XE Money Transfer Review (XE.COM)

By 
Matt Di Vincere (Chief Editor)
Last Edited Sep 11, 2023

Should I use XE for money transfers?

Cons:

  • No Industry Awards
  • Has Fixed Fees for Low Value Payments (Competitors Normally Have £0 Flat Fee Policy)
  • Access to Private Dedicated Dealer Requires $70,000 Min Transfer
  • App Difficulties on Google Play Store
  • Less Transparent Compared to Competitors Like Wise
  • Less Tech-focused Compared to Competitors Like Wise
  • No Virtual Bank Accounts

Pros:

  • Operating Since 1993
  • Owned by Industry Giant Euronet Worldwide
  • Provided by HiFX Since 2019, Fully Regulated in All Jurisdictions Present
  • Great Customer Reviews
  • HiFX (merged into XE) had Strong Reputation

Services Offered by XE Money Transfer

Transfer Money Abroad to a Bank Account  + 5

Official Website:

XE Review: Our Opinion

XE has long been a trusted name in the currency world. It has provided live currency rates since the 1990s and whether it is checking a rate before we go on holiday or making a payment overseas, there’s a strong chance we haveve used the Xe rate feed at some point in our lives.

As a money transfer provider, they have evolved from a white-label service to a notable money transfer company in their own right. They combined forces with the established HiFX and are now fully regulated to send payments in countries all over the world.

However, while we appreciate their reliability, we have noticed they do not always boast the most competitive rates or top industry accolades. Xe is a solid choice but our expert comparison has found better alternatives across all currency verticals. Read our full Xe review to learn more.

Overall ratingN/A
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Updated on Sep 11, 2023

Not Top 10 Ranked

🏆 No Industry Awards

Where is XE Money Transfer Available?

Xe Money Transfer: Alternatives & Competitors

There are many Xe alternatives out there. In fact, we have reviewed 80+ Xe money transfer competitors in our international money transfer comparison process. Indeed, Xe Money Transfer is completely safe to use, and HiFX was considered a highly respected currency broker before its merger into xe.com, but we believe the following Xe Money Transfer alternatives are able to provide an overall better level of service:

Currencies Direct
  • Min Transfer: £/€/$ 100
  • Currencies Supported: 39
  • Offices : UK, EU, USA, India, South Africa.
  • Our Rating : 97.8%
  • Most Global Offices and Reach

    No Fees from Anywhere and Competitive Rates

    96% Client Satisfaction
TorFX
  • Min Transfer: £/€ 100
  • Currencies Supported: 40
  • Offices : UK, EU, Singapore, and Australia.
  • Our Rating : 93.4%
  • High Quality Bespoke Service

    MoneyFact's Best Provider Award

    Over 100 Years of FX Experience Across Its Trading Desk
moneycorp
  • Min Transfer: £/€/$ 50
  • Currencies Supported: 120
  • Offices : UK, EU, USA, HK, and UAE.
  • Our Rating : 92.8%
  • Business Oriented, Many High Profile Business Customers

    Industry Veteran since 1979

    Diverse Hedging Options and Excellent Guidance

Found a Better Alternative? Closing your Xe Account?

If you are an existing Xe money transfer client and would like to close down your XE account – read this manual.

XE Money Transfer FAQ

+Are XE and HiFX the same business?

Yes, when Euronet acquired both XE and HiFX they merged the two firms. HiFX now trades under the XE brand.

+Is XE suitable for private clients?

Yes, XE can be used by private clients but the private solution is predominantly online. Individuals looking to speak with an account manager and trade over the telephone should consider Currencies Direct.

+What are XE’s strengths against its competitors?

XE’s brand is definitely its strong point – as a global leader in exchange rate information it has leveraged its position to offer money transfers too.

+What are XE’s weaknesses against its competitors?

Customer service is not considered as strong as when the firm was operating as HiFX, at least based on recent client reviews on Money Transfer Comparison and other client review sites. Some users have also complained that the spreads are not as competitive as they used to be, driving the cost of the transfer up. Transparent spreads and fees can be found with WorldFirst.

Wise vs Xe: How the Two Compare?

Wise (formerly TransferWise) vs XE pits two of the biggest brands in the FX industry against each other. While XE initially gained popularity for its foreign exchange data services, its money transfer capabilities came into the spotlight later. Moreover, the advantages of using XE have been significantly influenced by their merger with HiFX, rather than its prowess in providing foreign exchange data.

It’s also worth noting that many of XE’s unique selling points are only accessible to corporate clients.The ability to trade options and receive dedicated dealer guidance through XE is not available to private clients. XE’s offerings for private individuals lean more towards a digital approach. For those inclined towards a digital solution, Wise might be the preferable choice. Its user-friendly interface and competitive pricing make it an excellent choice for spot transfers, which are payments initiated at the time of booking.

