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23 April 2009
First Rate delivers Turkish lira on demand service to 4000 Post Office branches
Turkey set to be 2009's most popular European summer holiday destination
Sales of Turkish lira rose by 21 percent in 2008
First Rate Exchange Services has announced it is more than doubling its provision of over the counter Turkish lira foreign exchange services to the Post Office® network, from 1400 to over 4000 branches. This follows the continued demand for holidays to Turkey, with reported growth of as much as 34 per cent, making it Europe’s most popular holiday destination this summer¹.
The move comes after the Post Office reported a 21 per cent increase in sales of Turkish lira in 2008, making it the UK’s largest foreign exchange provider’s fourth best-selling currency. In fact, in the last two months alone the Post Office has reported a more than 10 per cent2 year on year growth of sales of lira, encouraging it to expand its service offer.
First Rate Exchange Services is the wholesaler behind the Post Office’s market leading offer. Commenting on the extension of its foreign exchange provision to the Post Office network Gordon Gourlay, Managing Director, First Rate Exchange Services said: “The strength of the euro against sterling is set to encourage UK holidaymakers to travel beyond the eurozone this summer. We’ve experienced major increases in demand for Turkish lira from our foreign exchange retailers and the Post Office’s move to significantly extend its “lira on demand” offer is a just another sign that 2009 is set to be another growth year for tourism to Turkey.”
The Post Office 2008 Holiday Costs Barometer rated Turkey one of the cheapest places to holiday. And its new barometer for 2009, due out shortly, confirms that Turkey is still cheaper than anywhere in the eurozone.³
First Rate is the UK’s leading provider of foreign exchange services to foreign currency retailers. Its Turkish lira on demand service is just one of a wide range of white labelled foreign exchange services available to businesses large and small across the UK.
First Rate’s Travel Money Online solution provides high street and online retailers with a fully integrated online platform, allowing them to offer their customers access to over 70 currencies, notes and travellers cheques, currency advice and secure online payment. First Rate’s Travel Money Online service also allows customers to select their required delivery date, with orders received before 3pm available for delivery the next business day to addresses across the UK.
Note to Editors:
1 Travel research firm Gfk~Ascent MI reported bookings to Turkey up 34 per cent up to the end of February 2009, compared with a 27 per cent decrease for Greece and 23 per cent fall for Spain. This builds on the country’s 2008 performance, reported by the Turkey Culture & Tourism Office as 26.3 million tourist arrivals, a year on year growth of 12.8 per cent. 2.2 million of these were holidaymakers from the UK, resulting in Turkey overtaking Spain for the first time as the UK’s favourite package holiday destination, according to the TCTO.
2 Post Office sales of Turkish lira show a rise of 12 per cent in February and 11 per cent in March 2009 compared to same periods in 2008.
3 Post Office Holiday Costs Barometer 2009, for publication 1 May 2009, put Turkey in fifth place in a table of 20 destinations, ahead of all eurozone destinations surveyed.
About First Rate Foreign Exchange Services:
First Rate is the UK’s leading provider of foreign currency services supplying over 12,000 retail outlets with a foreign currency service. It is the UK’s biggest foreign currency notes supplier and Europe’s major provider of traveller’s cheques and in the top five globally. First Rate sources currency through its associate business unit Bank of Ireland First Currency Services, one of the world’s leading wholesale currency operations.
First Rate can provide UK retailers and businesses with the following foreign currency services:
- Travel Money Online – a service enabling the ordering of foreign currency notes and traveller’s cheques securely via First Rate’s white label internet application
- Bulk provision of currency for currency retailers
- End-to-end consumer order processing – totally outsourced, white label currency solutions for phone, internet or retail outlet order placement
To find out more visit www.firstrate.co.uk.
For further information, please contact:
Four Countries Communications
Ruth Barker
Tel: 0207 749 9219
Mobile: 07814 571128
Email: ruth@fourcountries.co.uk
Bank of Ireland UK Financial Services
Sandra Grandison
Tel: 0207 634 3477
Mobile: 07912 298013
Email: sandra.grandison@boiuk.com
First Rate Exchange Services Ltd is registered in the UK and Supervised by HM Revenue & Customs for Money Service Business (MSB): License number 12133160. First Rate is a joint venture between The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland (Registered in Ireland and passported into the UK for regulatory purposes) and the Post Office® Ltd. The Bank of Ireland is authorised by the Irish Financial Regulator and the Financial Services Authority for the conduct of business in the UK. Bank of Ireland First Currency Services is a division of The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland.