TransferWise Delays?

[fusion58]

Has anyone else encountered this message?

 

 

First time this has ever happened to me. Assuming it’s COVID-19-related?

[faraday]

Has the money left your account?

[lopburi3]

Did a transfer Monday morning this week due on 21st but did not arrive until 22nd - with below notice:

Quote

Sorry that took a little longer than expected. We needed more time to pay out your money.

 

[Worldplus]

I always transfer from my UK HSBC debit card..it's instant..

 

If your using your bank to deposit to TW... that can be a delay..

 

36 hrs sometimes

 

Cheers

[OneeyedJohn]

I use internet banking from HSBC UK and the money is taken instantly and is always acknowledged instantly by TW.

Have never seen any problem in 3 years.

[uncleP]

It may be a delay for a holiday as they pay from local accounts . The other scenario may be a lack of local funds.

[Moonlover]

23 minutes ago, Worldplus said:

I always transfer from my UK HSBC debit card..it's instant..

 

If your using your bank to deposit to TW... that can be a delay..

 

36 hrs sometimes

 

Cheers

 

17 minutes ago, OneeyedJohn said:

I use internet banking from HSBC UK and the money is taken instantly and is always acknowledged instantly by TW.

Have never seen any problem in 3 years.

I use the Nationwide and the transfer into T/W is always instant. And in 18 months and some 40 payments, not one has taken more than 6 hours. Usually it arrives in about 4.

 

[shy coconut]

I sent a small amount this morning from my UK debit card, 5000 baht, and was in

the Thai bank in 37 seconds, faster than a rocket, apparently!

[fusion58]

28 minutes ago, faraday said:

Has the money left your account?

No.

 

More than enough funds in account to cover transfer.

 

Just curious as I've been using TW for about a year and I've never encountered this particular message before.

 

E-mailed TW with request for more info. No reply yet.

[OneeyedJohn]

Are u using a bank transfer or the debit card, check the card expiry date.

You must be doing something different to what u did before.

In other words something has changed.

Double check everything.

[stouricks]

I usually transfer the GBP to my Transferwise Borderless account a few days before I need to do the GBP to THB transfer just to cut out any possible delays or if there is a sudden jump in the exchange rate. I think the actual transfer cost GBP 0.13 more than the other ways.

[Pib]

Trying to compared the speed of Transferwise transfers between the US/USD and UK/GBP is like trying to compare apples and oragnes.

 

The UK has their Faster Payment Services which transfer money instantly between UK based financial institutions....pretty much like the Thai bank system that transfers funds instantly between Thai banks.  Transferwise gets the funding for the transfer instantly and therefore move quickly in completing the transfers

 

However, the US uses the Automated Clearing House (ACH) system that is a batch system where transactions are processed overnight....and only Mon-Friday.   And actually Transferwise usually begins the actual transfer of money to the Thai bank once they get confirmation from the US bank the funds "will be" transferred; if Transferwise had to wait until the funds actually arrived via the ACH system they would typically wait 2 business days for the funds to arrive.  And of course the amount being transfer makes a difference.   

 

Yeap, in the UK Transferwise can get the money to fund the transfer instantly; in the US they can not using the ACH system therefore transfers from the US take at least a business day or more unless you fund from your Transferwise Borderless Acct which speeds things up greatly.

 

 

[Pattaya46]

1 hour ago, Worldplus said:

I always transfer from my UK HSBC debit card..it's instant..

If your using your bank to deposit to TW... that can be a delay.. 

Transfer from your bank to TW may be fast, but (at least for me) TW often take its time to send the money to my Thai Kasikorn account after he received my euros... ????

 

1 hour ago, Moonlover said:

I use the Nationwide and the transfer into T/W is always instant. And in 18 months and some 40 payments, not one has taken more than 6 hours. Usually it arrives in about 4.

Depends a lot of the amount and of your country. For some reasons, transfer from US, UK and AU seem to be faster.

