IRISH people in Britain are transferring money home by the thousands, as the rate of the euro plummets.
The number of transfers made from Irish people living in Britain has risen 166 per cent since Christmas, as they take advantage of the favourable exchange rate.
The European Central Bank’s quantitative easing programme saw a purchase of country’s debts from financial institutions has seen the value of the euro drop – meaning transfers in sterling are worth more to Irish people working in Britain.
Due to the change in rate, if an Irish person was to transfer £3,000 to Ireland, they would see this turn into €4,005 approximately – compared with €3,813 on Christmas Day.
“People use CurrencyFair to send home amounts ranging from a few hundred pounds right up into to the millions but most commonly they range between €1,000 and €20,000,” said Adam Davidson, head of online marketing with CurrencyFair.
CurrencyFair, an Irish headquartered website that enables people to make international transfers at the rate that suits them best.
In the past two weeks alone, financially aware Irish people in Britain have made 70 per cent more transfers in the last two weeks alone compared to December.
“People feel their money is more valuable in pounds sterling than in euro,” Adam told The Irish Post. “They are becoming more rate savvy and thinking about the value of their earnings.”
There are currently 376,000 Irish born residents in Britain and Adam believes that many of them may be aiming to put aside some money to move home to.
“People working in the UK seem to be putting a pot away to come home to,” he said. “Those who want to send money to an account in Ireland can choose to schedule the transfer at a rate of their choice, meaning they get the most possible out of their earnings in Britain.”
The QE programme aims to see a higher circulation of money in the Eurozone which, in turn, will boost the economy of fledgling countries.
