I wired approximately that much money internationally years ago with Wise (then known as TransferWise). Wasn't a hassle at all, didn't require any rigamarole, and importantly, didn't require crypto. What's the problem with using Wise?

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abustamam 5 days ago | parent | next [-]

It may differ depending on countries, but I tried sending $8k USD to Malaysia and it took some time. Can't remember if it was weeks or days but point being it wasn't as instant as crypto can be.

Also, I think you're neglecting to point out the rigmarole involved with making a Wise account — connecting your bank accounts etc. And the recipient might also need a Wise account for instant transfers (but I believe Wise becomes a custodian for your funds in that case).

Crypto wallets can be generated by the click of a button. I think I taught my mom how to make a crypto wallet at some point. She didn't understand how to keep her crypto safe, which is its own issue, but wallet creation is easy.

I'm far from a crypto maximalist, but nigh-instant transfers with very little fee is a very attractive benefit of crypto.

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sanswork 5 days ago | parent [-]

Creating a crypto wallet to receive is just the first step though. If your mom needs her local currency then the same as with wise she needs to create an account on some form of exchange or pay an extortionate rate to use a crypto ATM.

If she doesn't need that then wise without a linked account or PayPal or etc is the exact same outcome without the crypto wallet security risk.

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abustamam 5 days ago | parent [-]

That's a fair point, but creating an account on an exchange isn't too bothersome.

I personally use a Ledger device for my crypto. It was super easy to set up (though I wouldn't advise it to my mom, because she tends to misplace things). I linked my crypto wallet to my bank account fairly easily. So we can still get nigh-instant crypto transfers and fast selling of crypto into local currency (Speaking from US here, I think it usually just takes up to one business day). It's still faster than bank-to-bank transfer for large sums, which again, can take weeks for whatever reason they decide.

> wise without a linked account or PayPal or etc is the exact same outcome

PayPal without a linked account is actually pretty terrible. I did a Google search of PayPal frozen funds and this was the first result.

https://www.reddit.com/r/smallbusiness/comments/1kq14uk/payp...

Wise may have similar issues, I haven't really dealt with them outside of the occasional transfer, but I never let money sit in my wise account.

If you have custody of your own crypto wallet (IE not coinbase), no one can freeze your funds.

Again, I have my qualms with crypto, but the existing shitty state of ways to transfer money makes crypto very attractive. I have trouble even transferring money between my wife and my joint bank account and my personal account (held at two different institutions).

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sanswork 5 days ago | parent [-]

So your setup process is the same as wise or PayPal. You still had to do the process so crypto is best case harder since you also had to setup and manage a wallet unless you're just using the exchange one.

Go look at the subreddit of any of the major exchanges and they all regularly have stories of locked funds. Given the scales it would be far more likely there.

That's not a natural state of banking though that's a issue with your country. I have accounts at 4 different banks in Australia and regularly transfer funds between them without issue(I think my cap for instant transfer is around $5k though above that is usually only a few hours). Canada had a similar system(interac payments).

	▲	abustamam 4 days ago \| parent [-]
		> Go look at the subreddit of any of the major exchanges and they all regularly have stories of locked funds. Given the scales it would be far more likely there. Yeah that's why I wouldn't suggest anyone keeping a lot of funds on an exchange, and having custody of your own wallet. "Harder" is irrelevant (and relative) because a one-time setup in order to send money instantly — something that I need to reiterate that if our country's banking systems allowed us to do, I wouldn't look twice at crypto — is worth it. > That's not a natural state of banking though that's a issue with your country. Yeah I think that's my point though. If my country ("the great US of A") prevents me from easily moving money from me to me, and I've also had nothing but trouble trying to manage joint finances with my wife because of the difficulty of transferring money, then yeah I don't wanna play that game. In countries where bank transfers are instant then yeah, crypto doesn't make sense.

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DrammBA 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> What's the problem with using Wise?

On march 16th 2022 I sent $500 to my cousin in the USA, the transaction was completed on may 2nd 2022 after 9 back and forth emails with support. The first email on march 16th was asking me to confirm some information which I did same day, the other 8 back and forth emails was me asking when was my transaction going to be completed... at that time I had been an active wise user for 3 years...

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devoutsalsa 5 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I'm a Wise user. Transfers are mostly fine for currencies they support. The transfer is usually pretty fast. I tried paying for a guided Hike in Tbilisi, Georgia a few years ago, and the transfer took almost a week, so it's slow in some cases. For currencies Wise doesn't support, you need to look at other options, such as Western Union or crypto.

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Zpalmtree 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

What's the problem with using crypto?