TorFX Review

An international money transfer service is a great way to reduce the fees banks charge. In this review, we’ll uncover what makes TorFX (potentially) great based on your needs.

TorFX say, “Excellent Exchange Rates”.

But here’s the deal:

A money transfer company needs to do far more than have low costs to move your money.

Yes, low fees are important, but confidence your money arrives quickly backed by customer service (to ensure low stress) is super important.

The Reality:

TorFX is absolutely top of its game in many countries, but I am also going to uncover situations where TorFX is almost certainly NOT your best option and point you in the right direction to who might be.

Here is the good, the bad and even the ugly, so that you can decide.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.

1. 30 Second Review

On Trustpilot, TorFX money transfer is rated 4.9/5 on almost 6000 reviews which is considered “Excellent”. The reviews indicate that TorFX offers great exchange rates, unmatched customer service, and easy transfer experience consistently.

🏦 Established	2004 in the UK
💁 Clients	Personal and Business (Worldwide)
💱 Currencies	40 currencies
🏛️ Physical Offices	United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, Europe
💻 Availability	Online, phone and mobile app
⚖️ Regulation	Regulated in countries they have offices in – the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, Europeg
🔒 Security	TLS encryption, High credit rating by Dun and Bradstreet, Customer funds held separately
⭐ Reviews	“Excellent” – 4.9/5 on Trustpilot with almost 6000 reviews (January 2023)
💰 Fees	No fixed fees. Fees reduce as amounts increase.
🌐 Official Website	Visit TorFX AUS/NZ and Asia Visit TorFX UK and Europe

TorFX’s is a standout because its top-rated customer service and low cost large transfers (above £4000 GBP/€4500 EU/$9500 AUD).

What sets them apart is that you’re assigned a dedicated account manager.

At first glance, having a dedicated account manager may seem unnecessary, however it can make a very big difference. I will expand on this when I discuss How TorFX Works (and When it Doesn’t).

Also what is unique to TorFX is that you can also get a quote online or by phone – before you fully sign up:

• AUS/NZ and Asia – Get a Quote
  
• UK and Europe – Get a Quote

But TorFX is not for you if you’re looking to transfer small amounts, or cash amounts, live in the US or Canada, or need more advanced business account features.

In USA, Canada, India or South Africa? Currencies Direct (review) is owned by the same people and have a very similar service which focuses on residents of US, Canada with offices in the USA, Europe, UK and South Africa. Get a quote from Currencies Direct.

2. How TorFX Works (and When it Doesn’t)

2.1 How TorFX Works

Amounts Above £4500 GBP / $9500 AUD CAD / €4500 EU

We think TorFX is an excellent choice when it comes to larger transfers from the UK, Europe, Australia/NZ and Asia.

This is because when you make international money transfers comparisons their customer service is uniquely excellent.

TorFX does this by assigning you a dedicated account manager whose job is to understand your needs and offer a solution to match.

But apart from just good customer service this can be very important if there is a problem at any stage like dealing with banks at either end, who all different have transfer limits and other rules.

This means TorFX suits international people like expats buying foreign property or other large transfers. They also do business transfers and can do more complex transfers like forward contracts and market orders.

This is not just our experience either – TorFX maintains an excellent track record on review sites like Trustpilot (4.9/5) which is truly exceptional.

The next best (also excellent) services score about 4.5/5 and banks in comparison usually score below 2/5.

Why this matters:

I have just alluded that this is not about smiley, happy, friendly people (they can be useless).  🙃

The reality of larger transfers is that many potential problems can arise due to regulations around the world. Most commonly the banks at either end can stop transfers or the money transfer company itself needs more information to meet regulations.

With TorFX transfers tend to occur smoothly and stress free because of your account manager. An account manager can also be really helpful by structuring transfers with some flexible transfer options.