As a private client, it is possible to speak with a customer service rep through both firms but expect long hold times. Wise prefers to steer customers to the online chat in the first instance, whilst locating the email and telephone contact channels through XE proves difficult. For businesses or individuals keen on managing  balances in multiple currencies, the Wise borderless account deserves mention. This multi-currency digital bank account enables users to send and receive payments through a digital bank account held in their name. XE has no similar competing product. Thus, the question of TransferWise vs XE really depends on what the clients’ requirements are.

Is XE Money Transfer Safe?

Company Story:  

XE.com, established in 1993 in Ontario, Canada, is one of the internet’s first currency exchange rate providers. Nowadays, there are hundreds of websites offering up-to-date information (we also have our own foreign currency rates section), but back when XE was established, there were none.

Between 1993 and 2002, together with the popularization of the internet, XE.com became a synonym for everything currency related. It created a variety of tools, graphs, and APIs that many companies were happy to pay a monthly subscription fee in order to gain access.

In 2002 XE launched XE Trade, an online international money transfer service that operated as a white label of a well known foreign exchange company. Xe continues to sell currency data packages to companies, but money transfers have supposedly become the company’s main revenue stream.

In July 2015 XE.com was bought by Euronet, the owners of HiFX and Ria Money Transfer (among others). The company employed 20-30 staff in Canada prior to the purchase and is now estimated to have around 350 employees in 2023. Last year the Euronet group processed over $125 billion in transfer volumes (up on the $113 billion processed in 2021). It’s not clear exactly how much XE transferred itself.

In 2022, XE launched the added feature of Cash Pick Up for recipients. Cash pickup allows Xe users to send money to a recipient quickly and in physical form. As a sender, simply pick the amount of money to send and once the transaction is paid for, XE will generate a PIN number. The recipient can then go to a selected destination and pick up the money using the PIN number.

The cash pick up network will have already been established by Ria Money Transfer. It is not surprising to see Euronet leveraging the capabilities it has within the group to offer its existing capabilities under a new brand. This is exactly what the group did with HiFX and we’re sure it will only serve to boost Xe and group revenue.

There has been little by way of product development for the firm in 2023 but current statistics about XE’s parent company, EuroNet Worldwide, are available through their 2022 Annual Report:

  • More than 8,000 employees.
  • More than 50,000 operated ATMs.
  • More than 613,000 Point of Sale Terminals.
  • More than 8160,000 ePay Point of Sale Terminals.
  • Revenue of $3.4bn USD with an EBITDA of $594.7m.
  • Money transfers accounted for 43% of group revenue – $1.46bn
  • 13% increase in US-outbound money transfers

A Closer Look at Xe’s Business Model and Ownership:

Euronet Worldwide Inc. (Nasdaq: EEFT) is a large money transfer company worth US$4 billion by market capitalisation and handling over $125 billion in cash per year across 155 countries. Euronet acquired XE.com in a cash and shares deal worth around $100 million. Once Euronet owned both HiFX and XE.com it made the decision to remove Western Union as XE’s money transfer provider and utilise the in-group capabilities of HiFX.

Established in 1998, HiFX was one of the first non-bank currency brokers to be established and was a well-known global provider of foreign exchange for many years. The Euronet takeover allowed XE.com’s online brand to be matched with HiFX’s reputation and market position. The improvement in customer feedback since XE has been run by HiFX indicates it was the right decision by Euronet to merge the two brands.

XE earns revenue from two services tied to currency exchange rates: currency data and international payments. XE earns subscription-based fees for delivering global currency exchange rate data through its proprietary currency data API. XE then earns transaction-based revenue from XE Money Transfers, its online international payments service made available to businesses and consumers through the HiFX team who have now rebranded to XE Money Transfers too.

XE’s Announcement on Moving to HiFX in 2016:

xehifx

XE Money update as of January 2019:


Regulated By: 

XE Money Transfer, now provided by HiFX, is regulated in the UK, Europe, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Adding to XE’s existing licenses in the US.

Following the loss of EU financial passporting rights for the UK, XE Money Transfer for individuals in the European Union is now provided by Xe Europe B.V. which is supervised by the Netherlands Central Bank for the provision of payment services.

In its younger years and prior to using HiFX as their payment provider (as part of the acquisition by Euronet Worldwide), XE worked with Western Union. Which is also, of course, fully regulated, being the largest non-bank money transmitter in the world.


