FAQs

Unlike many other exchange services, Foreign Currency Partners is founded post-Brexit. Everything we do is built around the here and now, so we remain smart and agile in helping you continue to fulfil your ambitions with confidence and peace of mind. We still have all the experience, expertise, specialist tools and insight you’d expect but with a very modern take and a hands-on personal touch.

Yes. Most banks are generalists, offering many services to thousands of customers large and small. They’re unlikely to have the time and manpower to offer the sort of bespoke solutions a specialist service like ours can. We are dedicated to customers who have a specific need for overseas payments. We don’t do anything else. That means we are more attentive and our service is more streamlined and cost-effective.

With an online account with Foreign Currency Partners, you’ll be assigned your own personal account manager. They’ll be your personal expert through the exchange market. Depending on the services you need, your account manager will find and agree rates with you and confirm your orders.

Then you will supply us with dates, amounts and beneficiary account details before sending your funds to your FCP client account. For spot contracts, your foreign currency is sent to your beneficiary account as soon as your funds have cleared*. For other contracts, funds will transfer at set dates and rates, or when the prevailing exchange rate hits a certain pre-set mark agreed with you. It can all be done over the phone or online. It’s easy.

*After receiving your funds, transfers to recipient accounts can take between 1-3 days depending on the currencies involved and the destination of the recipient account.

The safety of our customers’ funds is our over-riding priority. We operate segregated client accounts adopting stringent compliance procedures. Please visit our Security page for more detail about how we keep your funds secure.

Whether or not you go ahead and make a transfer, opening an account with Foreign Currency Partners is easy. You are under no obligation to make a transfer, but if you do we guarantee you competitive rates.

In some cases, a third party may levy a small fee. Although this is outside our control, we will make any such charges completely clear to you from the outset.

Foreign currency markets shift constantly, and often suddenly. By the law of averages this is as likely to be in your favour as against you. But for most people avoiding the negative shocks is the most important thing. We have a range of options to help give you peace of mind by fixing rates, or, if you have time, holding out for a more competitive rate. It all depends on your personal circumstances and what you need to achieve. Talk to us about the best combination for you.

This is where a Foreign Currency Partners account manager comes into their own. Because they take time to get to know you, they will constantly monitor the market so you don’t have to. They’ll get in contact if the market shifts in your favour. No-one can predict exactly how a currency will perform in the future, but with FCP you will have an expert ally to help you make sure you make the most of your money.

Reimbursement for Victims of APP Fraud

On 7 October 2024, the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) introduced a series of requirements regarding the reimbursement of individuals who fall victim to authorised push payment fraud (APP fraud), up to a limit of £85,000, contingent on certain criteria being met.

These new rules, which apply across the financial services sector, have been developed to facilitate the implementation of a fair, consistent, and unified approach to APP fraud throughout the industry.

What is Authorised Push Payment Fraud (APP Fraud)?

Authorised Push Payment Fraud, or APP Fraud, is the term used to describe a prominent type of financial scam, whereby the victim is tricked into transferring funds directly from their own account and into the scammer’s bank account.

APP fraud can take many forms; however, these can broadly be divided into two types:

• fraudulent purchase scams, whereby the victim is tricked into paying for goods or services which don’t exist, or are never received; and,
• impersonation scams, whereby the scammer redirects the victim’s funds into their own account by pretending to be a trusted entity like HMRC, your bank, or another trusted organisation.

What’s Covered by the Rules?

The rules cover fraudulent APP transactions, executed on or after 7 October 2024, by way of Faster Payments (FPS) or Clearing House Automated Payments (CHAPS) to a UK account, through your FCP:

• personal account; or,
• business account, where your company generates an annual turnover of less than €2 million (approximately £1.7 million) and employs fewer than 10 members of staff.

What’s Not Covered by the Rules?

The rules don’t cover:

• payments made to international accounts (or wallets), credit unions, municipal banks, or national savings banks;
• payment made to an account which you control;
• claims which you have misrepresented or falsified;
• claims pertaining to circumstances in which you have been grossly negligent;
• fraud which you have reported more than 13 months after the final payment to the fraudster;
• civil disputes, such as circumstances wherein you’ve made a payment to a business or individual and are unhappy with the product or service received; or,
• unlawful payments which you’ve made for goods or services, i.e., where the payment which you have made is for an illegal item.

