Exchange rates, USD, and the costs associated with transacting in the domain name biz

[GUA]

So..

Most people deal in USD within the domain name business.

I am however from the UK so need GBP.

When I last sold a domain I lost a lot of money because the exchange rate that my bank offers is unfavourable relative to the actual rate.

As such I want to work out the optimal way to transact in the business.

So. I have an $8,800 sale going through Escrow. My bank will give me a GBP -> USD rate of 1.6393 to receive USD meaning Ill get £5368.

To convert from GBP to USD they'd offer a 1.5358 rate so if I converted it back, I'd get $8,244 I.E I'd lose $550 which is ridiculous.. a deal breaker.

So from this sale I want half in GBP to live off, and half kept in USD to reinvest.

My bank offers a USD account (with a monthly charge ) so I could keep the amount is USD and then convert whatever I actually need to GBP at their unfavourable rate. This however is still not ideal.

Can anyone propose a way that I can transact in USD and not lose out like this.. Otherwise it isn't worth transacting..

Thanks
THomas

 

[tetrapak]

Ideally you should look for a bank with better exchange rates. 6.3% difference is huge. At my bank the same number is 1.5%, which I still don't like, but it's not a horror. 6.3% is!

 

[Jeroen]

Paypal allows multiple currencies in a single account but I guess may not be an option for you.

Btw, its more than annoying that Sedo doesn't let you choose 'your preferred' transfer currency.

 

[jasdon11]

You can get a pre paid mastercard USD card and a GBP one. Have the money paid onto the card you will get an account number and sort code from the issuer so it's the same as it being paid into a bank.

Never done this myself but have just got the cards to see how it goes. I got a EUR card too while I was at it.

You can convert the $ to £ if the ex rate becomes favourable, or just keep the $ for purchases if it doesn't.