Does Wiring Money to Africa for a Hunt still make you nervous

The outfitter we are using next year has a US account, so we have been depositing there and confirming his receipt of it.
 
Past couple of years I've used Zelle from my personal account and transferred money straight into both SA and Zim bank accnts using my phone (or laptop). No extra fees either. I just did it to KMG and $$ was there in less than 4 hrs. Also sent $300 to a friend in SA for a raffle hunt and again, less than 8 hrs. I also have Wise, but haven't used it for that. Much better than going to the bank and filling out all that paperwork with fingers crossed.
 
I’ve done it many times to many countries. If you are with a reputable outfitter there are no worries for me. Even better if they are an exhibitor at SCI’s convention.
It has become easier with many African outfitters using a US clearinghouse or agent.
 
Wells Fargo charges $25 for international wire transfers. It takes a few days to process but it's straight forward. I do not like wiring funds to Zim banks but many outfitters have an account in South Africa, which works great.
 
I have done it a few times with outfitters, also the Taxidermist in Limpopo, the export shipper, etc using various methods. All was smooth, fast and painless. I did a wire transfer to the customs broker in Atlanta for my crate of taxidermy recently from a previous safari and it took over a week for that domestic USA transfer to clear. So, in my experience the Africans are easier to do business with than the Americans.
 
Zelle is easy to use but I find the daily limits to be too small for some hunt payments.
 
MontanaPat said:
@LivingTheDream I’m curious your thoughts on the Wise App further. I have looked into using it to wire money to an outfitter in Europe, they all want wire transfers and don’t take credit cards. I went through the Wise App process which was very easy to use and fees very reasonable compared to the high cost my bank charges, but I got down to the final step and the app wanted to use some third party processor to link directly to my bank account for the transfer and that made me very nervous allowing someone else I didn’t know access my bank account directly and how were they going to maintain security of that information. So I dumped the transfer attempt, went to the bank and bit the bullet paying the high bank fees and they still took 4 days to get the money transferred

Did this last step not make you nervous? Any further info on what they do to secure your information?
Click to expand...
what did your bank hit you for? mine was 35.00 for it.
 
Hyde Hunter said:
what did your bank hit you for? mine was 35.00 for it.
Click to expand...
Every wire I do costs me around $75-80. My bank charges $30 but because it is an international wire they have to use Wells Fargo to then send it overseas so WF charges another $50. That’s why I would like to try the Wise App, just gave me pause about giving out the info they were requesting
 
There was another parallel thread on this subject not long ago. Small banks don’t have international capability so they use a bank of their choosing that does. I’ve transferred larger sums both ways… through Wells Fargo at a flat fee and through my smaller local bank that has to use an intermediary intl bank. IIRC, these transfers average about $40 total.

I most commonly use a third party company that specializes in international cash pick up and bank account transfers. These are done conveniently through an account online. For the 3-5 day service they charge a flat $5. The daily limit is approximately $3500 USD. When I have to send/transfer larger amounts, I simply do it cumulatively in $3500 increments. If pre-planned, not difficult for larger amounts, up to a reasonable point of course. Obviously, if you need to pay for 30 day, high dollar species hunt, better off just paying a larger transfer fee and be done with it.
 
I’ve never had trouble on either end. My banker says he looks forward to my wire transfers so he can learn more about geography. He has never heard of most of my safari destinations.
 
The deposit and final payment is much easier if the outfitter has an account in the US. MG Hunting has an account in Florida and so does Elephant-Trails in Zimbabwe. The latter outfitter got a very bad review on this forum but my buddy and I got exactly the experience we wanted. It really is a matter of fitting the outfitter to the client.
I send wire transfers frequently, mostly for real estate. My banker gives the usual warnings even though I am a CCM - certified cash manager and she isn’t.
 
I just sent a deposit through easy2africa today ......I hope it all works out ok.
 
No, but it did bother my banker! They have gotten used to it over time. Now when I ask for a wire transfer, they smile and ask "...and where are you going THIS time?"

In return, I bring back some cheap trinkets like a key chain or refrigerator magnet. A few years ago, I brought back a few low-denomination Namibian Rand notes. Told the banker that next time a customer requested Namibian currency, they would have it!

At another bank, they flat-out refused to transfer funds to a European outfitter. So I withdrew my money and closed the account.
 
I bank with two small country farmers banks. They are both very strong and conservative.

I make an appointment, go into either of their offices, close the door, visit for 20 minutes while the transfer goes through the main branch and walk out. The one banker’s daughter is marrying a biologist from SA and flies to see them twice a year.

So, no. I don’t worry or get any static about doing business with wire transfers from either.
 
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