Xoom.com is one of the many players in the US online money remittance business. It can send money to up to 30 different countries. Many people prefer it because of its convenience and competitive remittance fees.

When sending money to the Philippines, a sender can set up a money transfer in such a way that it gets deposited directly to the recipient’s bank account. There are also other transfer options like cash pickup and door-to-door service. The great thing about Xoom is that they have a ‘Locked-in exchange rate” system.

Here are some screen shots from a recent Xoom money transfer transaction (me being the recipient):

1. First, I received an email (Subject: Track Your Transaction X012345678901234). The amount to be received is calculated in the email in Peso, even though the sender is sending it in US dollars.

*The transaction number is represented in this article by these random digits: X012345678901234

2. I received another email (Subject: Money Transfer Underway X012345678901234). It notifies the recipient that the money is being deposited to the bank.

3. I received the third – and last – email (Subject: Money Transfer Completed X012345678901234). The first two emails come within seconds of each other. This last email comes in an hour or two. It notifies the recipient that the bank deposit was successful.

4. I check my BPI account online, to see if the amount is reflected in my account. Sure enough, the amount indicated by Xoom in their email appears on my bank account.Here, it shows that Xoom has converted the money into the local currency of the recipient before it gets deposited to the bank. If the bank does the forex work, there could be additional fees. So this is pretty convenient, especially for online sellers because the transaction is purely online.

Now, comparing the exchange rates (resource Feb 20, 2013):

Xoom: 1 US$ = P39.7125

BPI’s own Forex table: 1 US$ = P40.22

Okay, it does seem like BPI could’ve offered a better rate. But based on my experience, The actual rate that BPI applies on remittances is slightly lower than the ones shown in this table. Anyway, both their rates are competitive, compared to say, Paypal’s complicated exchange rate calculations.

Overall, I am very satisfied with Xoom.com’s remittance service. I won’t have to wait for days to receive my money and it goes straight to the my bank.