Caxton review

A multi-currency card designed to make spending abroad easier, cheaper and safer. But you need to use it at least once a year to avoid the dormancy fee.

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Matthew Boyle

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Caxton focuses on foreign exchange and offers cards and apps for taking money abroad.

What is Caxton?

Caxton provides multi-currency pre-loaded cards for when you’re travelling and spending money abroad.

Your account is accessible on Caxton’s mobile app or online, and you can load your Caxton card before or during your trip. You can spend, fee-free, across the globe.

It’s worth noting that Caxton will charge you a £2 a month “account management” fee if there have been no transactions, card loads or balance switches, in the previous 12 months. This dormancy fee has taken a few customers by surprise.

How does Caxton work?

A multi-currency card is a way to simplify your holiday spending, especially if your trip requires more than one currency.

Caxton’s smartphone app gives you 24/7 control over your card, enabling you to:

  • Order and load your card. There’s no credit check as it’s a prepaid card so no credit is involved. Once you’ve ordered the card, expect to get it in 3–5 days. Then you can load it.
  • Manage currencies. Switch and manage currencies.
  • Track your spending. View your transaction history and manage your travel money in the app.
  • Manage your card. If you lose your card or it’s stolen, you can block it via the app.
  • Lock in rates. At the time of purchasing your currency you can elect to purchase Caxton’s Buy Back Guarantee (for a fee). This means Caxton will buy back any unused currency at the same rate you bought it for.
  • Use your card. There are no fees for making purchases or for ATM cash withdrawals overseas. If your destination currency is not available to purchase, load sterling and the card will convert to local currency automatically.

Which currencies are offered through Caxton?

15 currencies can be purchased on the card and their exchange rates can be locked in, while 25 currencies are offered with Caxton’s online payment system.

  • GB pound (GBP)
  • Euro (EUR)
  • US dollar (USD)
  • Australian dollar (AUD)
  • Canadian dollar (CAD)
  • Swiss franc (CHF)
  • New Zealand dollar (NZD)
  • Hong Kong dollar (HKD)
  • Danish krone (DKK)
  • South African rand (ZAR)
  • Japanese yen (JPY)
  • Swedish krona (SEK)
  • Hungarian forint (HUF)
  • Polish zloty (PLN)
  • Norwegian krone (NOK)
  • UAE dirham (AED)
  • Swiss franc (CHF)
  • Euro (EUR)
  • Hungarian forint (HUF)
  • Norwegian krone (NOK)
  • Saudi riyal (SAR)
  • Swedish krona (SEK)
  • Turkish lira (TRY)
  • Moroccan dirham (MAD)
  • Australian dollar (AUD)
  • Czech koruna (CZK)
  • GB pound (GBP)
  • Israeli shekel (ILS)
  • Indian rupee (INR)
  • New Zealand dollar (NZD)
  • Singapore dollar (SGD)
  • US dollar (USD)
  • Canadian dollar (CAD)
  • Danish krone (DKK)
  • Hong Kong dollar (HKD)
  • Japanese yen (JPY)
  • Polish zloty (PLN)
  • Thai baht (THB)
  • South African rant (ZAR)
  • Omani rial (OMR)

What are Caxton’s limits?

Minimum load: £50 or equivalent in other currencies.

Maximum single load: £10,000 (Caxton Black) / £12,000 (Caxton Red) or equivalent in other currencies.

Maximum total balance: £12,000 or equivalent in other currencies.

Maximum loads per day: 2.

Maximum annual load: £50,000 or equivalent in other currencies.

Maximum ATM withdrawal per day: £300 or equivalent in other currencies.

Is Caxton safe?

Money is uploaded securely through the mobile app or online services – though your first one has to be done through the website. The Caxton card is ‘chip and PIN’ secure.
The funds on your currency card can be redeemed via your account at any time.

Are there any fees I might have to pay?

The Caxton Black card is free and there is no monthly account fee. It is also free to load and reload the card. Overseas purchases and ATM withdrawals are free of charge. You could also opt for the Caxton Red card, which costs £8 a month and has no FX markups, so you would get a better exchange rate. This could be useful for those of you who travel and spend over £2,500.

However, there is a £1.50 fee for domestic ATM withdrawals and transaction fees. It might be a good idea to use the card exclusively for spending outside the UK.

Where a transaction is performed in a currency different from the currencies available on the card there is a FX mark-up of 2.49%.

Here’s a table of Caxton’s additional fees:

Additional feesFee charged
Replacement/additional cards£5
Buy Back Guarantee£4.99
Over the counter cash£4.50 plus 2% of withdrawal amount
ATM balance enquiry£0.30
Redemption processing fee£1.50
Dormancy fee£2 a month if account dormant for 12 months

What’s the alternative to Caxton?

There’s a range of alternatives to using travel cards, but possibly the best of the lot is digital banking apps. The reason why is that most, if not all, of the major names in this field charge zero transaction and withdrawal fees. You can also manage the whole process on your phone, saving on the stress of having to make an appointment at your local bank branch or post office.

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Matthew Boyle is a banking and mortgages publisher at Finder. He has a 7-year history of publishing helpful guides to assist consumers in making better decisions. In his spare time, you will find him walking in the Norfolk countryside admiring the local wildlife. See full bio

Matthew's expertise
Matthew has written 210 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Helping first-time buyers apply for a mortgage
  • Comparing bank accounts and highlighting useful features
  • Publishing easy-to-understand guides
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