First Rate - experts in foreign exchange services

Why First Rate

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About us

First Rate is the leading provider of foreign currency to businesses across the UK, with over 12 years’ experience and the UK’s biggest share of consumer travel money transactions.

Moreover, First Rate is Europe’s major provider of traveller’s cheques and one of the top five globally. We are the UK’s largest currency note distributor.

Through our association with Bank of Ireland First Currency Services, we offer comprehensive, competitive foreign currency services tailored to individual businesses.

In addition to supplying all the travel money for the UK’s largest foreign exchange provider, the Post Office®, we provide currency to companies across a wide range of sectors, including financial services, travel and tourism, and retail.

Key facts

At First Rate, we:

  • Deliver over 14 million transactions each year
  • Serve over 14,000 retail outlets
  • Process up to 100 million notes each year
  • Have our own cash and distribution centres

First Rate offers a wide range of foreign exchange products and services. Briefly these are:

Currency products:
notes in over 100 currencies, traveller’s cheques in seven currencies and pre-paid cards in three currencies.
Travel Money Online:
foreign currency notes and traveller’s cheques ordered securely via First Rate’s advanced white-label Internet application. This leads the increasing market demand for online travel-related services and provides a lucrative revenue stream to businesses of all sizes and convenience for customers.
Bulk currency:
bulk currency buy and sell services for currency retailers and stockholders such as bureaux de change.
End-to-end order processing:
fully outsourced, white-label currency solutions for clients’ customers to order by phone, over the Internet or in branch.

History & parents

We have been supplying foreign exchange services to the Post Office® since 1994. We have introduced a number of innovations including, in 2001, 0% commission which revolutionised the foreign exchange market and led the Post Office® to become the largest supplier of foreign currency in the UK.

First Rate was established as a joint venture between the Post Office® and Bank of Ireland Group in 2002.

Winner: 2007 British Travel AwardsThe Post Office®

The Post Office® is the UK’s premier foreign exchange provider. It was named the consumer’s favourite provider of foreign currency and travel insurance at the 2008 British Travel Awards.

Bank of Ireland

Bank of Ireland UK Financial Services (UKFS) combines the sterling-denominated businesses within the Bank of Ireland Group, incorporating business banking, personal lending and consumer financial services, representing joint ventures with the UK Post Office®. The Bank of Ireland in Northern Ireland, part of Business Banking, is a leading player in both personal financial services and in corporate and business banking.

HMRC Money Service Business Licensing

First Rate Exchange Services Ltd is registered in the UK and supervised by HM Revenue & Customs for Money Service Business (MSB): Licence number 12133160.

© 2008 First Rate Exchange Services Ltd. A Bank of Ireland/Post Office® venture