BankSA Worldwide Wallet card. The fees, rates & need-to-knows

Preparing to head overseas and are unsure if using your credit or debit card to access funds is the best solution?

While using debit or credit cards overseas is permitted by most banks, another option worth considering is a dedicated travel money card. Offering reduced fees, multi-currency access and other benefits, they can make travel spending easier to manage.

In this guide, we’ll investigate one option offered by BankSA – the Worldwide Wallet reloadable card. We’ll detail its features, fees, limitations and more so you can confidently decide if it is right for you before travelling abroad.

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What is the BankSA Worldwide Wallet prepaid card?

The BankSA travel money card is a pre-paid, reloadable Mastercard, also known as a Worldwide Wallet, that is primarily designed for overseas spending.

Similar to a BankSA debit card, the BankSA reloadable travel card facilitates cashless transactions at home, overseas or online but offers lower fees and some travel-specific benefits in addition to this.

BankSA promotes this product as an ideal and secure alternative to using a debit card as it allows you to pre-load AUD and convert into up to 10 foreign currencies, lock in exchange rates and save on fees.¹

Who is this card for?

The BankSA Worldwide Wallet card is beneficial for those travellers who prefer not to carry large volumes of foreign currency on them or who need easy access to multiple currencies.

Using a travel money card like this in place of a debit card can also make budgeting during your trip easier and help you leverage favourable exchange rates in advance of departure.¹

What are the main features and benefits of this card?

There are several features and benefits offered through the BankSA rechargeable card for travellers. These include but are not limited to¹:

• Fee-free loading and unloading of funds
• No account maintenance fees
• Option to lock in exchange rates
• No foreign currency or transaction fees
• Tap-n-go payments
• Free domestic or foreign ATM withdrawals with partner ATMS or when using those operating as part of the Global ATM Alliance
• Secure transactions and Mastercard Zero Liability protection against fraud
• Use of Mastercard’s Flight Delay pass at more than 1000 lounges
• Access to Mastercard’s Priceless Cities program
• Travel rewards such as cashback offers and other extras
• Two cards per account that can be managed via online or mobile Banking
• A dedicated 24/7 customer service team

For ease of spending in multiple destinations, you’ll also have access to up to 10 different currencies all on the same card.

List of supported currencies

While 10 foreign currencies are supported on the card, AUD is the primary or loading currency.

Once you have AUD funds in your card account, you then have the option to convert your money into one of the following currencies¹:

• USD – United States Dollar
• EUR – Euro
• GBP – British Pound
• NZD – New Zealand Dollar
• CAD – Canadian Dollar
• JPY – Japanese Yen
• THB – Thai Baht
• ZAR – South African Rand
• SGD – Singapore Dollar
• HKD – Hong Kong Dollar

During your trip, you can convert more funds as needed from AUD or by using other currency balances. At its conclusion, to unload the card simply convert any leftover foreign balances back to AUD.¹

With no account maintenance fees applied, you may also prefer to leave any funds on the card for future travel instead.

The cons of using this card

While there are benefits to using this card, it is worth considering any potential drawbacks before deciding if it is right for your needs, these include things such as¹:

• You must be a BankSA customer and registered for online banking
• You can only load and unload the card in AUD
• Locked exchange rates cannot be altered if a more favourable rate becomes available
• Funds on the card are not covered by deposit protection and can only be accessed electronically through the Westpac and Mastercard networks²
• Mastercard Prepaid cards may not be accepted by all merchants
• Variable ATM fees may apply on withdrawals made at ATMs outside the partner network

In addition to the above, there are also limitations on daily spending, how much money can be loaded on the card at one time and more.²

The limits you get with this card

As touched on above, the BankSA Travel Card does have some limitations related to loading and spending.

As per BankSA, these limits mean no more than AUD$100,000 can be loaded onto the card in a 12-month period and that the available balance not exceed AUD$50,000 at any stage.²

While travelling, your spending is capped every 24 hours at AUD$2000 or equivalent when making a withdrawal or at AUD$15,000 when making purchases online or via EFTPOS.²

What are the fees for this card vs the Wise card?

The table below details any fees, limits and exchange rate details that are relevant when using the BankSA Worldwide Wallet travel money card.

For context, we will also compare this against the non-bank alternative Wise debit card.

