Playing with currency

[Roehl Sybing]

So, ultimately this is NSR, but it's really not, because I'm saving up for the World Cup next year.

Unless things go really bad, I typically have at least 115,000 yen remaining from my monthly salary (only mention it because I spend about 2,000 of it to wire it home to handle credit cards, so a larger exchange is more worthwhile). So far, the dollar has been up and down against the yen, but is actually not so much off from a year ago. Same story with the euro against the yen, but it has really only been up from what it was a year ago, and has been gaining strength over the euro in the past three years while the dollar has not.

The problem is I don't (think I) will have any ATM access in Germany for the one Japanese bank account I have, so unless I plan to withdraw everything in one go and walk around Germany with a ridiculously thick pile of bills, I will need to rely on my American accounts.

Exchanging money twice (yen -> dollar -> euro) seems like a very bad deal, but I'm not really sure there is much of a choice. Perhaps someone has one that would be quasi-appealing to me?

[Matt in the Hat]

So, ultimately this is NSR, but it's really not, because I'm saving up for the World Cup next year.

Unless things go really bad, I typically have at least 115,000 yen remaining from my monthly salary (only mention it because I spend about 2,000 of it to wire it home to handle credit cards, so a larger exchange is more worthwhile). So far, the dollar has been up and down against the yen, but is actually not so much off from a year ago. Same story with the euro against the yen, but it has really only been up from what it was a year ago, and has been gaining strength over the euro in the past three years while the dollar has not.

The problem is I don't (think I) will have any ATM access in Germany for the one Japanese bank account I have, so unless I plan to withdraw everything in one go and walk around Germany with a ridiculously thick pile of bills, I will need to rely on my American accounts.

Exchanging money twice (yen -> dollar -> euro) seems like a very bad deal, but I'm not really sure there is much of a choice. Perhaps someone has one that would be quasi-appealing to me?
Do all of you purchases on a Visa or Mastercard. Credit card compainies get the best exchange rates out there, due to their high transaction volume.

Then pay off everything when you get back.

[erikl2]

Do all of you purchases on a Visa or Mastercard. Credit card compainies get the best exchange rates out there, due to their high transaction volume.

Then pay off everything when you get back.

Additionally, if you need cash, use your credit card for a cash advance. Again, your credit cards should have very good exchange rates. You should verify that your credit card doesn't charge you a foreign transaction fee.

[Roehl Sybing]

No, I get charged a fee for international purchases. Seems more and more that earning money in a foreign country is completely problematic. Don't even know if I can get a credit card here and then have one less worry; every time I search for info on credit, there seems to be a comparison between recession-stricken Japan and get-credit-though-your-rating-has-gone-to-crap America.

[Sachin]

If you deal with a large Japanese bank, they may have a correspondent banking relationship with a German or French bank.

Edit to note that travellers checks may be an option as well.

Sachin

[peledre]

Do all of you purchases on a Visa or Mastercard. Credit card compainies get the best exchange rates out there, due to their high transaction volume.

Then pay off everything when you get back.
The exchange rate is great, except that we (credit card companies) charge varying rates to do the currency conversions. It ranges from 1-3%, and is just added into the amount of the charge in most cases, so you don't even know its there. If you bank (and have a credit card) with a large multinational banking group like HSBC or Citigroup call your credit company and ask about the possibility of getting a card issued by a foreign branch of the bank. I know that Citi Germany has some restrictions on who can actually get cards issued to them, but it's worth checking into.

[fdp]

...

Edit to note that travellers checks may be an option as well.

Sachin

Anyone here about the travelers checks - debit card option which I believe is now available.