Question 1

Do you offer multi-currency IBAN accounts?

Accepted Answer

Yes, we do; a multi-currency account allows you to send and receive money in a variety of different currencies.

While we expand the number of local collection and settlement options you may use on our network, we can make local payments for you and utilise a number of payment networks.

Question 2

Where can I view my SSI's on the platform?

Accepted Answer

Your account information is essentially included in an SSI, or Standard Settlement Instructions. This information may be seen on the homepage's right-hand side.

Your account information, the accounts you have, and the available currencies to which you have access are listed. There will also be an overview of your vIBAN details.

When you top up or transfer on the platform you'll also see your details shown.

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Question 3

What are approvals and roles on the platform & how to change them?

Accepted Answer

There are five main user roles on the platform; client admin, account user, read only, exchange approver and withdrawal approver – these are all permissions that a client can manage themselves.

Client Admin: being able to create payments, exchanges and manage users
Exchange Approver: this user will be able to approve an exchange before it is actioned and scheduled
Read Only: unable to make any changes, create payments or exchanges and only allowed to view features of the platform
Account User: able to create payments and exchanges on the platform
Withdrawal Approver: this permission setting will be able to approve a withdrawal before it is actioned and scheduled
Manage Users: this enables you to temporarily suspend or reinstate users, modify permissions, and add or delete people

Each of the user roles has different permissions, meaning they can access different parts of the platform. You can also disable email notifications for a particular user if preferable, and they don’t want to be notified via email. The overriding administrator of the account can set up the different permissions or contact support if you are unable to do this and require assistance.

Head to user management to change permissions and view your current status.

Question 4

Why is the amount which reaches the beneficiary sometimes less than the amount sent?

Accepted Answer

Since you gave us the order to exchange the currency, the exchange rate may have fluctuated. We don't cover this then recoup since we don't grant you credit; instead, we ask that you have a 2% buffer in place.

Our global network of banks and NBFIs, with which Freemarket has partnered up, gives us access to mid-market rates in real-time. This enhances your options and enables us to join bigger trading pools, ensuring that you receive the best prices possible.

Before completing a transaction, you will always get an updated quote when you make an exchange.

Question 5

Can I have confidence in your safeguarding processes?

Accepted Answer

Freemarket undertakes an annual audit of its compliance with the PSRs 2017 safeguarding requirements.

For more information on our safeguarding processes please see our other articles on the subject here.

Question 6

How to download account balances from the platform

Accepted Answer

Downloading your currency balances is an easy and simple process.

For each currency that you have access to, if you head to the Balances tab it will show the transaction history from the account in its entirety. The overview will display the beneficiary, incoming transactions, outgoing transactions, and overall balance of the currency.

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From this viewpoint, you’ll be able to see the history for the currency – which can be located in the lefthand side of the screen – and you can toggle the side panel in order to select which currency you want to view.

Exporting the data from the platform is an easy task and you can do this in a matter of seconds. The platform by default will export the entire transaction history in your selected format. By clicking on green calendar icon (that is situated next to date), you are able to select a date range to view or export. Once, you have the currency and timeframe selected you can export the data in PDF or XLS format (as highlighted).

Question 7

Why was my account rejected?

Accepted Answer

You will receive an email from us informing you that your application was unsuccessful and declined by the platform, along with the reason(s) behind it.

It's possible that the application was turned down because it didn't match our risk tolerance. Freemarket takes an appropriate risk-based approach to achieve our strategic and commercial objectives. Further information on our risk appetite here and unsupported jurisdictions may be found here.

The application would be assessed by our risk team in conjunction with a Relationship Manager or a member of our support staff, who would also explain why it was turned down. They will be able to offer guidance and respond to any inquiries why your account wasn’t approved for payment solutions at this time.

Question 8

How can I keep safe online?

Accepted Answer

Take Five is a national campaign offering straight-forward, impartial advice that helps prevent email, phone-based and online fraud – particularly where criminals impersonate trusted organisations. Led by UK Finance and backed by His Majesty’s Government, the initiative is supported by a range of partners such as; the payment industry, financial services firms, legal sector, telecommunications providers, and commercial, public, and third sector organisations.

Stop: Taking a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or information could keep you safe.
Challenge: Could it be fake? It’s ok to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you.
Protect: Contact your bank immediately if you think you’ve fallen for a scam and report it to Action Fraud.

