I bought an item worth < 200$ on Amazon through my card a while ago and it worked. Now when I am trying to purchase an item worth >1500$, I am unable to purchase the item. For anyone with experience purchasing items on Amazon, could it be the bank that is blocking my transaction since it is larger or some sellers that refuse foreign cards?
When you apply for a card, you also agree to a limit. You could tick the appropriate amount on the form or it could be a default figure. Maybe in your case, the card’s limit is shs 30k. Go to your bank and apply for a higher limit, or have it removed altogether.
Download an app called barter. Its for creating virtual VISA cards.
Load via mpesa and do your shopping.
Isn’t this a complicated process not to mention the extra charges and higher exchange rates, the best thing for the OP is to talk to his bank to raise the limit on purchases…alafu just a tip pia aulize bank if they’ve got dollar prepaid cards or get a dollar a/c specifically for your online shopping whenever you’ll be doing shopping kwenda kwa waria change yo dollars to get best rates and load in dollars, hapana tumia your main account for online shopping it’s risky.
If you want a bank with good reasonable exchange rates and multi-currency prepaid cards angalia SBM ama I&M sanasana SBM because if you find yourself buying with Kes against the dollar the rates are better kama hukupata time ya kwenda Bureau. Both banks can load through MPESA.
this is your challenge,call your bank to increase the limit on your card for online transactions
So they do put limits on cards attached to your account? This is frustrating. What is a hustle free way/card/bank to be doing online shopping then?
Thanks for the tip. The multi - currency prepaid card seems the way to go. So in your view the SBM one is the best? Also won’t the prepaid card also have a limit?
Can this be done by using customer care only?
Ask the rep but last I checked limit haikua, I’ve been using the I&M multi-currency prepaid for years but nadai kuchkua SBM solely because of their favourable exchange rates even though I&M pia are better on the exchange rates than all the other banks except SBM.
Vile banks husumbua na a/c changes over phone hii naona ukipanda mat ama uber.
Poa, maze nimehata ma discounts mob za purchases
The limit is frustrating but it’s also in place to protect you. Suppose someone stole your card and used it for online shopping. They wouldn’t be able to use more than 30k every 24 hours (or whatever limit is in place). This would give you some time to contact the bank and cancel the card before they wipe out your account. Without that limit, a scammer can ideally spend every coin in your account.
I use a VISA card from Equity but my online purchases rarely go past $100. It’s convenient because I can load whatever amount I want to use via MPESA right before completing the transaction. It’s also connected to Paypal, which I prefer for websites that I don’t completely trust.
One last question. Looking at the I & M multi-currency prepaid card on their website naona ina $,£,€. Nikitaka kutumia kwa websites zinakubali KES au locally pia, itakuwa na shida? Au ita convert to Kenyan currency na ifanye kawaida?
My NCBA card works fine.
It works even with Kes like normal, the $£€ is just telling you that it has 3 split provisions/wallets for those currencies,when you load say Kes & want to buy something in Euros it will automatically be charged using the bank’s forex rate for Euros to Kes, transactions are flawless. Say you’ve got 30k & go to the bureau convert 10k to each currency, dollar , S. pound, euro then take to the counter to be loaded to the card kwa portal yako itaonyesha Mr.Butch has 100Euros/100usd/100GBP, figures are just examples, you can still use the same card locally to fuel or at a supermarket like normal it will be charged in Kes. Hope I’ve helped ya.
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If you do this you are simply throwing money away.
You pay 110 shillings you get 1 dollar. If you now want to spend 100 shillings, the bank converts your 1 dollar at their exchange rate you get 100 shillings. Your net balance after the transation is 0. Ten shillings zimeenda hivo, x1500 dollars hiyo ni 15k gone…
Don’t mix your local currency na foreign currency. As much as is possible, convert once, ikae hivyo hivyo, and spend it in that currency.
Hiyo ya sbm how many currencies does it hold ? Niliona ya Barclays holds over 5 currencies, ya I&M holds 3 currencies, whatever you pick maybe you can consider picking that which holds more currencies .
Bu
but I&m also has that very shitty portal to manage the card ,I logged in severally then I was locked out of the portal just like that .and are you sure sbm has multicurrency cards am finding none on their website except union pay.