While the World Bank expects a sharp increase in money transfers to Ukraine, the consumer association denounces excessive and non-transparent transaction fees.
No gifts, even in times of war. In a press release this Wednesday, UFC-Que Choisir denounces the high fees imposed on money transfers to Ukraine, while the World Bank expects a sharp increase in these. “Since the crisis in Ukraine, many consumers have come to the aid of its nationals with donations. This is particularly the case for those who transfer money to their relatives who have not yet been able to flee the war or who wish to stay in their country.writes the association.
Thus, the profits of banks on these money transfers should reach at least 12 billion euros in 2022. “The question of maintaining these prohibitive tariffs must be raised at French and European level”, believes the UFC-Que Choisir. The latter therefore challenges France, which holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, on the subject. And calls on him to negotiate a rapid reduction in the rates applied to money transfers with financial institutions.
Lack of transparency
According to the association, banks and money transfer companies “take nearly 11 euros on average” for a shipment of 180 euros from the EU to Ukraine. To get an idea, in 2020 money transfer fees to Ukraine reached more than 900 million euros. That is “almost twice as much as the humanitarian aid allocated today by the European Union to Ukraine”says Matthieu Robin, project manager for banking and insurance at UFC-Que Choisir, in an interview with France Info.
However, some European banks have already waived these fees. “We must welcome the initiative of some European banks, in particular the Banque Postale [établissement français, ndlr] since March 8, who have announced a moratorium.” But in mirror, the association deplores “that this approach does not yet have emulators, especially within other French banks”.
Another problem pointed out by UFC-Que Choisir: the lack of transparency of banks, which do not clearly display fees, with the exception of Wise. “Under cover of offering free shipping, other transfer companies charge exchange fees which can be very high”, specifies the association in its press release. For example, for a transfer of 30 euros on average, the prices can range from “11% of the amount sent to the Postal Bank up to a quarter to Crédit Agricole Pyrénées Gascogne (24%)”.
Sums that cannot “what to ask about the level of the margins practiced”. A study by the World Bank even allows us to estimate that a “a 2 percentage point drop in transfer fees could allow the Ukrainians to benefit from an additional aid of 350 million euros this year”.