“Australians should be asking themselves if they’re doing everything they can to get the most bang for their buck,” he said. TransferWise Australia’s Country Manager, Tim Cameron said the findings show the importance of “shopping savvy”. Money tips for shopping internationally online Meanwhile, the exchange rates charged by Australian banks stayed mostly the same, although NAB went against the grain by reducing its markup in March. New Zealand also recorded an exchange rate spike with PayPal in March - an increase to 5.55% for conversions from the NZD to AUD, GBP, EUR and USD.

This reported rise in fees comes as the number of online shoppers in Australia jumped almost twofold compared to the start of the year, soaring from 38% to 60%, according to TransferWise data.Īt the peak of this shopping frenzy in March, Paypal’s markups hit a high 5.6% for conversions from the Aussie Dollar (AUD) to other major currencies, including the New Zealand Dollar (NZD), Euro (EUR), British Pound (GBP), US Dollar (USD), Singaporean Dollar (SGD) and Chinese Yuan (CNY). PayPal does not control these fluctuations, and nothing in its fee structure has changed in 2020 for Australia or New Zealand,' the spokesperson said. 'Daily transaction exchange rates are reliant on the currency market, which has experienced significant fluctuations in recent months. (Note: PayPal's exchange rate markups are represented by the yellow line.)įor context, these markups are premiums that banks and other money transfer providers impose on the ‘real’ exchange rate, in order to profit off consumers making overseas purchases.Īccording to a PayPal spokesperson, PayPal has not changed its currency conversion rate this year.

TransferWise’s year-long analysis found a significant spike in PayPal’s exchange rate markups in March, when social distancing measures were first being enforced. New research has revealed that payments platform PayPal hiked up its exchange rate margins during the peak coronavirus shutdown period.

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