Expert explains who should buy foreign currency in advance before the New Year

When buying foreign currency is justified

Buying foreign currency in advance ahead of the New Year makes sense only for those who have an upcoming trip abroad or a mandatory payment in early January — for example, paying rent abroad or tuition fees. This was stated to Gazeta.Ru by business expert Dmitry Trepoltsky. According to him, such a purchase allows you to lock in expenses and reduce dependence on holiday exchange conditions. If all expenses are to be made in rubles, there is no need to buy currency just because the holidays are approaching, and buying on emotions right before the holidays is a common mistake.

Calculating the benefit of splitting the purchase

Trepoltsky suggested dividing the required amount into several purchases: this reduces dependence on the exchange rate on any particular day, although it does not guarantee the most favorable outcome. He gave an example: for a budget of $2,000, buying the entire amount at a rate of 85 rubles would require 170,000 rubles; if the rate rises by 5%, to 89.25 rubles, expenses would increase to 178,500 rubles, while buying half the amount at each of the two rates would cost 174,250 rubles.

Practical recommendations

Before exchanging, the expert advised comparing the actual rates of banks, commissions, and the availability of the needed cash currency, as well as finding out in advance which payment methods can be used to cover expenses in the destination country. For unexpected expenses, he recommended setting aside a reserve of 10–15% of the travel budget. Earlier, on November 4, the same publication, in a piece titled 'explained,' told Russians when a strong ruble will be reflected in prices.