My younger son got his first debit card in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was 13. We were living in Bangalore. I wanted to teach him money management early.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem? Every time he used my HDFC card for anything international, the forex charges killed me. 3.5% plus GST. That’s almost 5% gone on every transaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I started looking for better options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That’s when I found two apps promising better global banking. Fi Money<\/a> and Niyo<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both called themselves neobanks. Both promised modern banking. But their approaches were completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I’ve been using both since 2021. My family uses them for different purposes. My US born son prefers one. My wife uses the other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After three years of real usage across multiple international trips, here’s what actually works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fi launched in late 2020. They partnered with Federal Bank<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The app is built around insights and automation. Smart savings. Spending analytics. Rule based money management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I opened my Fi account in March 2021. Took about 10 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What interested me was the global aspect. They promised competitive forex rates. Multi currency spending without the insane markups Indian banks charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I tested this on my Dubai trip in 2022. Spent about \u20b980,000 through my Fi debit card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The forex markup was around 2.5%. Better than HDFC’s 3.5%. But not amazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The app showed me exactly how much I spent and where. That transparency was new.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bold tip: Fi Money works if you want an all in one banking solution that occasionally handles international transactions. Not if travel is your primary use.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Niyo took a different approach. They focused purely on making international spending painless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They partner with banks like Equitas and SBM Bank. But you don’t really interact with those banks. Everything is through Niyo’s app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I got my Niyo Global card in 2019. Before Fi even existed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The promise was simple. Zero forex markup. Use it anywhere in the world. Pay exactly the interbank rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sounds too good to be true. But I tested it extensively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Singapore 2019. Thailand 2020 (just before pandemic). London 2022. Dubai twice. USA thrice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The zero markup claim is real. I’ve checked every statement. Compared with Google’s exchange rate. It matches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This isn’t just about one or two transactions. I’ve spent over \u20b915 lakh internationally through Niyo across five years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Similar to how I save on international money transfers<\/a>, picking the right card saves thousands on travel spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let me show you what matters for actual global usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat is Fi Money?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What is Niyo?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Head to Head Comparison<\/h2>\n\n\n\n