 

I just made a 250'000 THB transfer from France with TW yesterday (see below)

- Money arrived to TW at 3pm yesterday

- They (said that they) paid at 3:44am today

- Money arrived on my account at about 9am

Total of ~18 hours after they received my money...  Slow...????

My French bank takes about 8 hours only to transfer, but is more expensive.

 

[stouricks]

30 minutes ago, Pattaya46 said:

Transfer from your bank to TW may be fast, but (at least for me) TW often take its time to send the money to my Thai Kasikorn account after he received my euros... ????

 

Depends a lot of the amount and of your country. For some reasons, transfer from US, UK and AU seem to be faster.

 

I just made a 250'000 THB transfer from France with TW yesterday (see below)

- Money arrived to TW at 3pm yesterday

- They (said that they) paid at 3:44am today

- Money arrived on my account at about 9am

Total of ~18 hours after they received my money...  Slow...????

My French bank takes about 8 hours only to transfer, but is more expensive.

 

How quickly do you want it to be, 18 hours is not bad. And if your French bank only takes 8 hours, from 3pm the money's in your bank at 11pm as opposed to 9am. There's a curfew you know. 

[Pattaya46]

3 minutes ago, stouricks said:

How quickly do you want it to be, 18 hours is not bad.

I have had TW transfers where the money arrived on my account just a few minutes afters my Euros arrived at TW ! ????

Problem is that when you make the transfer they can't tell you if it will take minutes or 1 day ! ????

[treetops]

1 hour ago, fusion58 said:

No.

 

More than enough funds in account to cover transfer.

 

Just curious as I've been using TW for about a year and I've never encountered this particular message before.

 

E-mailed TW with request for more info. No reply yet.

Better to ask your own bank if the money is still there.  It sounds more like a glitch with them or you than Transferwise as the Faster Payments system is usually immediate but has a maximum 2 hour limit IIRC (assuming nothing major is down).

 

Was it TSB?  I had an issue with a (non TW) Faster Payment with them the other day.

[fusion58]

2 hours ago, OneeyedJohn said:

Are u using a bank transfer or the debit card, check the card expiry date.

You must be doing something different to what u did before.

In other words something has changed.

Double check everything.

I'm not doing anything different. The message from TW (see OP) indicates the delay is on their side.

 

At any rate, I just checked the app, and everything's all good now: my money has been received.

 

Just an unexplained 24 hour delay in processing my request.

[Moonlover]

6 hours ago, shy coconut said:

I sent a small amount this morning from my UK debit card, 5000 baht, and was in

the Thai bank in 37 seconds, faster than a rocket, apparently!

Not possible using TransferWise.

[DrDave]

Of the two transfers I've done this month from my US bank to K-Bank, TW has both times received the money from my bank on time (within the time period specified), but the deposit to K-Bank has been delayed slightly - never by more than a couple of hours. The whole process has been less than 6 hours start to finish.

[stouricks]

Here's another way to do it. I have a Transferwise Borderless account with GBP, EUR, USD and THB accounts. If I exchange GBPs to THB when the rate is good I can then use that built-up THB balance to send to my Bkk Bank whenever I need to. So I am not tied down to the exchange rate on the day of the transfer. To prove it I just did a THB 1000 transfer to Bkk Bank and it came as an FTT, and no waiting for the GBPs to reach T'wise, so do it the cheapest way. 

[The Theory]

On 4/24/2020 at 2:57 PM, fusion58 said:

First time this has ever happened to me. Assuming it’s COVID-19-related?

I have the same problem right now. It happened this morning.

I was wondering if you got any answer ? 

 

[The Theory]

On 4/24/2020 at 10:05 PM, DrDave said:

two transfers I've done this month from my US bank

Have they ever asked you that they need your SS# ?

[DrDave]

8 hours ago, The Theory said:

Have they ever asked you that they need your SS# ?

Never!

[lopburi3]

8 hours ago, The Theory said:

Have they ever asked you that they need your SS# ?

I don't recall being asked for transfers but expect it would be required for an account, just as it is at any Thai bank if you are a US person.

