As the British Pound touches record lows, expats opt to repatriate funds back to the United Kingdom

In September 2022, the British Pound fell to an all-time historic low against the US Dollar. This development occurred following a sweeping package of tax cuts, which raised concerns over the government's economic policy. Additionally, it caused general panic regarding a potentially devastating recession. This occurrence also saw the British Pound trading at levels that were last seen in the early 1970s. As well as a negative reaction within Britain, the government's plans for both tax cuts and further borrowing were not seen in a positive light by global investors. In addition to trading at its lowest levels since the 1970s, the new plans announced by the government saw the British Pound, while only for a short time period, fall to its weakest ever level on record against the U.S. Dollar. Moreover, the drop against the Euro in reaction to the former Chancellor of the Exchequer's, Kwasi Kwarteng, mini-budget announcement resulted in the GBP/EUR rate trading at the lowest levels since December 2020.

How is the pound's fall benefiting British expats?

While the consequences of this reaction are considered to be bleak on home soil, there are some potential benefits overseas for expats. Mallorca, a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea, and the largest of the Balearic Islands, is an incredibly popular tourist destination among British people. As a result of this, a large number of expats have purchased property in Mallorca over the last six decades. A significant proportion of these property buyers did so at a time when the GBP/EUR exchange rate was at 1.5. The individuals who purchased property at this time are now enjoying a relative increase of 20% in the value of their aforementioned property. In addition to this increase, the value of property on the 3640 km² island has also increased steadily since the majority of these purchases were made. It is fair to say that the sun is shining on the individuals in question in more ways than one.

In light of these events, there are now a large number of expats opting to take advantage of the current rate by repatriating funds back to the United Kingdom. This is being done for a number of different reasons, but the objective of making the most of the current situation is what ties their motivations together. For example, many expats who were, in some shape or form, considering the possibility of relocating back to the United Kingdom have settled on the decision to do so because of the opportunity that the current exchange rates present them with. There are also huge numbers of expats transferring money from Spain back to the UK to invest in and/or buy property in the United Kingdom with the British Pound.

The role of money transfer services

In addition to wanting to take advantage of exchange rates, individuals want to ensure that they are getting the best possible deal when it comes to the actual transferring process. Those looking to transfer money from Spain to the United Kingdom will want to find a method that is reliable, secure, fast, and low in cost. While in years gone by, the most obvious way to do this would be through your traditional bank, the digital age offers up some alternative methods that have a number of benefits over their traditional counterparts. The best option available today comes in the form of specialist money transfer services. These service providers operate with the sole purpose of ensuring that their users can find the best possible deal on international payments.

International payment companies work in tandem with your existing bank account but are cheaper to use. If we return to those expats considering selling their property in Spain in order to repatriate the funds to the United Kingdom, these money transfer service providers are the ideal way to get the best possible deal. They focus solely on international money transfers and are incredibly familiar with the inner workings of sending money from Spain to the United Kingdom with the specific purpose of using the money to buy property using the British Pound.

To conclude

In conclusion, this phenomenon highlights how the movement of exchange rates can often have both negative and positive effects, depending on where the individual is standing.