Travelling abroad can be a lot of fun. However, if you are not properly prepared, the experience can leave you a bit unsettled. While it is very important to plan your travel and get the hotel bookings done, buying insurance plans and also booking your flights, it is equally important to make provisions for various financial requirements. You cannot walk into a cafe in Chicago and pull out a Rs. 500 banknote from your wallet to pay for your coffee. You will need American dollars for such a transaction. If you don’t have the right kind of foreign exchange with you, the trip can become unnecessarily taxing. So be wise and get the required financial assistance before you leave for your holiday or work trip. The SBI forex services have a range of solutions to serve your foreign exchange needs no matter where your travels take you. Just walk into any SBI Bank Branch and walk out with wonderful solutions that are tailor-made to your unique requirements.
The importance of Forex
As mentioned above, you cannot travel to a foreign country unless you have the money you need for your day to day expenses while overseas. Forex therefore is as important as your passport! You can get forex in the form of currency notes or you can get the wonderful travel cards from SBI. These travel cards help you store your own money in them and then use them in the foreign country as a regular ATM cum debit card. Forex, in simple terms, makes travel easier for you and so it is extremely important for a successful trip.
Forex Options offered by SBI
SBI is perhaps the most trusted name in the Indian financial industry and it still handles a majority of the country’s financial transactions. SBI, or the State Bank of India, is the oldest Indian bank. It offers a wide variety of services and forex is one of them. When you opt for SBI forex, you get:
- Currency exchange: This is one of the most popular, simple and convenient forms of forex services that SBI provides. You can simply walk into any SBI branch, deposit a certain amount of Indian currency and get the equivalent forex amount in the currency of your choice. So for example, if you have Rs 20,000 and you want to exchange that for US dollars, you will get approximately $310, if the current exchange rate stands at about Rs. 64 per dollar. You can also exchange your Indian rupees for any other foreign currency. The State Bank of India will exchange the money for you based on the prevalent exchange rates.
- Travel cards: If you want to travel with a lighter wallet when you reach the foreign shores, you can opt for the SBI Travel Card. An SBI travel card is a lot like a regular Visa debit card. You can use it at most merchant stores, restaurants, hotels, etc to make payments for your purchases, meals or stays. The card can also be used to withdraw the local currency notes from the ATM machines. The amount available on your travel card is a pre-paid amount that you load on to the card before you start your trip. This can be done by visiting an SBI branch or can also be done with ease through the online route. It is a very simple process that makes managing your travel finances a lot easier.
- Remittance: This foreign currency service offered by SBI is focused on NRIs and their families. So if you live abroad or have a family member living abroad, you can send or receive money overseas through the SBI forex system. Remitting money via SBI is a safe and economic option. You get the money transferred immediately and you also get to do so at the best possible rates. So you get to be in a win-win situation when you use the remittance service from SBI Forex.
- The brand value of SBI: So why would someone choose SBI Forex services when there are so many other forex services in the country? Well, the answer actually is very simple. The State Bank of India has been a trusted household name in financial matters from many years before we were born! This makes the brand value of SBI one of the best and also makes it the most reliable name in the Indian banking sector. All the services offered by SBI are good, but their forex services especially stand out. This is because SBI believes in putting the needs of the customers ahead of itself. By doing this, SBI always tries to offer the best possible rates on the forex services. So when you buy or sell your foreign currency from SBI, you always stand to make a profit. And this happens while you get a whole lot of other facilities and benefits too.
- Buying Foreign Currency from SBI: So now that you know how wonderful the SBI forex services are, you can go right ahead and get some hold of some foreign exchange from the State Bank of India. To do this, you have to visit an SBI branch and complete a few formalities. You can hand over your Indian rupees, to the teller and he or she will convert the amount in the currency of your choice and give you the foreign currency notes which will be accepted as local currency in your destination country. The money can also be directly debited from your bank account, if you wish.If you want to opt for the SBI forex travel card, you can do so by visiting the bank branch or you can make a simple online application from the official SBI website. The process is very easy and quick and you will instantly get a super convenient travel card in your hands.
Conclusion
Buying physical foreign currency or availing a forex service from SBI is extremely simple. And this simple process makes travelling even simpler for you. So whether you are travelling for work or going on a vacation with your family, make sure you use the SBI forex services to make your trip easy yet memorable. Planning your travel finances beforehand often proves to be very beneficial and helps you to enjoy your trip without any worries whatsoever. So what are you waiting for? Pay a quick visit to your nearest SBI branch or log on to the official State Bank of India website and find solutions for all your forex needs right away!