Business Money Transfers
Moving money across borders for a company is a bigger job than sending cash home: larger sums, real exposure to the exchange rate, and the need to hold and collect in several currencies at once. This section explains how it works, the kinds of provider worth knowing, and where to compare them.
What do you need to do?
Business cross-border money splits into a few distinct jobs. Start with the one you're solving for.
Comparing a specific provider?
Already using — or weighing up — one account? See how the leading alternatives stack up on cost, currencies and features.
Wise alternativesAirwallex, OFX, Payoneer, Revolut and WorldFirst compared with Wise — and the gap each one fills.
Airwallex alternativesWise, OFX, Payoneer, Revolut and WorldFirst compared with Airwallex — and when each is the better pick.
Payoneer alternativesWise, Airwallex, WorldFirst, Revolut and OFX compared with Payoneer — lower FX and no idle-account fee.
OFX alternativesWise, Airwallex, Payoneer, Revolut and WorldFirst compared with OFX — cheaper everyday FX and wider collection.
Revolut Business alternativesWise, Airwallex, OFX, Payoneer and WorldFirst compared with Revolut — flat FX and hedging where it lacks them.When an individual sends money abroad, it's usually one payment in one direction. A business is different: money flows in from customers and marketplaces, out to suppliers and contractors, and back and forth as revenue is converted to the currency the books are kept in. Each of those flows is exposed to the exchange rate, and at company volumes a rate margin that looks trivial on a single payment compounds into a serious line item over the year.
This section is built to make those costs visible and controllable. Below you'll find how business transfer pricing works, the four kinds of provider you're choosing between, and a checklist for picking one. Then dig into a specific job — starting with multi-currency accounts, the tool most cross-border businesses reach for first.
How business transfers differ from personal ones
The pricing mechanics are the same — a visible fee plus a hidden exchange-rate margin — but the priorities shift. Because the amounts are larger, it's the rate margin, not the flat fee, that drives what you pay. Because money flows both ways, holding a currency you collect in beats converting it twice. Payments also repeat and often arrive in batches — payroll, supplier runs, contractor payouts — so bulk-payment tools and predictable pricing count for more. And because the books still have to reconcile, accounting integrations and clean statements are part of the true cost, not an afterthought.
That's why the consumer question "which app is cheapest to send $500 home?" doesn't map neatly onto a business. The better question is: given how your company actually receives and spends abroad, which setup minimizes total cost across all of it? For most, that starts with holding the right currencies in one place rather than converting on every transaction.
The four kinds of business provider
Almost every option a business considers falls into one of four camps. Knowing which is which tells you where to look first — and the right choice depends on how money flows through your company.
Multi-currency account platforms
Wise Business, Airwallex, WorldFirst, Revolut Business
A single account that holds dozens of currencies and hands you local details (a US routing number, a UK sort code, an IBAN) so customers pay you like a local. Fast, low FX margins, and built for day-to-day trading rather than one big transfer.
Marketplace & payout specialists
Payoneer
Built around getting paid by platforms — Amazon, Upwork, Fiverr, ad networks — and paying contractors back out. Strong global reach and mass payout tools, though converting between balances carries a wider margin than the account platforms.
FX brokers & large-transfer dealers
OFX, Moneycorp, TorFX
For sizeable one-off or recurring transfers where a phone dealer, a forward contract or a rate order pays off. Margins tighten as the amount rises, and a named account manager helps you time and hedge larger exposures.
Business banks & wires
Your commercial or retail bank
Convenient if the money already sits in your business account and your supplier expects a wire. Almost always the priciest route, though: a flat wire fee, a 2–4% rate margin, and correspondent banks that can skim more in transit.
How to choose a business provider
- 1
Map your flows first.
List the currencies you get paid in and the ones you pay out in. A provider that gives local details in exactly those currencies saves a conversion on every transaction.
- 2
Compare on total cost, not the fee.