[The Theory]

[Pib]

9 hours ago, The Theory said:

 

Gosh, you got lucky--NOT!!!

 

1 & 4 May are banking holidays in Thailand with 2-3 May being the weekend.  That's why it will take around 5 days for the money to arrive.

https://www.bot.or.th/English/FinancialInstitutions/FIholiday/Pages/2020.aspx

 

 

 

 

[lopburi3]

2 minutes ago, Pib said:

 

Gosh, you got lucky--NOT!!!

 

1 & 4 May are banking holidays in Thailand with 2-3 May being the weekend.  That's why it will take around 5 days for the money to arrive.

https://www.bot.or.th/English/FinancialInstitutions/FIholiday/Pages/2020.aspx

 

 

 

 

In the past this was not allowed - no more than 3 days closed in a row for banks.  But since most activity is now (non covid days) in mall branch offices that are open 7 days a week they have started to allow all holidays - and in this case it makes a difference.  

[Pib]

19 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

In the past this was not allowed - no more than 3 days closed in a row for banks.  But since most activity is now (non covid days) in mall branch offices that are open 7 days a week they have started to allow all holidays - and in this case it makes a difference.  

I expect banks still have latitude in whether they partially or fully close for holiday periods.  Kinda like how stores are still open on holidays but "supposedly" the employees working on holidays get extra pay or another day off as compensation.   

 

But it seems for holidays, bank back office operations like processing of international transfers are fully closed.  

[superal]

On 4/24/2020 at 9:48 PM, Moonlover said:

 

  On 4/24/2020 at 3:33 PM, shy coconut said:

I sent a small amount this morning from my UK debit card, 5000 baht, and was in

the Thai bank in 37 seconds, faster than a rocket, apparently!

Not possible using TransferWise.

 

I can confirm that up to 2 months ago using T/W it was a regular and routine event where once I hit the final button to send the money I received a T/W gmail to say the money was received from my UK account and on the way . Within 1 minute I would receive a text message from Bangkok bank displaying my new available balance .  However since the problem with BKB ATMs a few weeks ago the service has collapsed . Money sent via TW was rejected by BKB and sent back to TW who in turn paid it back to my UK account . That happened twice and one time the money was in limbo . On 3 occasions I have sent £10 as a test and every time it took 2 or 3 days to hit my BKB account along with a late BKB text message and that was mid week not week ends when the Thai banks do not work and transfer not happen .  I have spoken to TW who say it is the BKB who are the problem but why cos it never use to be . Interested to hear from other readers using the same service from the UK to BKB .

 

[Moonlover]

37 minutes ago, superal said:

  On 4/24/2020 at 3:33 PM, shy coconut said:

I sent a small amount this morning from my UK debit card, 5000 baht, and was in

the Thai bank in 37 seconds, faster than a rocket, apparently!

Not possible using TransferWise.

 

I can confirm that up to 2 months ago using T/W it was a regular and routine event where once I hit the final button to send the money I received a T/W gmail to say the money was received from my UK account and on the way . Within 1 minute I would receive a text message from Bangkok bank displaying my new available balance .  However since the problem with BKB ATMs a few weeks ago the service has collapsed . Money sent via TW was rejected by BKB and sent back to TW who in turn paid it back to my UK account . That happened twice and one time the money was in limbo . On 3 occasions I have sent £10 as a test and every time it took 2 or 3 days to hit my BKB account along with a late BKB text message and that was mid week not week ends when the Thai banks do not work and transfer not happen .  I have spoken to TW who say it is the BKB who are the problem but why cos it never use to be . Interested to hear from other readers using the same service from the UK to BKB .

 

A lot of people use Bangkok Bank because of this long running myth that these FTT codes are vital when applying for an extension. (they're not, as many of us have proved)

 

No one else has flagged up this problem of yours and I'm pretty sure that if there was a wide spread issue we'd have heard about it. I'd suggest that if it continues that you raise a fresh topic to find out whether there are others with a similar problem.

 

This thread is old now and it's likely that I'm the only one who has read your post.

 

Good luck in getting it sorted.