	BankSA Worldwide Wallet prepaid card²*	Wise Card*
Card order fee	Nil	AUD$10
Minimum load amount	No minimum amount	No minimum amount
Maximum limit on card	AUD$50,000	No limit
Monthly/yearly maintenance fee	Nil	Nil
Renewal fee once expired	Nil	Nil
Digital card available?	No	Yes
ATM fees	No withdrawal fees on Westpac Group ATMs domestically or Global Alliance Partners internationally	Two free withdrawals up to $350 total a month per account 3 or more withdrawals per month: A fee of $1.50 + 1.75% of amount withdrawn over $350 AUD Note: ATM operators may charge their own fees.
International payments fee % for spending 100 AUD in GBP	No foreign currency fees on transactions	0.39% to spend convert 100 AUD spent in GBP
Exchange rate used	Mastercard exchange rate applied for purchases with card² BankSA exchange rate applied for conversions through online banking or the App	Mid-market rate

*As seen on 30 April 2024

Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information.

BankSA Worldwide Wallet prepaid card exchange rates

As the above table outlines, one of two different exchange rates is applied by BankSA and Mastercard depending on the type of transaction being made.²

If making a purchase in a currency you do not hold a balance for on the card, the Mastercard exchange rate will apply. When converting AUD to a supported currency via the app, the BankSA rate will be used.

Currently, BankSA and Mastercard do not advertise whether a margin is applied within these rates as a fee.

To determine whether margin factors into these exchange rates, we have compared them against the mid-market rate used by Wise, converting AUD$1000 into GBP as an example.

Amount to convert	BankSA³	Mastercard⁴	Wise
AUD$1000 to GBP	Exchange rate applied is 1 AUD = 0.5068 GBP Therefore AUD$1000 = GBP£506.80	Exchange rate applied is 1 AUD = 0.5278438 GBP Therefore AUD$1000 = GBP£527.84	Exchange rate applied is 1 AUD = 0.526706 GBP A variable fee of 0.39% also applies which is AUD$3.88 Therefore AUD$1000 = GBP£524.66 See the calculation here

As seen on 15 May 2024

From the above, we can see that Mastercard's exchange rate is closely comparable to Wise’s mid-market rate.

Reviewing BankSA’s rate against the mid-market rate, however, indicates that a margin is likely incorporated into each conversion made into any of the Worldwide Wallets supported currencies.

How do you get a BankSA Worldwide Wallet prepaid card?

So what’s involved with getting one of these cards, who’s eligible and how do you use and load it? Let’s take a look.

What are the eligibility requirements for getting this card?

Before applying for a BankSA Worldwide Wallet Card you should confirm that you are eligible. You must be:

• Aged 14 or older
• An Australian resident
• A BankSA customer
• Registered for online banking with BankSA
• Able to provide and meet the identification requirements

How long does it take to get the card

Applications can be made either online via the BankSA website or in person at one of their branches.

For applications made online, account cards will be sent out to your chosen address and are estimated to arrive within 5 to 8 business days.¹

In-branch applications allow you to collect your cards on the spot for immediate activation.

How to load and use the card

Once you have activated your card, you can then load it using online banking or the mobile app to transfer funds from your preferred BankSA account.²

Once the funds are visible on the travel money card, you can then convert them into your chosen currency or multiple currencies. From here you simply use your travel card as you would your BankSA debit card.

What else do I need to know?

BankSA’s Worldwide Travel Wallet may or may not suit your needs while abroad, but it is worth remembering:

• There is no digital card provided by BankSA with this product, this means that should your card be lost or stolen, you will have no access to your funds until a replacement can be arranged.

BankSA contact details

To speak with BankSA regarding this product before departure you can contact them at:

• 13 13 76

For 24/7 Worldwide Wallet support, call:

• 1300 804 266 in Australia or
• +61 3 8536 7873 from overseas

Travel with Wise

With a Wise Account you can hold money in over 40 currencies and spend it in over 150 countries. You can also order local account details in popular world currencies like AUD, NZD, USD, EUR, GBP to receive local and/or international payments like a local.

Whenever you exchange currencies it’s done using the mid-market rate with a transparent conversion fee shown upfront.

To make everyday spending easier you can order a Wise Debit card for your Wise Account and generate virtual cards as needed. If you have the local currency in your Wise Account the Wise card will use it. If you don’t have local currency converted, it uses smart technology to auto-convert your money at the mid-market rate, for a conversion fee.

The Wise card may suit you better if you’re to spend money that you’ve stored in different currencies within an existing Wise Account, and benefit from 2 or less free cash withdrawals under $350 AU, or foreign equivalent, per month (keep in mind that ATM providers may charge their own fees). You can see our full fee breakdown for ATM withdrawals here.

Join over 16 million customers currently using Wise. It’ll only take a few minutes to register and see what’s inside.

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Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up-to-date pricing and fee information.

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Sources:

1. BankSA - Travel Money Card
2. BankSA - Worldwide Wallet PDS pg. 10, 16,
3. BankSA - Exchange Rate
4. Mastercard - Exchange Rate

Sources checked on: 30 April 2024