Bank customer

A card purchase is not finished when the terminal beeps. Urban first places a hold for the authorised amount, then replaces it with the posted amount when the merchant settles. The card screen shows both, so a hotel or car hire hold does not look like a vanished payment.

Foreign purchases show the rate Urban will use at posting time, not a marketing mid-market rate. If the merchant settles in a different currency than the authorisation, the posted amount can move. We keep the original hold visible until that settle arrives.

What the rate line means

The rate is locked when the purchase posts, not when you tap the card. Until then the screen labels it indicative. That word is there on purpose. It is not a guarantee for a restaurant bill that settles three days later.

ATM withdrawals abroad list a separate cash fee on the same row as the rate. In-app card controls can switch foreign use off if you are not travelling.

You get

A notification when a hold drops off without a matching post — for example an unused hotel authorisation. The money is available again the same day we release it.

“If the terminal currency is not the account currency, read the rate line before you enter the PIN. After posting, the rate on that purchase does not change.”

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Holds that look like spending

Car hire and hotels often authorise more than the final bill. Urban shows that extra as a hold, not as spent. When the merchant sends the true amount, the hold closes and only the bill remains.

If a merchant never settles, we release the hold on the timetable printed on the card detail. You do not need to phone us for a routine release unless the date has passed and the hold is still there.

Use Cards in the app to freeze a lost card. Freeze does not cancel recurring merchants you already approved; turn those off under Recurring.