Pound Sterling to Swiss Franc 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/Card transactions as shown below.
To calculate specific GBP/CHF amounts use our
Convert GBP to CHF quick calculator.
Comparing Foreign Exchange Providers
The total cost you are charged by your foreign exchange provider consists of the margin from the mid-rate offered plus any fixed or percentage fees.
These margins and fees vary significantly for International Money Transfers, Travel Money and prepaid multi-currency Travel Card transactions.
The Exchange rate you are offered can also vary significantly depending on the transaction type (transfer, cash or card), currency pair and amount. The below table shows an example of total costs charged by FX specialists and banks for GBP/CHF International Money Transfers. Costs are calculated against the current interbank mid-rate.
Example of the margins and possible savings when you order travel money online with a currency specialist rather than in-person from banks and currency kiosks.
When determining the best time to make a foreign exchange transaction, in this case the GBP vs CHF, you should pay attention to the recent market trends for both currencies.
Pound Sterling (GBP)
With the Bank of England holding interest rates steady amid signs of a recovery in the health of the UK economy following the general election, the pound is showing strength against most currencies early in 2020.
In the post UK election euphoria the pound rose to over 1.33 USD and 1.20 EUR but has since dropped back over the uncertainty of what sort of trade deal the UK can realistically negotiate with Europe over the next 11 months.
GBP has given up all of those election result gains as Mr Johnson pledged to outlaw any extension to the UK’s post-Brexit transition period at the end of next year. It appears the Brexit volatility in the pound is set to continue for the foreseable future.
The Swiss National Bank continues to reaffirm its commitment to an ultra-loose monetary policy, which includes negative interest rates and a willingness to intervene in FX markets, as part of an effort to spark inflation in the economy.
The SNB will be unhappy, therefore, with the franc’s strength in May.
Between April-23 and May-24 (the day of this report), the franc was the best performing G10 currency; it gained 2.2 percent against the euro, taking EUR/CHF back towards Fr1.12 and close to long-term lows (franc highs).
May’s strength reflected worsening sentiment towards the global economy, driven by a significant escalation in US-China trade tensions. As a safe haven, the franc typically gains value during tough times and sinks when investors gain confidence.
How to get Best GBP to CHF Exchange Rates
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).
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.
This is a difficult question and the answer really depends on many factors. The best way to consider an exchange rate's relative value is to look at the rate's history.
The following table looks at the change in the GBP to CHF exchange rate to the present day for periods going back upto 10 years.
*For period to 25-Feb 21UTC when GBP/CHF was 1.2692
When is the best time to exchange GBP to CHF?
Getting a good market rate is all about timing to help with this you can use BER Smart Alerts to make the most of currency movements.
Rather than requiring you to set a target rate, our rate alerts work differently. We check for daily high/lows and changes (up/down) over a range of periods up to 90 days rather than requiring you to set target rates.
United Kingdom (GBP)
Switzerland (CHF)
Guernsey (GBP)
Isle of Man (GBP)
Jersey (GBP)
Liechtenstein (CHF)
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands (GBP)