Global Bank Accounts for Businesses: How to Open Multi-Currency Accounts Without Local Entities

If your platform serves users in more than one country, you have a currency problem. Your European customers want to pay in euros. Your UK marketplace sellers expect pounds. Your Latin American contractors need pesos. And every time you funnel those payments through a single USD account, you lose money to FX conversions, correspondent bank fees, and settlement delays.

The traditional answer has always been the same: open a local bank account in every market you serve. But that requires forming a legal entity in each jurisdiction, navigating local compliance regimes, maintaining local directors, and waiting months for approvals. For a fintech scaling from 5 countries to 50, this approach is a non-starter.

Global bank accounts for businesses solve this problem by decoupling currency access from physical presence. Platforms can now open multi-currency accounts, collect and hold funds locally, and disburse payments without establishing entities in every country they operate in. This guide covers how multi-currency global accounts work, how to evaluate providers, and why the platform infrastructure layer matters more than which bank is on the other end.

Most content about global bank accounts for businesses targets end companies: a SaaS startup that wants a EUR account, or a freelancer who needs to receive GBP. But the real scale in multi-currency banking is at the platform layer. When a payroll platform needs to pay 10,000 contractors in 30 currencies, or a marketplace needs to collect payments from buyers in 15 countries, the infrastructure requirements are fundamentally different from a single business opening one foreign account.

Platforms face three challenges that individual businesses do not:

• Volume and velocity: Platforms process thousands of transactions per day across multiple currencies. They need accounts that support high throughput and programmatic access, not manual bank portals.
• Multi-tenancy: A payroll platform does not just need one EUR account; it needs the ability to provision accounts for each of its customers, with isolated balances and clear reconciliation.
• Embedded experience: End users of the platform never see the underlying banking infrastructure. The accounts need to be accessible via API so the platform can build a seamless product on top.

This is why evaluating global bank accounts for businesses requires looking beyond consumer-facing fintech providers like Wise or Revolut. Those products are designed for direct users, not for platforms that need to embed multi-currency infrastructure into their own products. For a comprehensive look at how platforms approach cross-border payments infrastructure, see our cross-border payments API guide.

The single biggest barrier to opening global bank accounts for businesses is the entity requirement. Traditional banks require you to incorporate a local subsidiary before they will open an account. This means:

• Legal entity formation in each country (typically $5,000-$25,000 per jurisdiction in legal fees alone)
• Local directors or registered agents, often required to be resident in the country
• Ongoing compliance obligations: annual filings, local tax returns, transfer pricing documentation
• Months of elapsed time, with bank account opening often taking 3-6 months after entity formation
• Minimum balance and activity requirements that are impractical for markets where you are just getting started

For a platform that wants to collect payments in EUR, GBP, CAD, MXN, AUD, and SGD, the entity-based approach means six separate incorporations, six sets of local counsel, six ongoing compliance workstreams, and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual overhead before processing a single transaction.

Non-resident bank accounts solve the entity problem by allowing a business to open accounts in foreign currencies without incorporating locally. A US-based platform can open a EUR account in Germany, a GBP account in the UK, or an MXN account in Mexico, all through a single provider, without forming subsidiaries in any of those countries.

The key distinction is between non-resident accounts and virtual IBANs. Non-resident accounts are real bank accounts held in the platform's name at a regulated bank in the target currency's home country. Virtual IBANs, by contrast, are reference numbers that route to a pooled account. Both have valid use cases, but non-resident accounts offer benefits that matter for platforms:

• Named accounts: The account is in your business name, which builds trust with counterparties and satisfies compliance requirements for regulated platforms.
• Segregated funds: Your money is held in a dedicated account, not commingled with other customers' funds in a pooled structure.
• Local clearing access: Non-resident accounts often come with local clearing access (SEPA for EUR, Faster Payments for GBP, SPEI for MXN), meaning you can send and receive payments like a local business.
• Regulatory clarity: For platforms that are regulated or seeking licenses, holding funds in named accounts at regulated banks is typically a compliance requirement.

Routefusion's global bank accounts infrastructure provides non-resident accounts in USD, CAD, EUR, GBP, MXN, AUD, CNH, HKD, SGD, and PLN, with a 24-hour SLA on account opening and a 90% approval rate. These are real named accounts at regulated banks, accessible through a single API integration.

Understanding how multi-currency global bank accounts operate at the infrastructure level is essential for platforms evaluating providers. Here is the typical flow.

The platform integrates with a global accounts provider via API. When a new account is needed, whether for the platform itself or for one of the platform's end users, the platform makes an API call specifying the target currency, country, and account holder details. The provider handles the KYB verification and opens the account at a partner bank in the target jurisdiction. With Routefusion, this process completes within 24 hours.