Visit the Take Five website here for more information.

We utilise best-in-class services to enhance our compliance and risk policies, and we use real-time rules-based monitoring in our automated transaction monitoring tool. To further safeguard our clients we hold all funds in segregated accounts with our banking partners.

How do I spot a fake, fraudulent or phishing email or website?

Phishing is a type of email attack in which a fraudster sends you an email while impersonating a person, business, or reliable website in order to obtain your passwords or other sensitive information or gain complete control of your computer.

The majority of phishing efforts take place via email, but fraudsters will use every method they can think of to get you to give them your information or money, including:

Fraudulent emails and other messages that look like they're from legitimate companies
Fake invoices saying you’ve missed a payment
Misleading pop-ups and ads that say your device has a security problem
Scam phone calls or voicemails that impersonate employees at companies
Fake promotions that offer free products and prizes

It’s best to be vigilant at all times, fraudsters want your personal details for a number of reasons. Freemarket will never ask you for any personal data. If you receive a message and are unsure it’s really from Freemarket, check to see if it does any of the following:

Uses generic, impersonal greetings like "Dear user" or "Dear [your email address]." We'll always refer to you in our correspondence by your first and last name or by your company name. Greetings like "Dear user" or "Hello Freemarket member" are never used by us.
Requests that you click on links that lead to phoney websites. Before clicking any links in emails, always double-check them. A link can have a secure appearance, such as www.wearefreemarket.com/SpecialOffers. To view the actual location, be sure to hover your cursor over the link. Don't click on the link if you aren't sure.
Has unidentified attachments. Open an attachment only if you are certain it is trustworthy and safe. Pay particular attention to invoices from businesses and contractors you are unfamiliar with. Some attachments contain viruses that install themselves when opened.
Projects a false feeling of urgency. Phishing emails frequently use alarmist language and urge you to update your account right away. They're hoping you'll be swayed by their haste and disregard red flags that the email is a scam. If there’s an urgent need for you to complete something on your account, you can find this information by logging into Freemarket directly.

You can find some more information, tips, how to spot phishing attempts and best practices from Apple, Santander, Microsoft, and Which.

Question 9

How do I know if my exchange has been completed?

Accepted Answer

We will send you two emails detailing the exchange breakdown and when we start to process the payment order. The first email will inform you as we have started to process your instruction and you will receive another email when the exchange is complete. The second email from support@wearefreemarket.com will include a statement with the full transaction details, including a breakdown of the rate achieved for the transaction.

Question 10

Can I make a payment from my Freemarket account?

Accepted Answer

Your Freemarket account does allow you to send and receive money. This may be a pooled account or vIBAN account that accepts payments or makes payments to the beneficiaries. You may start to make payments right away by setting up an account and confirming payments on it.

A variety of online payments can be made using your Freemarket account, but they must be within our risk tolerance and not breach sending or receiving funds to or from countries where we do not have support. Being a regulated company, we take this seriously and update it frequently. Our operations team occasionally blocks specific payments that violate this.

How you want to send a payment may differ, by which scheme and channel, this could be SWIFT, SEPA, FPS and so on. Each payment has different costs, receipts (transaction message) and reporting.

SWIFT: this is used to send or receive international payments via the SWIFT payment network.
SEPA: SEPA stands for Single Euro Payments Area and it's a payment type used to transfer euro within the EEA.
SEPA Instant: allow you to send 100,000 per transaction, they are available 24/7, 365 days a year, and take no more than 10 seconds to reach payee’s account from the payer’s.
FasterPayments: for the majority of UK-based payments Faster Payments is in place for bank-to-bank payments and designed to speed up the process of sending money. It has a limit in place of £1m per transaction.
Target2: is the real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system with payment transactions being settled processing euro payments.

If more funds are required for the payment in the platform, add them to generate a new payment. By navigating to the add funds area towards the top of the page's main menu, you may add funds to your account. Choose the currency of the funds you want to use for the payment from the add funds page, and the necessary bank information will then show up. After the funds have arrived in your account and are available for allocation, you will get an email confirmation.

After you have the funds, establish a new payment to continue, go to the transactions page, choose the beneficiary of the money (the beneficiary information will appear if it has already been used), and authorise the payment.