I wonder if there's anyone here who can help me with the following situation:

I have money in a US bank account that I need in a UK bank account. I am physically in the UK and not travelling to the US anytime soon.

My first thought was to use a currency transfer service to get the best rates. That seemed reasonably straight-forward -- send the money from my US bank account by SWIFT transfer to the broker, then by CHAPS to my UK bank account.

One problem. My US bank won't initiate a wire transfer without me physically going into a branch in the US to sign off the paperwork. Which is tricky.

So -- can anyone recommend another route to get this transaction completed? A currency broker who will accept a US$ check drawn on a US bank account as a funding source? I don't mind waiting for clearance time (provided it's reasonable).

Matthew, if you're talking real money(over $10k US), contact:

http://www.comfex.com/

and get a rate. do it fast, because by next week, you will have to be transfering $15k.

I am indeed talking about "real money". However, based on the information on their website, it looks like they require the money to be transferred via wire as well (which presents all the problems of my first scenario).

I just had a look at xe.com, who can create an electronic cheque. It's a little slower than a wire, but it might be the answer in this case.

It's very frustrating when it's this hard to transfer my money from me to me!

With my UK bank account, sending money nearly anywhere in the world is reasonably inexpensive and can be conducted with a quick phone call. This nonsense of having to walk into a branch and fill out loads of paperwork just to get at my own money is a little new for me.

Can't you just deposit a check into the UK bank? Or have them do an ACH for you based on the routing and transit numbers? The Fed system includes the ability to do ACH's to the UK.

If you deposit a check drawn on a US$ account, it typically takes 28 days or more to clear. The transaction is subject to reasonably high charges (eg, 0.25% negotiation charge and 2% forex fees) and you're at the mercy of the bank's exchange rate.

If the cheque is relatively small, they may clear it for you more quickly and essentially "loan" you the money while they clear the cheque behind the scenes, but I'm moving enough money that they're unlikely to clear it into my account in advance of clearing it themselves.

Might try calling them.

800 239 2389 I delt with Ed VAsquez. if he not available just talk to the person that answers the phone. They take checks. do not know how long they hold them.

I signed an agreement whereby I would arrange the purchase, then FAX the US funds in the form of a check(cheque?) to them. They would then transfer the funds for the next morning. frequently the funds were in a bank in the country of my vendor. 24 hr from invoice to receipt of funds.

my signature would be removed from the check and stapled to the original invoice for our records.

for decent sized transfers, cost was about 0.5% of bank rate + $10. I never could figure out how they made any money.