Euro to Brazilian Real exchange rates aren't all the same.
The total cost you are charged by your bank or foreign exchange provider consists of a margin from the interbank mid-rate plus fees.
These margins and fees vary significantly for International Money Transfers and Travel Money transactions as shown below.
When determining the best time to make a foreign exchange transaction, in this case the EUR vs BRL, you should pay attention to the recent market trends for both currencies.
Euro (EUR)
Euro sentiment dipped in mid-June after the ECB, like other major central banks of the world, ramped up its dovish rhetoric. It said that there was “considerable room” for further quantitative easing and that it would consider negative interest rates. Ordinarily, this would spark an extended euro decline but since other major currencies are also wrestling with easier central bank policies, euro depreciation may be contained.
In spite of Brexit, a slowdown in economic growth, Italian risks and persistently weak inflation — an important measure of inflation expectations fell in June to a record low — the euro did fantastically well against the Australian dollar, New Zealand dollar and British pound between mid-April and mid-June. Due to a stronger US dollar, EUR/USD was down 2 percent on the year at $1.12, close to long-term lows.
In late May, the real rallied away from 7-month lows against the dollar and euro. It remains, however, 21 percent and 13 percent lower than early 2018 levels against those currencies.
One of the most accurate currency forecasters of the past year (per Bloomberg rankings), Commerzbank’s You-Na Park, is optimistic about the real. He sees the currency's value rising 10 percent before year-end, from 3.98 per USD at the time of writing to 3.6, although he says that strength is dependent upon government pension reforms being passed (likely in the second half of this year).
Why can't I just get the EUR/BRL market rate I see online or in the media?
The mid-rate is the rate you will see quoted online or the news. It is actually just the half-way point (hence mid-rate) between
the last rate at which the EUR / BRL was traded (bought or sold) in the international markets.
All foreign exchange providers charge a fee for providing their service and this fee is usually contained within the exchange rate margin (or difference to the mid-rate).
Some providers such as Transferwise will quote you the mid-rate (or close to) and charge a separate percentage fee.
Getting a good market rate is mainly about timing however the transaction margin
you end up being charged can be considerably reduced by around a few percent (of total amount being exchanged) for
travel money and possibly over 5% to 6% when sending money.
The exact potential savings depends on the currencies being exchanged and the amount you are transferring and if you are willing to shop around.
