After years of going to South Africa for their holidays, Paul and Jennifer decided that they wanted to retire there. They had sold their home in England and had found a property near the town of George on the Garden Route at a purchase price of 2,000,000 South African rand (ZAR).

They had a couple of weeks before completion, so were happy just to watch the markets and wait for the best possible rate. They were in a strong position as they had their own ZAR account in South Africa and their funds were already in their bank account in the UK, so they could transfer funds immediately. (Even if they did not have a ZAR Account, they could still have left funds on account with Currency UK).

On the 27 October 2005, their Currency UK account manager called them to inform them that the rate for rand was weakening. Paul decided it would be a good time to buy and bought ZAR 2,000,000 at a rate of 11.9550, costing him £167,294.02. He then transferred the Sterling to Currency UK who in turn transferred the rand to his account in South Africa.

Paul and Jennifer completed the purchase of their property on 17 November. If they had waited until then to purchase their funds the rate would have been 11.5050. This means that their property would have cost £173,837.46. So by purchasing when the rate was good, they saved themselves, £6,543.44.

Whilst living in South Africa, Paul and Jennifer continue to benefit from Currency UK’s competitive rates as they use the regular payments system as Paul transfers his pension monthly.