Once the account is open, the platform receives local banking details: an IBAN for EUR accounts, sort code and account number for GBP, CLABE for MXN, and so on. Payers can send funds to these accounts using local payment rails, which means faster settlement, lower fees, and no correspondent bank intermediaries. A European customer paying an invoice in EUR sends a SEPA transfer to the platform's named EUR account in Germany, and the funds arrive the same day.

Platforms can hold balances in multiple currencies simultaneously. This is critical for treasury management: rather than converting everything to USD immediately and eating the FX spread, platforms can hold EUR until they need to pay European suppliers, or hold GBP until they need to fund UK payroll. The ability to time conversions strategically can save 1-3% on total payment costs.

When the platform needs to pay out, whether to contractors, sellers, or suppliers, it can send from the local currency account directly. Paying a Mexican contractor from an MXN account via SPEI is instant and costs a fraction of a SWIFT wire from the US. For platforms processing high volumes, this cost difference compounds dramatically. To understand the full range of payment rail options, our guide on cross-border payments covers SWIFT, local rails, and stablecoin settlement.

The global accounts market has expanded rapidly, with providers ranging from traditional banks to fintech challengers to infrastructure-layer companies. Here is what to evaluate when choosing a provider for multi-currency global bank accounts.

Not all multi-currency account providers support the same currencies. Many providers offer EUR and GBP but stop there. Platforms operating in Latin America need MXN and BRL. Those with Asian exposure need SGD, HKD, and CNH. The question is not just which currencies are listed on a provider's website, but which currencies you can actually open accounts in, hold balances, and transact from via API.

Key currencies to evaluate for global coverage:

• Americas: USD, CAD, MXN, BRL
• Europe: EUR, GBP, PLN, CHF
• Asia-Pacific: SGD, HKD, CNH, AUD, JPY
• Middle East/Africa: AED, ZAR, KES

One of the least discussed but most important metrics in global banking is approval rate. Many providers will quote an impressive list of supported currencies, but if your account applications are rejected 40% of the time or take 6 weeks to process, the coverage is theoretical, not practical. Platforms should ask providers for their average approval rate and their SLA on account opening.

Routefusion maintains a 90% approval rate across all supported currencies and guarantees a 24-hour SLA on account decisions. For comparison, many traditional banks take 4-8 weeks to open non-resident accounts, and fintech providers that rely on third-party banking partners often see approval rates below 70% for non-US entities.

For platforms, the API is the product. If you cannot programmatically open accounts, query balances, initiate payments, and receive webhooks for incoming transactions, you cannot build a scalable product on top of the infrastructure. Look for:

• RESTful APIs with complete account lifecycle management (create, read, update, close)
• Webhook notifications for incoming payments, balance changes, and account status updates
• Sandbox environments for testing before going live
• Comprehensive documentation with code examples in major languages
• Batch operations for high-volume account provisioning

Consumer-oriented providers like Wise and Revolut offer APIs, but they are designed for their consumer product, not for platforms embedding accounts into their own products. The endpoints, rate limits, and data models are optimized for individual users, not for multi-tenant platform use cases.

This is a critical distinction that many providers obscure. Dedicated accounts are individual bank accounts in your name at a regulated bank. Pooled accounts are sub-ledgers within a single omnibus account that the provider controls. The difference matters for three reasons:

• Counterparty risk: In a pooled structure, your funds are commingled with other customers' funds. If the provider fails, recovery is more complex than with segregated accounts.
• Compliance: Regulators increasingly require that customer funds be held in segregated, named accounts. Pooled structures may not satisfy these requirements.
• Reconciliation: Dedicated accounts provide clean, unambiguous transaction records. Pooled accounts require the provider's ledger to match reality, adding a layer of trust and potential discrepancy.

Routefusion offers both dedicated and pooled account structures depending on the platform's needs. For regulated platforms or those handling large volumes, dedicated named accounts are the recommended approach. For platforms that need to provision many lightweight accounts quickly, pooled structures with virtual accounts for reconciliation provide the right balance of speed and control.

The global bank accounts market breaks into three categories, each with distinct tradeoffs for platforms.

Global banks like HSBC, Citibank, and Standard Chartered offer multi-currency accounts, but they are designed for large enterprises with established relationships. Opening an account at a global bank typically requires:

• Minimum deposits of $100,000-$500,000 per account
• In-person meetings with relationship managers
• 3-6 month onboarding timelines
• No API access; everything is done through manual banking portals
• Limited currency coverage beyond major currencies

Traditional banks are appropriate for large enterprises that need a banking relationship and have the resources to manage it. They are not appropriate for platforms that need programmatic access, fast onboarding, or coverage in emerging market currencies.

