Doc67 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 01, 2023 2:26 pm I went to the money exchanges and got a shock this morning.

Philippines Pesos (PHP) spot rate is 54.67. They offered 51 or 50 per $. That is a 7% & 8.5% spread respectively which is UK Bureau de Change rates.

Does anyone know why the PHP rate is so uncompetitive?

Anyhoo, does anyone know how competitive local money changers/banks are? The websites of Bank of the Philippines Islands (BPI) show very tight PHP/USD rates but I suspect these are electronic only. I doubt cash would be that tight.

I was thinking of using my Wise card with PHP loaded up at the spot rate. However, they charge 1.75% for cash withdrawals after the first £200 and I really don't want to carry a card around paying everything with a card. I like cash in my pocket, not plastic, especially as the internet is a bit dodgy where I am going.

Any suggestions??

truffledog wrote: ↑Wed Feb 01, 2023 4:47 pm

Doc67 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 01, 2023 2:26 pm I went to the money exchanges and got a shock this morning.

Philippines Pesos (PHP) spot rate is 54.67. They offered 51 or 50 per $. That is a 7% & 8.5% spread respectively which is UK Bureau de Change rates.

Does anyone know why the PHP rate is so uncompetitive?

Anyhoo, does anyone know how competitive local money changers/banks are? The websites of Bank of the Philippines Islands (BPI) show very tight PHP/USD rates but I suspect these are electronic only. I doubt cash would be that tight.

I was thinking of using my Wise card with PHP loaded up at the spot rate. However, they charge 1.75% for cash withdrawals after the first £200 and I really don't want to carry a card around paying everything with a card. I like cash in my pocket, not plastic, especially as the internet is a bit dodgy where I am going.

Any suggestions??

Wise Card or any plastic:

Philpppines still has a very high rate of cash business, Digital payments (share around 20%) are on the rise but still a small fraction of total payments (the country still has a 66% unbanked population).

PHP cash

I have noted on many occasions that it is nearly impossible to change PHP cash back into anything at reasonable rates once you leave the Philippines. The spread between buying/selling at popular banks was much more than for other currencies. This shows that bank and moneychangers do not trust the PHP at all and this riks is factored into the spread.

I found the Philippines are very hard place to change anything else than $ into PHP, this is especially true if you leave the beaten track. Island money changers will rip you off, the farther you are from Manila, the worse it gets. For cash withdrawls (at unusual places) with credit card (sometimes even for normal payments!) many operators (hotels, restaurants, dive shops, etc) will charge you an extra 5-10% on top of the usual credit card commissions charged to you directly.

I would usually get 50-100K PHP in Manila (Makati or Ermita area) and have another 1000 US in large bills cash as backup. Rarely used any of my plastic (only for flights/ferry or large hotel bills or big purchases).

Doc67 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 01, 2023 2:26 pm I went to the money exchanges and got a shock this morning.

Philippines Pesos (PHP) spot rate is 54.67. They offered 51 or 50 per $. That is a 7% & 8.5% spread respectively which is UK Bureau de Change rates.

Does anyone know why the PHP rate is so uncompetitive?

Anyhoo, does anyone know how competitive local money changers/banks are? The websites of Bank of the Philippines Islands (BPI) show very tight PHP/USD rates but I suspect these are electronic only. I doubt cash would be that tight.

I was thinking of using my Wise card with PHP loaded up at the spot rate. However, they charge 1.75% for cash withdrawals after the first £200 and I really don't want to carry a card around paying everything with a card. I like cash in my pocket, not plastic, especially as the internet is a bit dodgy where I am going.

Any suggestions??