Can I easily use Bitcoin as a inexpensive way to transfer my money into another currency?

Question

I have a home business in the US and I am spending a significant amount of time in Europe.I have both a US and a EU bank account as well as a coinbase account. I am wondering if I can by bitcoins in USD and then sell them back to my EU bank account in Euro? My normal bank charges $35 plus they give me an exchange rate 4.5% more than the market. So, for each $1,000 I send, I pay almost $45 in exchange fees plus the $35 transfer fee...I am wondering if using bitcoin can help me significantly reduce my costs for this type of international money movement? has anyone done this and can you tell me of any problems or pitfalls? Thank you!

Answer 1

I have done this successfully in the past, just like you for USD to EUR. You'll pay probably pay around 0.5% to move USD into Bitcoin, then another 0.5% to move them to Euro. In any case, you should probably be able to stay below $80 on $1000. ;)

You might need a bank account denominated in Euros though, and it will take a few days. (For me it was something like 20 minutes for the exchange to confirm that the bank transfer to my account was on the way and two days until it was in my account.) Depending on the price movement of Bitcoin you might win or lose additional points.

I did this almost three years ago, so maybe it's not quite as easy anymore with the increased AML and KYC going on.

Answer 2

You can also get a Xapo account, create a Wallet and request their debit card associated with this wallet. Once you get your Xapo debit card you can transfer BTC to the associated wallet and:

1. Spend EUR directly from the debit card (no fee if the debit is in the same currency as the card)
2. Withdraw EUR bills from an ATM which you can use later or deposit in your European bank.

There is a certain limit of money (~2500 EUR) you can spend with this card without an identity proof, but you can try it first, and if you like how it works, you can send your proofs to Xapo later.