£Hundreds of Thousands
Freed in 24 Hours
Elderly British sellers, Languedoc property · Languedoc, France → UK
Three weeks of blocked funds, and no clear path to resolution
An elderly British couple had sold their Languedoc property. The notaire had the funds, a significant sum in the hundreds of thousands of euros, and was ready to release them. But the release couldn't happen.
The problem was technical but consequential. Their previous foreign exchange provider used a pooled client account, meaning the account used to receive the funds was in the provider's name, not the client's. French notaires, under strict AML (Anti-Money Laundering) rules, cannot release funds to an account that isn't in the client's name.
The funds had been sitting in the notaire's account for three weeks. The couple's previous provider had no solution. The French bank alternative would take longer and come with a significantly worse exchange rate.
The estate agent in Languedoc referred them to Ibanista.
A named account opened in 24 hours. Funds cleared in 3 days.
Ibanista opened a named EUR client account for the couple, an account in their names, not Ibanista's, meeting the notaire's AML compliance requirements exactly.
AML checks were completed quickly. New payment instructions were provided to the notaire the same day. The notaire released the funds within 24 hours of receiving the new account details.
The money arrived in the couple's UK bank account within 3 days of Ibanista being engaged, ending a three-week blockage and arriving, as Ben noted, just in time to help their granddaughter buy her first home.
The key risk this case highlights: any foreign exchange provider using a pooled (omnibus) account creates this risk for sellers. It's a hidden problem until completion day, when it matters most.
Just in time to help their granddaughter buy her first home.
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