Flexible Transfer Options:

• Spot Contracts: Immediately transfers (in a couple of days)
• Forward Contracts: Secure a rate for up to 2 years.
• Market Orders: Lock-in a rate on a specific currency pair. TorFX can execute your transfer at your desired exchange rate.
• Cash in Other Currencies: TorFX currency exchange is available. By comparison Airports or third-party agents can be very expensive. TorFX partners with travel money expert ICE (International Currency Exchange) to home deliver your chosen currency affordably in the UK and Australia (you can exchange 40+ currencies).

2.2 When it Doesn’t Work

Amounts Below £4500 GBP / $9500 AUD CAD / €4500 EU

While TorFX is a clear winner for large amounts with telephone supported transfers, many people want to send cash or are happier doing as much as possible online.

For small amounts, online focused services (with less telephone support) tend to be cheaper, quicker and with more flexibility (like funding transfers with a card).

For cash, TorFX only supports bank-to-bank transfers and for many people cash is needed at the destination.

To be clear, TorFX can do relatively small transfers above £100 GBP/ $200 AUD, but because the needs of regulators are far less we think there are better alternatives for transfers below £4500 GBP / $9500 AUD CAD / €4500 EU.

Alternatives

	Best TorFX Alternatives
#1 Wise	As we show in our Wise review for smaller bank transfers (below £4500 GBP / $9500 AUD CAD / €4500 EU) if you are comfortable doing things online we think Wise is your best bet. However, if you would rather speak to someone, stick with TorFX or consider our #3 pick which is a combination of both.
#2 WorldRemit with fixed fee free transfers	Best for making smaller cash transfers and mobile money from a bank account (to many countries). See how the work and why we think they are great in our WorldRemit review
#3 OFX	Best all-rounder for large transfers (over $7000 USD/£4500 GBP/€4500 EU/$9500 CAD/AUD) As discussed in our OFX review, Can do everything TorFX but mixes online efficiency with 24/7 phone support.

3. Real Fees

If you’re curious to find out if TorFX is actually “fee-free”, there’s good news!

Unlike most of their competitors, TorFX doesn’t charge a fixed fee.

But there are two costs you need to be aware of when you’re ready to transfer with TorFX.

• Margin on TorFX’s exchange rate
• Other/hidden fees

3.1 Margin on TorFX’s Exchange Rate

While TorFX doesn’t charge a fixed fee, they do charge a margin on the exchange rate they offer.

Like others that excel when it comes to large transfers, they reduce the fees you pay in percentage terms as the amounts increase.

Moreover as part of their on-boarding process they take into account the frequency and volume of your transfers which can lead to even lower fees.

To figure out their margin, you have to start with the base rate they offer you and compare it with the interbank or mid-market rate between two currencies at a particular point in time.

Here’s how TorFX stacks up against other services in terms of fixed fees + exchange rates:

• Wire transfers through a Bank – 3% to 7% (typical)
• PayPal – 6% to 8% (typical)
• International Money Transfer Services like TorFX – 0.5% – 2% (variable on the amount and currencies involved)

No question, TorFX is competitive compared to its peers and will run rings around high street banks.

Compared to the alternatives listed (above) TorFX it may not always be the absolute cheapest (but pretty close and if you value customer service highly, then you could say they are best value).

However, this isn’t the end of the story.

Because TorFX has flexible transfer options like Forward Contracts, Limit Orders, and Stop Orders, you can potentially get the rates you want rather than worry about fluctuations.

3.2 Hidden Fees

TorFX does not hide any costs intentionally, however it is important to note that banks at both ends can charge fees.

However these fees tend to be minimal in terms of total fees if you are transferring large amounts.

TorFX has local bank accounts in Australia and the UK, so if you are working outside of these countries it may be worth checking with your bank what they will charge, especially for smaller amounts (but we recommend other services for these anyway)

Hidden costs can also crop up if you’re funding your transfer with a debit card (Sterling debit cards are supported for funding your transfer on TorFX).

4. How to Use TorFX

Simply follow these steps:

Step 1. Initial sign up for TorFX has two options.

• AUS/NZ and Asia – Get a quote online or by phone (fill out the same form)
  
• UK and Europe – Get a quote online or by phone (fill out the same form)

Step 2. Get a rate through your online account or over the phone with a personal account manager.

