are no charges for swiping the card in restaurants or shops in Europe. In fact, the only charges are for the purchase of the card (€ 12.50), a small fee for ATM withdrawals and a small card replacement fee, should you lose your card.

Save up before your holiday

One of the great benefits of the Card is that you can load money onto it in the weeks leading up to your holiday, and because it can only be used in Europe, you won’t be tempted to spend your travel money before you leave!

Easily manage your money

You have the option of managing your Travel Money Card via our secure online system or via SMS. Load funds, transfer money or check your balances any time, day or night, as often as you like.

Excellent, transparent Exchange Rates

With 1^st Contact Forex, the rate you see online when you load your money is the exact rate you’ll get, so there’ll be no nasty surprises when you check your balances. And because of the buying power of 1^st Contact Forex, you are also guaranteed one of the best exchange rates available, meaning an even greater saving!

Rand and Dollar Card options available

If you’re planning to visit South Africa or the United States, we also offer Travel Money Card for these destinations, with all the benefits of the Euro Card!

For more information or to order your 1^st Contact Travel Money Card, visit www.1stcontactforex.com, or call  0808 141 1685

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But leading migration and financial services group 1st Contact has come up with a solution that will not only save you a lot of trouble but money too.

It’s called the “Travel Money Card” – a sleek, black, easy-to-use Prepaid Mastercard, which works like your regular debit card, only loaded with the Forex of the country you’re visiting.

Travel Money Card

Each card is designed to load one particular currency, Sterling, US Dollars or Euros for easy use in shops, theatres and restaurants.

The exchange rate is totally secure, remaining at the rate it was the day you loaded the money onto the card for the entire time you use it. 1^st Contact’s Forex Manager Ernst Janse van Rensburg promises you will receive the best travel exchange rates available, guaranteed!

To ensure you get the most of your hard earned money, the “Travel Money Card” does not have any charge for purchasing transactions. There is also no commission levy when you either load or pay in countries outside of the United Kingdom and it only takes a nominal amount to withdraw from the ATM.

The chip and pin system makes this card one of the safest ways to carry money around on your travels, and if you inadvertently lose it, it only takes a quick text message to cancel the card.

Its easy-to-load system online and via text means that you don’t have the hassle of waiting in queues, making your traveling experience quicker and easier all round.

For more information, contact 1^st Contact Forex on http://www.1stcontactforex.com/

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1st Contact Forex, the pioneers of this secure 3D platform in the remittance market, have introduced this innovation as an addition to its existing Forex service offering, at rates below those of banks, with zero receiving fees and every fifth transfer free.

The portal is seen as the most secure online portal available today, and with accreditations from Mastercard and Visa, 100% security is guaranteed.

According to Ernst Janse van Rensburg, 1st Contact’s Forex manager, “the new online platform offers individuals a unique opportunity to secure an exact exchange rate online. Our rate notifier is designed to send text messages to clients when a desired exchange rate is reached”.

Being fully customised, with a dynamic dashboard feature, the system responds to the unique status of each customer. From a South African perspective SARS (South African Revenue Service) require additional checks for South African recipients, which are all taken care of in this new site. Debit cards can be used, by simply registering them online, without any additional administration.

1st Contact has been at the forefront of leading the advance of safety standards in Forex and money transfer services and believes new innovations like the 3D secure debit system are crucial.  According to Janse van Rensburg, during these financially trying times, individuals need to be assured that their hard earned cash is in the safest hands.

1st Contact does warn that a multitude of foreign exchange and money transfer companies are guilty of making false claims that lure unsuspecting consumers into a transaction environment that does not meet online safety standards of excellence.

Such false claims include services that promise ‘inter bank’ exchange rates to individuals that are simply impossible to secure, resulting in grave disappointment when the actual funds that clear into the individual’s bank account are less or different to what they had originally anticipated ”, says Janse van Rensburg.

For more information on how other Forex companies are making false claims and how to safeguard against this, view 1st Contacts article covering this issue.

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Ernst Janse van Rensburg, 1st Contact Forex manager explains that ‘interbank rates’ are exchange rates that the banks use to trade with each other. No individual consumer could ever hope to secure this rate. The difference between the actual rates that consumers receive and the interbank rate is termed the ‘spread’. The spread is thus the profit that money transmitting companies would make from consumers.

“interbank rates’ are exchange rates that the banks use to trade…”

Janse van Rensburg says “Forex and Money Transfer companies make a profit by reselling Forex at a higher rate than what they purchased it for and the inter bank rate is what they have purchased it at. It is therefore logical to conclude that inter bank rates are simply inaccessible to consumers”.

Janse van Rensburg further explains that exchange rates are changing every second, where markets can move by 2% in ten minutes. As such it is impossible for most providers to guarantee a fixed rate to an individual, as by the time the funds have cleared into their bank account; the exchange rate would have changed (which could either be favorable or unfavorable, depending on market related conditions). It can therefore be stated that market fluctuations create risk in money transfer initiatives.

1st Contact has engineered an industry first online platform, enabling consumers to transfer their money to international destinations of their choice through the use of their debit cards. The system ensures an instant transaction, as once the transaction is completed, currency is bought instantly (there are no time differences). This takes away all of the risk associated with transferring money to international destinations together with securing preferable rates.

1st Contact urges individuals to be aware of any Forex companies that advertise inter bank rates, as not only does this lack transparency, but these rates are impossible to secure. 1st Contact strongly advises consumers to always double check whether the rates advertised are inter bank rates or the actual rates that will be secured and reflected in their bank accounts.

For more information on Forex related issues or to initiate an online money transfer transaction, please visit www.1stcontactforex.com

Phone:
0800 856 2470 (free phone within the UK)
1800 835 148 (free phone within Australia)

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