Add the rate margin to any flat fee and read it as a percentage of the amount converted. At business volumes the margin is almost always the bigger number.
- 3
Check the FX margin on your real pairs.
Rates vary by currency and by size. Quote a realistic amount on your busiest pairs and measure each provider against the mid-market rate.
- 4
Weigh the account cost against usage.
Some accounts are free; others carry a monthly plan or an inactivity fee. Cheap only wins if the fee structure matches how much you actually move.
- 5
Mind reconciliation and controls.
Accounting integrations, multi-user access, spending cards and clean statements are part of the cost of running the account, not extras.
- 6
Confirm regulation and safeguarding.
Use licensed providers that safeguard client funds. For large balances, remember safeguarding is not the same as bank deposit insurance.
Are these providers safe for company money?
The established platforms compared across this section are regulated — as electronic money or payment institutions under the FCA in the UK, registered with FinCEN and licensed state by state in the US, and by equivalents elsewhere. What those regimes share is a duty to safeguard customer funds in accounts kept separate from the company's own, so your balance is protected even if the provider fails.
One nuance matters for treasurers: safeguarding is not the same as bank deposit insurance such as FSCS or FDIC. It protects your money if the provider itself fails, but a plain safeguarded balance doesn't carry a government-backed guarantee — though a few providers now pass through FDIC cover on specific US products (Wise's interest-earning balances, held at a partner bank, are one example). A common approach is to run working capital and day-to-day FX through a licensed platform while keeping longer-term reserves in an insured bank account.
Business money transfers — FAQ
What counts as a business money transfer?
Any cross-border payment made in the course of running a company — paying an overseas supplier or contractor, receiving from foreign customers or marketplaces, funding a subsidiary, or converting revenue back to your home currency. The mechanics resemble a personal transfer, but the amounts are larger, the FX exposure matters more, and you usually need to hold or receive in several currencies at once rather than send a single lump home.
Is a multi-currency account the same as a business money transfer service?
They overlap but are not identical. A multi-currency account lets you hold balances and collect local payments in many currencies, converting when you choose; a transfer service simply moves money from A to B. Modern platforms such as Wise Business, Airwallex and WorldFirst are both at once — an account you can hold money in and a low-margin way to convert and pay out. For a genuinely large one-off transfer, a dedicated FX broker can still beat them on rate.
How much can a business save versus using its bank?
Often a great deal. A business bank typically bundles a flat wire fee with a 2–4% exchange-rate margin, and correspondent banks can deduct more along the way. A specialist account or broker usually converts at a margin well under 1% — sometimes close to the mid-market rate on major pairs. On a company moving five or six figures a month across borders, that gap runs to thousands a year for identical payments.
What is the biggest hidden cost in business FX?
The exchange-rate margin, not the visible fee. A provider can advertise "no transfer fee" and still be the most expensive option because it widens the rate it gives you — and on a large conversion, a fraction of a percent dwarfs any flat charge. The only fair way to compare is total cost: fee plus rate margin combined, as a percentage of the amount converted. Always check the quoted rate against the mid-market rate before you convert.
Are these providers safe to hold company money in?
The established platforms are regulated as electronic money institutions or payment institutions — the FCA in the UK, FinCEN and state licensing in the US, and equivalents elsewhere — and are required to safeguard customer funds in accounts kept separate from their own. That protects your balance if the firm fails, but it is not the same as bank deposit insurance (FSCS or FDIC), so many businesses keep working capital with a licensed platform and longer-term reserves in an insured bank.
Which is best for a small business getting started?
It depends on how money flows. If you mainly get paid by marketplaces and pay contractors, a payout specialist fits; if you trade with suppliers and customers in a handful of currencies, a multi-currency account platform usually wins on cost and flexibility; if you make occasional large transfers, an FX broker can sharpen the rate. Start from how your business actually receives and spends abroad, then compare providers on total cost for those specific flows.