Guides for companies that earn, hold and pay in more than one currency: what each payment rail costs, how verification works, how to pay people abroad, and where stablecoins fit.
PaymentsMany US banks let business checking accounts send and receive Zelle. Zelle itself charges no fee, and your bank sets the limits. Payments arrive in minutes and cannot be reversed, and there is no purchase protection, so it suits trusted customers and small amounts.
AccountsNon-resident founders are told they need an SSN to bank in the US. For a company account, that is usually wrong. Here is what providers really ask for.
PaymentsSingapore businesses pay each other in seconds on FAST and PayNow. Here is how SGD payments work, and how a company abroad pays and gets paid in Singapore dollars.
PaymentsA US domestic wire settles in real time, but only while Fedwire is open and only if your bank sends it before its own cut-off. Fedwire takes customer transfers until 6:00 p.m. Eastern on business days. Most banks set their deadlines hours earlier.
CompliancePeople search "is Wise safe" and "is Payoneer safe" every day. The honest answer is about how the money is held, not whether the app is legitimate.
PaymentsIndia has some of the fastest domestic payment rails in the world, and some of the most paperwork around money coming in from abroad. Here is what a company paying Indian contractors or suppliers needs to know.
AccountsA virtual IBAN looks and works like any IBAN for the person paying you. Behind it, the money lands in an account held elsewhere. Here is what that means for a business.
OperationsHiring abroad is easy. Paying people correctly abroad depends on whether they are employees or contractors, and whether you have a company in their country.
ComplianceEvery business in Kenya must issue invoices through eTIMS, VAT registered or not. From 1 January 2026, KRA validates the income and expenses in tax returns against eTIMS and other records. An expense without a valid electronic invoice, outside the exempt categories, risks being disallowed.
AccountsInside Ghana, cedis move by GhIPSS Instant Pay in seconds, by ACH in batches, by RTGS for large sums, and by mobile money, which is linked to bank accounts through interoperability. A foreign company paying Ghana usually sends USD by SWIFT or pays cedis through a provider.
PaymentsFaster Payments can carry up to £1 million per payment. That is the scheme maximum, not your limit. Banks set their own caps by account type and channel, often far lower, and can hold a payment for checks. For larger sums, CHAPS has no scheme maximum.
OperationsMost owner-directors of small UK companies take a small salary and the rest as dividends. The 2026/27 tax year changed the maths: dividend tax rose by two points, and employer National Insurance has started at £5,000 since April 2025.
OperationsIncoterms decide who pays for shipping, who carries the risk, and who clears customs. Pick the wrong one and you pay costs you did not budget for.
PaymentsMexico's SPEI moves pesos in seconds to any 18-digit CLABE. For companies with teams or suppliers in Mexico, it is the cheapest way to pay.
OperationsA cash forecast in one currency is easy. Add a second currency and every number depends on an exchange rate. This method keeps each currency separate until the last step, so you can see where a shortfall actually is.
ComplianceIf a US person, including a US company, has foreign financial accounts whose combined maximum value went over $10,000 at any point in the year, it must file FinCEN Form 114. A US LLC owned by a non-resident counts as a US person for this purpose.
AccountsHong Kong is a trading hub, and HKD is linked to the dollar. With HKD details in your company's name, Hong Kong clients pay you on FPS in seconds.
ComplianceSince 7 October 2024, UK payment firms must reimburse victims of authorised push payment scams up to £85,000. The rules cover consumers, microenterprises and small charities. A company with ten or more staff, or larger turnover, is outside them.
Cards and spendExpense management is three habits: give people the right card, collect the receipt at the moment of spend, and approve before money leaves. Here is how to set them up.
AccountsA European client's payment form asks for your IBAN. Your US account does not have one. Here is what to enter, and how to avoid the problem altogether.
Every article is researched against primary sources: the regulation, the scheme rulebook or the provider’s own documentation. Each one lists them at the end.
Subscribe via RSSAlexia compares the accounts, cards and payment tools companies weigh before they switch, and writes Rivet's market guides for founders in a specific country. Prices in Alexia's comparisons come from each provider's own pricing page on the date given in the article, rules come from the regulator or tax authority that sets them, and every source is listed at the end.
Rashidatou writes Rivet's guides to how money moves between countries: the payment rails, what each one costs, and the account details a company needs to get paid in another currency. Every figure in Rashidatou's articles is traced to the scheme rulebook, the regulator or the provider's published price list, and those sources are listed at the end.
William covers what happens once a company starts moving money: getting the business verified, paying contractors and suppliers abroad, and keeping card spend under control. William writes for the founder or finance lead who has to make it work this week, and links every rule cited to the text it comes from.
Bank accounts in USD, EUR and GBP, cards with a limit on each, and payouts on local rails. Starter is free.