Conclusion: 

xe.com a is a well-established player on the foreign exchange scene and is a trustworthy choice considering how long it has been operating. It is extremely well-known as the world’s currency authority (its motto is “The World’s Trusted Currency Authority”) and since 2016, Xe Money Transfer has been delivered by HiFX, who are regulated by the FCA in the UK and all relevant regulators in the jurisdictions it operates.

Xe Money Transfers is owned by publicly listed EuroNet which is one of the world’s largest payment giants, and is absolutely safe to use.

This is preferable to the previous set up where customers of XE would be reliant on XE.com choosing the right outsourced FX partner to provide a white-labelled service for their money transfer service. However, even despite the move, XE is still not listed as one of the best money transfer companies to provide the service.

XE Customer Reviews

Research:

As of 2023, there are over 62,000 TrustPilot reviews which are 91% positive (down on the 94% which were positive in 2022 and even further down on the 96% positive in 2021). 3% rate the service as average and 6% rate the service as bad. Overall, XE is rated as 4.3/5 on the platform which is pretty good.

With the strong XE brand, usage of the service and indeed the number of reviews appear much higher than before. Within the last year alone, the company has amassed an additional 9,000 reviews. In 2022, the firm received 8,000.

For the sake of comparison, a company like TorFX has around 7,000 verified reviews in total on TrustPilot but achieves a higher review score of 4.9 / 5.


Positive:
Clients who loved XE Money Transfer (formerly XE Trade) said the following:

  • They like to stick to the bigger, better-known brands
  • Rates were excellent
  • Service is safe to use
  • The transaction went smoothly
Negative:

Dissatisfied clients have reported the following faults:

  • Some clients complaining that the online system is not as easy to use as before
  • Rates appear to have been raised for some HiFX clients since the migration to XE
  • Some trades are taking too long to go through
  • Clients are not forwarded to the managers if they want to speak to a higher authority within the company
  • Clients receive less money than they anticipated

Conclusion:

Just over 6% of the Xe reviews we have discovered online are negative, detailing a number of reasons for their poor rating: non-responsive staff, poor rates, and a tricky online platform. This means there are around 3,500 bad Xe reviews, which is certainly a significant amount and means XE has more bad reviews than the majority of other money transfer companies on the market.

On the flip side, we also have to consider that with over 55,000 positive reviews, XE has more positive reviews than virtually any other money transfer company. The 4.3/5 Trustpilot rating is below that of currency brokers who are known to focus heavily on client service, like Currencies Direct and Key Currency, who both enjoy a 4.9/5 rating on the same platform.. The positive reviewers are extremely satisfied with the service they have received, the rates, and every other aspect. The positive XE reviews really like the speed and ease in which transfers are made.

It’s worth noting that there are additional reviews in the comments section of our very own XE review. These are non-verified clients but it has to be said the vast majority of them are negative, most of the comments are reporting significant delays with their transfers.

Xe Exchange Rates & Fees

Fees: For large transfers, there are generally no payment fees. For smaller transfers, there appears to be a 1.99 GBP fee from the UK and a similar currency equivalent from other jurisdictions.

Xe Exchange Rates

 

Source: help.xe.com

The fees are quite reasonable, especially considering they only apply when a small sum is sent. They are far better than the payment fees charged by banks but companies like Currencies Direct have a flat, no-fee structure for transfers of any size.

Fees do apply when using Xe’s cash pick up service.

XE Exchange rates: Xe generates most of its revenue from the FX spread it charges clients. The exchange rates which Xe uses are not visible on the website. You have to register and access the online system, or speak to a phone representative, to get the current rates. These rates depend on the currencies and the volume of trading.

If we were to look into the 100+ Xe reviews that were collated on our website, we can see mixed opinions about the exchange rates used by XE. One user comment mentions a 1% margin “below the bank rate” (we suppose that’s the interbank rate that the reader is referring to). This is somewhat average for the industry, although it really depends on the volumes sent and currencies involved. Another user comment from 2022 is much more positive and says “the exchange rate was incredible”.

Limits: Xe implements an individual transaction limit for online payments which differs depending on the currency sent. As of 2023, the limits are as follows:

RegionXE Single Transaction Limit (Online)
UK & EuropeGBP 350,000
USUSD 535,000
CanadaCAD 535,000
Australia & New ZealandNZD 750,000

Customers who send at least $50,000 USD a year will have access to a dedicated dealing team and can place trades with no limit over the phone.


Conclusion: 

There are generally no payment fees when making a bank-to-bank international transfer with Xe. The only exception to this is when very small payments are sent and a small payment fee applies. Some brokers counteract their ‘no-fee’ policy by implementing a minimum transfer of $1,000+ so we don’t see it as a particularly bad thing that Xe chooses to allow customers to make smaller payments but offsets this with a small fee. The online limits are unlikely to put off too many prospective customers as people generally prefer to speak to somebody over the phone before parting with hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Judging by the client reviews we could find online, the FX spread applied by Xe seems to be about the norm for an online money transfer website or currency broker.