Fintech providers have made multi-currency accounts dramatically more accessible. Wise, Airwallex, and Revolut all offer multi-currency accounts with competitive FX rates and modern user interfaces. However, they are designed primarily for direct business users, not for platforms embedding accounts into their own products.

Limitations for platforms include:

• APIs designed for single-user flows, not multi-tenant platform architectures
• Virtual IBANs rather than named non-resident accounts in many currencies
• Consumer brand requirements that may conflict with white-label embedding
• Rate limits and terms of service that restrict high-volume programmatic usage
• Geographic restrictions: Airwallex cannot serve US-based businesses in some configurations; Revolut's business product has limited availability outside the EU

Infrastructure providers sit between banks and platforms, offering the banking capabilities that platforms need through developer-first APIs. This is the category that Routefusion operates in. The key differences from fintech providers are:

• APIs designed from day one for platform integration, with multi-tenant data models and high-throughput endpoints
• Named non-resident accounts at regulated banks, not just virtual IBANs
• White-label capability: the end user never knows the infrastructure provider exists
• Multi-rail support: the same API provides access to SWIFT, local payment rails, and stablecoin settlement
• Dedicated implementation support for complex platform architectures

The tradeoff is that infrastructure providers typically do not offer a consumer-facing product. You need engineering resources to integrate the API and build the user-facing experience. For platforms, this is an advantage: you maintain full control over the product experience.

Abstract infrastructure discussions only go so far. Here are three concrete scenarios where multi-currency global bank accounts solve real problems for platforms.

A US-based payroll platform serves companies with employees in Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Currently, the platform invoices all clients in USD, forcing European clients to initiate international wires and absorb FX costs. Client complaints about payment friction are increasing, and competitor platforms offer EUR invoicing.

With a non-resident EUR account, the platform opens a named EUR account in Germany via API. European clients now pay via SEPA transfer, which settles same-day and costs virtually nothing. The platform holds EUR and converts to USD only when needed for its own operations, saving 1.5-2% on FX by timing conversions strategically. The API integration means the account is fully embedded in the platform's billing flow; clients never see the underlying banking infrastructure.

A cross-border marketplace connects US buyers with Mexican artisans. Buyers pay in USD, but sellers need to receive MXN. Currently, the marketplace converts USD to MXN at the time of each sale, eating 2-3% on every transaction due to unfavorable retail FX rates.

With a non-resident MXN account, the marketplace collects MXN directly from Mexican buyers who want to pay in local currency, and batches USD-to-MXN conversions for seller payouts at wholesale rates twice per week. The MXN account allows the marketplace to send payouts via SPEI, Mexico's instant payment network, so sellers receive funds in seconds rather than days. Total FX and payment cost drops from 3.5% per transaction to under 1%.

A neobank targeting digital nomads wants to offer GBP accounts so users can receive UK salary payments and pay UK bills. Building this from scratch would require the neobank to obtain a UK banking license, establish a local entity, and build direct integrations with Faster Payments.

Instead, the neobank uses Routefusion's global accounts API to provision GBP accounts for each user. When a user signs up and requests a GBP account, the neobank makes an API call, and within 24 hours the user has a UK sort code and account number. Incoming Faster Payments trigger a webhook that the neobank uses to update the user's balance in real time. The neobank's users see a seamless GBP account; they never interact with Routefusion directly.

Pricing for global bank accounts varies significantly across provider categories. Understanding the cost structure is essential for platforms building a business case.

• Account opening fees: Range from free (some fintechs) to $500-$2,000 per account (traditional banks). Infrastructure providers like Routefusion typically charge a one-time setup fee per account.
• Monthly maintenance fees: $0-$50 per account per month depending on provider and account type. Pooled/virtual accounts are typically cheaper than dedicated named accounts.
• Incoming payment fees: $0-$15 per incoming transaction. Local rail payments (SEPA, Faster Payments, SPEI) are usually free or near-free. SWIFT incoming wires carry correspondent bank fees of $10-$25.
• Outgoing payment fees: $1-$35 per transaction depending on the payment rail. Local rails are cheapest; SWIFT is most expensive.
• FX conversion fees: 0.1%-2% depending on the provider and the currency pair. Infrastructure providers typically offer wholesale rates; consumer fintechs advertise low rates but may add margin on less liquid pairs.

For platforms processing significant volume, the per-transaction costs matter more than setup fees. A 0.5% difference in FX margin on $10 million in monthly volume equals $50,000 per month in savings. This is why platforms focused on cost optimization gravitate toward infrastructure providers that offer wholesale FX access and local rail pricing.