For the avoidance of doubt, payments made before 7 October 2024 are not covered by the new rules; however, we would encourage that you still report any such occurrences of fraud so that we might better assist you.

Here’s How We’re Responding

If, as an FCP client, you submit an eligible APP fraud claim to us:

• we will reimburse you for the funds lost through the fraudulent activity up to a maximum of £85,000; and,
• we will reimburse you within 5 business days, however, more complicated cases may require up to 35 days to enable adequate investigation.

We will also revise our Terms and Conditions to reflect these new measures.

What to do if you fall Victim to APP Fraud?

If you think that you’ve been the target of an APP scam, it’s important that you notify us as quickly as possible.

To do so, please contact us via:

• telephone on 01442 804620;
• your dedicated relationship manager; or,
• email at hello@foreigncurrencypartners.co.uk.

In order to support your claim, we may need to gather further information from you, including discussing your claim and any relevant personal information, with the appropriate sending or receiving financial services provider.

How to Protect Yourself

FCP is committed to preventing fraud through the systems and controls which we implement for the detection and prevention of certain scams. However, you also play a vital role in protecting your finances and should be on the lookout for the following.  

• Phishing communications: always exercise caution when receiving unexpected calls, texts, or emails. We will never text you and, if you’re unsure whether the individual you’re speaking to over the phone is from FCP, hang-up and call us back on 01442 804620. If you’re unsure whether an email which you have received is from us, carefully check the sender’s email address. Our emails always end after the @ with: fcpglobal.co.uk
• High-pressure tactics: If you’re being pressured to make a payment quickly, or to move your savings at short notice, this is likely to be a scam. Always take steps to verify the identify of the individual contacting you, and be conscious of any circumstances in which the individual you are communicating with indicates an urgent requirement for you to act in a certain way.
• Beware of Pop-ups: We will never ask you to disclose your details, or to transfer funds, by way of online pop-up. If you receive any such pop-ups, do not click on them.
• Install Anti-virus Software: Scammers can take advantage of weaknesses in your devices to install programmes that prevent or alter your ability to use the device. Following which, they can demand a ‘ransom payment’ to restore your device to normal. Ensure that you’re using suitable anti-virus software to prevent this.

Following fraud warnings, verifying payment details, and always verifying the identity of the individual you’re communicating with prior to disclosing sensitive information or making a payment will help to protect you from falling victim to APP Fraud.

Further Support

Falling victim to fraud can be an overwhelming experience. For additional help, you can reach out to:

Citizens Advice Consumer Service

Victim Support

Age UK

If you’re dissatisfied with the resolution of your case, you have the right to file a complaint with FCP, and if needed, escalate it to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

If you feel that we have not met your expectations in the delivery of our services, or if you think we have made a mistake, please let us know. You can contact us by post, email, or over the phone, Monday- Friday 9am to 5pm (excluding Bank Holidays), using the contact details set out below.

• Write to us at Foreign Currency Partners Ltd, Sutton Court, Church Yard, Tring, HP23 5BB
• Call us on 01442 804620, or using the number of your dedicated relationship manager
• Email us at hello@foreigncurrencypartners.co.uk, or by using the email address of your relationship manager

We are committed to responding to all complaints within 1 business day of receipt, and we will work to resolve your complaint within 15 business days of receipt. In exceptional circumstances, where it will not be possible to resolve your complaint within 15 business days, we will advise you of the reason for this, and ultimately provide you with a final response to your complaint within 35 business days of receipt,

What if I am still not happy once you have responded to my complaint?

If you are not happy with how we have resolved your complaint, you may be entitled to escalate the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service. The Financial Ombudsman Service’s eligibility criteria and complaints form is available, here.

We work with Currencycloud, who ultimately provides you with regulated payments and e-money services for EU and US based clients. Currencycloud has certain obligations as a regulated financial services institution, including around complaints. We keep them informed of the complaints we receive from you regarding the regulated payments and e-money services they ultimately provide to you. They oversee how we handle complaints to ensure we do this to the standard required under the regulations. However, if for any reason your complaint regarding your payments and e-money services has not been acknowledged or dealt with by us, or if you have concerns about the way it has been handled, Currencycloud’s complaints information can be found here.