A Time for Family,
a Time of Thanks...

At Thanksgiving, we think of family – here and in the Philippines. It is also a time for giving thanks; in spite of these difficult economic times, we have much to treasure and celebrate – our families and our connections to those we love. So, before we get swept up in the flurry of Christmas activities, let’s take a moment to reflect on what we are thankful for.

We appreciate your feedback on our first newsletter. We received many positive and enthusiastic responses. Many of you also praised our service. Please click here to share your story about how you use remithome, or click on the “Share Your Story!” pod on the right. We hope to share customer stories on our website and in future newsletters.

Wishing you and your families a safe and happy Thanksgiving season.

Antonio Dennis Reis
President and CEO
remithome Corporation

 Exchange Rates: Why They Change
Second in a series of articles

In last month’s article, Exchange Rates – An Introduction, we noted that when the Philippine Peso strengthens (appreciates) against the U.S. Dollar, the Peso/Dollar exchange rate declines. But what factors influence the direction of the exchange rate?

Exchange rates are determined by the law of supply and demand. When demand goes up (more people want Pesos), the Peso/Dollar exchange rate goes down. For example, you may have observed that the exchange rate often goes down in December when there is a surge of remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) sending money home for Christmas.

Demand for Philippine Pesos can result from

• U.S. importers needing Pesos to buy Philippine goods
• Tourists visiting the Philippines needing local currency
• OFWs sending money home to help their families

Supply of Philippine Pesos can result from Pesos being sold to buy U.S. Dollars by

• Philippine importers who need Dollars to buy goods from the U.S. or to buy commodities such as oil that are priced in U.S. Dollars
• Philippine investors who buy U.S. securities

As you can see, the Peso/Dollar exchange rate is influenced by many factors, so it can be extremely hard to forecast. Remember that the interaction of millions of people buying and selling Philippine Pesos determines its value, which we call the Peso/Dollar exchange rate.

Next article in the series: Wholesale and Retail Exchange Rates

 Ask remithome: Setting Exchange Rates

Question: Your website says that you offer one of the highest exchange rates of any online remittance service. How do you set your Philippine Peso/U.S. Dollar exchange rate? Is the exchange rate I see on your website the rate I will get when I send money? And how do I compare your exchange rate with those of other online remittance services?

Answer: Because we realize that your money transfer decisions may depend on the exchange rate, remithome quotes a committed exchange rate on our website (www.remithome.com) a full 24 hours in advance. Unlike other online remittance services, we actually set a committed exchange rate before we know how the exchange rate will change overnight (because of the U.S. – Philippine time difference).

remithome sets its preliminary exchange rate quotation at the end of its processing day (2 PM, Pacific Time) and this quoted rate is good for the next 24 hours, until 2 PM the next day. Should the Peso/Dollar rate move higher by the end of the Philippine banking day (around 5 PM, Philippine Time, or 1 AM, Pacific Time, in the U.S.), our Manila Office will increase the quoted rate on our website. You will always get the higher rate at time of processing. (Please note that this applies to transfers funded with bank accounts. Since credit card transfers are processed immediately, they receive the exchange rate available at that time.)

Important Points

• If you schedule a transfer for processing at the next 2 PM processing time, you will always receive at least the exchange rate quoted on our website, and you may receive an even higher exchange rate when the transfer is processed.
• The confirmation email you receive when you schedule a transaction will reflect the exchange rate quoted on our website at that time. If your transfer is processed within the next 24 hours, the actual exchange rate you receive may be higher (and will never be lower) than the exchange rate quoted in the confirmation email.
• The confirmation email you receive after your transfer is processed (at 2 PM, Pacific Time) will reflect the actual exchange rate you receive.
• To compare remithome’s exchange rate with that of another online remittance service, you need to compare the rate you will actually get. For remithome, check our exchange rate after the final exchange rate quotation is up on our website (in the morning). For other online services, you may need to contact them to make sure that the exchange rates quoted on their websites are current (and not from the previous day).

If you have questions about our exchange rate, please contact remithome Customer Service at 1-800-919-0787, Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM, Pacific Time (California), or email us at customerservice@remithome.com.