The FCA is concerned that payment institutions and e-money institutions may have used currency converter tools in relation to their currency transfer services in a misleading way. Tools which convert currency at the interbank rate may be used in such a way as to give consumers the misleading impression that the rates shown are available to them, rather than the materially inferior rate that they are likely to achieve. Furthermore, consumers may not become fully aware of the inferior rate they are likely to achieve until an advanced stage in the customer journey, commonly after a customer registration process has been undertaken. At that stage, consumers may be unlikely to shop around.
Published date: 19 July 2017
