Exchange firm offers fairer deal
CurrencyFair is set to raise several million dollars in a bid to almost double its global workforce and stage a marketing campaign exposing bank rip-offs.
The peer-to-peer currency exchange, founded by WA-born entrepreneur Brett Meyers, is finalising a deal with a British venture capital firm to help it increase staff in NSW and its headquarters in Dublin, Ireland.
Mr Meyers said the 53-strong workforce was set to jump to up to 100 by September.
The company launched in 2010 with just four people, increasing to 23 by the start of 2014 and 46 earlier this year.
The fast pace of growth follows the surging popularity of the exchange system that saves customers up to 90 per cent on the charges imposed by banks.
The company has so far exchanged $2.5 billion and estimates it has saved customers about $140 million in fees.
Mr Meyers, an ex-banker, said the idea for the fintech was born out of the frustration he experienced as an ex-pat trying to exchange Australian dollars.
"For Australian banks to be charging 5 or 5.5 per cent is insane," Mr Meyers said.
"The European banks are bad and they charge 3 per cent, like the American banks."
Mr Meyers said a marketing campaign later this year would highlight hidden charges in bank currency transfers.
"The way this industry is structured is that the margin is in the exchange rate," he said. "So people don't automatically know when they see (one of the Big Four banks) is giving them 67¢ that someone else could be giving them 71¢ for their dollar."
CurrencyFair is the only exchange system to operate a unique model where customers can either accept an advertised exchange rate or wait in the marketplace for a better rate.
