While eagerly awaiting the delivery of Euromoney’s iPad consignment I thought I’d check out the availability of FX applications (or apps, as the Apple folk call them) for the iPod and iPhone. Free apps, of course – I’m not paying for this stuff.
Surprisingly, it appears that the major banks have been slow to catch on to the app phenomenon: I could only find offerings from HSBC and Citi.
I found HSBC’s effort largely useless: the app is supported from Hong Kong, all rates are against the HKD and their extravagant width of spread are those you’d expect to see in a Kowloon bureau de change (USD/HKD 245 pips wide anyone?)
Citibank’s app is more like what I expected to see: market prices updated at a configurable time interval as quick as half-a-second. The currency list of 26 pairs can be user-defined although there is a limited menu of crosses; each pair has daily, weekly, monthly and yearly charts available but the accompanying high and low levels look flaky.
If we’ve missed any hot apps, then please send them over to the weeklyFiX (FX@euromoney.com). At the moment Citi leads the way.
FX comment: Apps reviews in bite-sized pieces