XE Money Transfer Offices & Global Presence

Research:

  • Dedicated Dealer: Yes (HiFX dealer when sending $50,000 or more – high hurdle compared to others).
  • Offices: UK, Spain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand
  • Ways to Approach: Telephone, online and via email.
  • Translations: No.
  • Accepts Clients: Worldwide.
  • Currencies Handled: 98+.
  • Client Reviews: Majority are positive post HiFX rebrand

Conclusion:

Now that XE is beginning to use the payment capabilities of another Euronet company, Ria Money Transfer, they’ve been able to drastically improve their remittance offering, i.e. private client transfers to low and middle income countries. Throughout 2020 and 2021, XE announced a number of new payment channels through their partner Ria. New payment destinations include:

  • Bhutan
  • Chile
  • Columbia
  • Costa Rica
  • Dominican Republic
  • The Gambia
  • Guatemala
  • India
  • Mozambique
  • Nepal
  • Paraguay
  • Philippines
  • Rwanda
  • Sri Lanka
  • Tanzania
  • Uganda
  • Uruguay
  • Vietnam

Updates to the Xe product offering have gone very quiet in 2022 and 2023.

The Xe Money Transfer service accepts clients internationally with no real limitations. Their main focus is on clients from North America, Australia-NZ, the EU, and the UK. There are different pages on the money transfer section on Xe.com devoted to people from these different locales but the content is highly similar between each location. The primary difference is the end-user agreement depending on which region the client is based in.

Since HiFX came under the XE name it means XE is in the UK, Spain, Australia and New Zealand in addition to their original office in Canada.  This is a marked improvement from before when it was just Canada in which it held an office, and is a fairly consistent map of coverage that’s in line with the biggest providers in the market today. For the sake of comparison, its highly-rated competitor Currencies Direct boasts offices in 4 continents, with 7 functioning offices in total.

By adding Ria money transfer payment capabilities, Xe combines the benefits a traditional currency brokerage such as HiFX can provide, with the extensive payment network across the globe that a large remittance company such as Ria can provide. The result should be quite exciting for customers, leaving them confident that Xe is no longer just for payments between the major currency corridors.

Additional Functionalities

Xe.com operates arguably the best online currency exchange calculator and has everything relating to this aspect – historical currency rates, currency charts, rate alerts, currency transfer and exchange apps, API’s, and more. All of the aforementioned services are great but fall outside the realm of making an international money transfer.

Specifically within international money transfers, XE offers the following: option contracts, forward contracts, regular payments, mass payments, an online trading system and of course, spot transactions. Like most FX transfer companies who offer options, these are only available to corporate clients. Xe is also one of the few brokers that can offer credit lines to corporate customers. In fact it can grant credit facilities for up to 5 years, meaning clients may not have to provide a deposit for every forward or options contract they book. Corporate FX customers can also process mass payments via API.

Conclusion:

For private clients, the Xe Trade online system is similar in function to Wise and Currencyfair. You can use the online system to move money from point A to point B with no trouble.

The suite of products available to corporate clients is comprehensive and clearly showcases the value that HiFX has brought to XE. Specialist market intelligence and a dedicated team that can discuss bespoke FX risk management strategies is just what we expect from a large money transfer brand. Much like the corporate services provided by Moneycorp and Corpay.

Review Summary

Bottom Line

XE is one of the biggest brands in this space and its parent company Euronet is a payments juggernaut.

XE has some of the highest number of client reviews of any money transfer company in existence today. This can be looked at twofold – the firm has more negative reviews than can be found elsewhere but it also has more positive reviews than can be found elsewhere. Overall, a 4.3/5 satisfaction score is pretty good, however it’s most certainly not the strongest in the industry. We’ve already detailed a number of providers in this Xe review, like Key Currency, who enjoy a better client rating.

Given that the private offering is largely online, private clients may prefer the better exchange rates offered by the online-only service by Wise or the benefits of both a good online trading platform and telephone trading service offered by Currencies Direct. For private clients, we do get the sense that XE gets a little caught between being a traditional currency broker and an online-focused digital money transfer company.

Corporates will enjoy the comprehensive suite of payment options, as well as the regular flow of market intelligence and the experience of XE (formerly HiFX) staff. XE’s ability to offer credit lines will also appeal and shows how a money transfer company that’s as large as XE can start to compete with a bank-level offering.

Readers who are keen to use a money transfer company that has been verified and approved by us can use the button below to discover the top recommended companies on our website.

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