The crashing pound sent people flocking to money changers to
exploit a favourable exchange rate in Singapore on Friday after the currency
plummeted following Britain’s decision to leave the European Union.
People looking for holidays and those with children studying
in Britain joined long lines at Change Alley, a mall in the city-state’s
business district known for its concentration of money changers, after the
pound reached historic lows against the Singapore dollar.
The pound also briefly dived to a 31-year low against the US
dollar.
“I’m hoping that I can get a favourable rate so I’ll save a
few thousand dollars on my daughter’s school fees,” said Thomas Lee, who was
among dozens in line at Raffles Money Changer.
The company executive, whose daughter is attending
university in the UK, had Sg$5,000 in cash, which he hoped would get him at
least 2,600 pounds.
“In the last year, I’ve lost a few thousand dollars just on
the exchange rate alone, but hopefully with the pound so low now, it’ll even
out,” Lee told AFP.
Joseph Rozario, 60, who is going on holiday to the UK next
month, said he was planning to buy about 1,000 pounds intially.
“I’ll need about 3,000 pounds in total but I’m changing it
in small amounts to speculate, so hopefully I might be able to save a few
dollars,” he said.
“I think the market will correct itself and what we’ve seen
today is a knee-jerk reaction.”
But the sudden plunge in the British currency caught money
changers off guard, with several putting up “out of stock signs” for the pound.
“My cost price was Sg$1.97 a pound, I obviously can’t sell
for anything lower than that, because I’m going to make a loss so I’d rather
say I’m out of stock,” said money changer Mohamad Rafeeq.
“The next few years will be uncertain ones for Britain and
Europe. Leaving the EU is as complicated as joining it,” Singapore Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a Facebook post.
Separately, the website of UK-based online retailer ASOS,
which is highly popular among young Singaporeans, crashed after increased
shopper traffic triggered by the weak pound.
– AFP
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