Hello,
Just wondering what would happen if I get foreign currency from an atm in the UK. (E.g. some Citibank ATMs have dollars 
and euros 
). Importantly choosing the ATM not to use its own conversion but instead be charged in the foreign currency.
Would it count towards the £200 free international withdrawal? Would be nice to clarify this 
Thanks!
It won’t count towards your £200 fee-free withdrawal unless its actually abroad. So in your case above your £200 fee-free allowance will stay intact.
I will try to look for the post where it was confirmed by Monzo staff
Oh thanks I tried to look it up before asking but couldn’t find anything about it
This is a great question and something I’ve not thought of at all! However, I think you’ll find multi-currency ATMs charge for foreign currencies even if you select to be charged in said foreign currency. If I’m wrong, then that’s amazing as getting foreign currency in cash either from online retailers or from bureau de change branches are usually terrible exchange rates! (Incidentally, if that’s the case, someone point me to an ATM in the UK that dispenses Japanese yen 
)
Not necessarily! Check out Raphaels Bank 
I’m trying to make a list of foreign currency fee-free ATMs. So let me know if you know of any. So far I got this:
That’s ace and good to know! I’m guessing they’re mostly just euros and dollars though 
From Raphaels’s website:
Q: Will I be charged a fee for withdrawing euros or US dollars from a Raphaels Bank ATM?
A: Raphaels Bank will not charge a fee for your transaction but your card issuer may. Where possible, the exchange rate and total billing amount will be clearly displayed on screen during the transaction and you will be able to cancel the transaction at this point.
This implies the exchange rate is set by Raphaels, not by Mastercard. If that is the case, expect the exchange rate to be shocking, so they can recoup that ‘no fee’ sleight of hand.
It depends if they offer an option to pay in the withdrawn currency I guess, which they don’t mention on the site, so I’m guessing not…
I can’t see how that would work. It’s not like the ATM is abroad and just dispensing local currency, with no exchange to the owning bank. This is a UK bank with an ATM in the UK. They are effectively selling you foreign currency, just like a Travelex booth at the airport. They’ll need to exchange it somewhere along the line, why would they let you choose whether to pay their fee or a cheaper Mastercard fee?
That’s what I meant, it would be very unlikely they’d offer it, which goes back to the original point of this thread: the cash machine would charge you in the local currency (GBP) and dispense foreign currency. So, although Monzo wouldn’t charge a fee, the cash machine provider would either charge a fee or have bad exchange rates or both.
@GalaxyMergirl just confirmed in the other thread that some foreign currency ATMs in the UK don’t charge DCC, so maybe there’s hope.
I guess it needs someone to actually use a machine and compare the exchange rate to that of Mastercard. I think I work near a Raphaels ATM so if I can soon…
The ATM rate will be very high. Don’t use it. Opt out and let Mastercard do it.
Yeah I just didn’t know if Mastercard rate would be offered to a UK card in a UK ATM.
It is.
Withdrew €200 from a Raphaels ATM at St Pancreas Station on my Starling card and was charged in Euros and the exchange rate for the transaction appeared at the time to be the Mastercard rate.
So I sent an email to Raphaels Bank for clarification on the exchange rate used, and this was the response I got today.
If you are using a card issued in the UK to withdraw foreign currency then the ATMs work in a similar way to purchasing currency at a foreign exchange bureau. Once you have placed your card into an ATM and selected the amount that you wish to withdraw then you will be shown a rate on-screen with the choice to either ‘Accept’ or ‘Decline’. If the rate is accepted then the transaction will continue, if the rate is declined then the transaction will be cancelled and your card returned. UK cards are unable to withdraw foreign currency under their card issuers rate in Raphaels Bank ATMs.
The exchange rate is based on the spot rate at the time of transaction and will have a mark-up included within the rate.
Well, that’s a complete lie. I withdrew Euros from an ATM at the Liverpool St Central Line ticket hall, and it charged me in Euros, giving me the Mastercard rate.
I’m going to give it a go myself today, but I am a bit sceptical about their response. I had to highlight that their website shows an ATM at my local Tube station, yet it was taken away about four years ago.
It is quite possible that their identifier if a card is an UK card is presence of Link which Monzo doesn’t have and thus people are able to withdraw without DCC 
More specifically Link may not have the rules around DCC that Mastercard has…?
In fact, Link may not even accept non-GBP transactions