Step 3. Fund and initiate transfer

This video is a few years old now, but the video still does a good job showing what they are about.

5. Real TorFX Reviews (including Negative Ones)

We dug through hundreds of real user reviews (both positive and negative) and found that TorFX is rated 4.9/5 on Trustpilot with over 6,000 reviews. A remarkable 90% of the reviewers had an “Excellent” experience transferring with TorFX, while less than 3% had a negative experience with the company.

The reality is, TorFX has the best reviews in the industry, but with every service we want to uncover any red flags.

First, are the Trustpilot reviews legit?

Trustpilot’s 4.9/5 is almost unbelievable. But Trustpilot has some good systems to ensure that people who leave reviews are not fake.

We also trust the 4.2/5 scored by TorFX Reviews on Google for their Australian operation which while far fewer in number support the believe we have that TorFX is a standout.

But the negative reviews can uncover a lot.

Overall, most users are more than satisfied with TorFX.

Frozen accounts and delays are issues with any money transfer service — even banks.

However given their extremely high Trustpilot score we assume they either help people through the process or have very few issues to begin with.

While these issues are usually due to compliance we think TorFX has demonstrated you can use them with a lot of confidence.

However, there are steps you can take to avoid complications with your transfers.

And here are our 3 Top tips to avoid delays:

• Understand exotic currencies usually require longer transaction times.
• Initiate personal transfers from personal accounts and business transfers from business accounts.
• Fund your transfer from a bank account in your name (instead of a third-party account holder).

6. Is TorFX Safe?

TorFX has been operating since 2004 and are regulated in the countries where they have physical operations.

Importantly these include the UK, Australia and Singapore which means even if you are in another country TorFX are held to a high standard.

For cyber security, TorFX uses TLS encryption (wiki) which is pretty standard to safeguard your data. Importantly they employ two-factor authentication to make sure all the actions on their app and website are indeed initiated by you.

As part of UK regulations, TorFX holds your funds in separate accounts and keeps it separate from their operating funds. Barclays Bank PLC is the custodian of client accounts at TorFX and the company’s own accounts are audited by PriceWaterhouseCoopers for compliance.

They also hold a high credit rating with Dun and Bradstreet.

Importantly, TorFX is regulated by:

• FCA (also called Tor Currency Exchange) in the UK
• ASIC in Australia
• MAS in Singapore
• Bank of Spain in Europe

7. How Long Does it Take to Transfer Money with TorFX?

Typically, it takes about 1-3 days for your money to go through once you set up the transfer. For exotic currencies, it can take up to 4 days.

Your transfer speed on TorFX depends on the following:

• Your location and the destination country
• The currency pair selected
• When you initiate the transfer (TorFX can only handle your money during normal banking hours)
• Verifications and security checks
• How you fund the transfer (Card payments are processed faster than bank payments, but can be more expensive)

Note: If the sending bank you are using is not in the UK, Europe or Australia / NZ, it might take an extra day given that you need to send money to a TorFX account in those countries.

Bonus: TorFX for Business

TorFX also helps businesses of all sizes save money on their large transfers!

And again, they offer the same top-rated customer service to business account holders.

When you sign up for a TorFX business account, you get:

• Personalized advice to structure and time your international transfers for the most savings (this is where their flexible transfer options come in)
• The ability to set up your transfer 24X7, either on the phone or online

Overall, TorFX is a great option for businesses that want to save big on their international business transfers while having good customer support.

Verdict

Because of its personalised service and flexible options, TorFX is a clear leader when it comes to large bank-to-bank international transfers.

Your Personal Account Manager can help you navigate the process and save you money.

But more importantly, based on TorFX’s stellar customer service track record (and our own experience), we highly recommend them for those who want low costs and highest confidence your money will arrive with no stress.

On the other hand, TorFX may not be the right service for you in all circumstances, as we showed in “When TorFX Works (And When it Doesn’t)” above. In such cases, check out our suggested alternatives.

Happy Transfers!

FAQs