Opening global bank accounts for businesses involves navigating compliance requirements in multiple jurisdictions. Platforms need to understand three layers of compliance.

Every global account provider must perform KYB verification before opening an account. The documentation typically required includes:

• Certificate of incorporation and articles of association
• Proof of business address
• Identification documents for directors and beneficial owners
• Source of funds documentation for high-value accounts
• Business description and expected transaction volumes

The quality of the KYB process directly impacts approval rates. Providers with strong banking relationships and experienced compliance teams achieve higher approval rates because they can present applications in the format that partner banks expect. Routefusion's 90% approval rate reflects years of optimizing the KYB workflow for each partner bank in each jurisdiction.

All transactions through global accounts are subject to sanctions screening and anti-money laundering checks. For platforms, this means understanding how your provider handles:

• Real-time sanctions screening on incoming and outgoing payments
• Transaction monitoring for suspicious patterns
• Reporting obligations (SARs/STRs) in each jurisdiction
• Ongoing due diligence on account holders, especially for platforms that provision accounts for their end users

Platforms that offer payment services to their users may need their own licenses (e.g., money transmitter licenses in the US, EMI authorization in the EU). The choice of global account provider affects your licensing posture: working with a provider that holds appropriate licenses and can act as your regulatory umbrella in certain jurisdictions can reduce the licensing burden on your platform.

For platforms ready to implement multi-currency global bank accounts, here is a practical roadmap.

Start by identifying which currencies your platform needs today and which you will need in the next 12-18 months. Consider both inbound collection currencies (where your customers pay from) and outbound disbursement currencies (where your platform pays to). Do not over-index on current coverage; choose a provider whose roadmap aligns with your expansion plans.

For the platform's own operating accounts, dedicated named accounts are almost always the right choice. For accounts provisioned on behalf of end users, the decision depends on volume, regulatory requirements, and user expectations. Pooled accounts with virtual account identifiers are faster to provision and cheaper to maintain; dedicated accounts provide better segregation and compliance posture.

A typical API integration for global accounts involves three core workflows: account creation (submit KYB details, receive account information), payment initiation (send funds from the account), and webhook handling (receive notifications for incoming payments and balance updates). Plan for 2-4 weeks of engineering time for the initial integration, with an additional 1-2 weeks for testing in sandbox.

Before going live at scale, run a pilot with a small number of accounts and real transactions. Test the full lifecycle: account opening, incoming payments via local rails, balance queries, FX conversions, and outbound payments. Verify that webhooks arrive reliably and that transaction data matches your internal ledger.

Once the integration is validated, scale by adding currencies and increasing volume. Optimize by implementing strategic FX timing (hold balances in local currency until conversion is advantageous), batching outbound payments to reduce per-transaction costs, and using the provider's reporting APIs to feed your internal treasury and reconciliation systems.

For individual businesses, consumer fintech products like Wise or Airwallex offer convenient multi-currency accounts. For platforms that need to embed multi-currency functionality into their own product, infrastructure providers like Routefusion are the better choice because they offer API-first access, named non-resident accounts at regulated banks, and multi-tenant architectures designed for platform use cases. The best account depends on whether you are the end user or you are building a product that serves end users.

Yes. Non-resident bank accounts allow businesses to open accounts in foreign countries without physical presence or local entities. Through providers like Routefusion, you can open accounts in USD, CAD, EUR, GBP, MXN, AUD, CNH, HKD, SGD, and PLN remotely, with decisions typically made within 24 hours. The KYB process is handled digitally, requiring standard business documentation like certificates of incorporation and director identification.

Traditional global banks (HSBC, Citibank, Standard Chartered) offer multi-currency accounts but require large minimum deposits and in-person onboarding. Fintech providers (Wise, Airwallex, Revolut Business) offer more accessible multi-currency accounts for direct business use. Infrastructure providers (Routefusion) offer multi-currency accounts via API specifically designed for platforms that want to embed banking capabilities. The right category depends on your scale, technical requirements, and whether you need direct accounts or embeddable infrastructure.

Costs vary by provider type. Consumer fintechs typically offer free or low-cost account opening with revenue coming from FX margins and transaction fees. Traditional banks may charge $500-$2,000 per account in setup fees plus monthly maintenance. Infrastructure providers charge per-account fees that vary based on volume commitments, typically in the range of $50-$500 per account depending on currency and account type, with lower per-transaction costs at scale.

A virtual IBAN is a reference number that routes to a shared pooled account. You receive your own IBAN for receiving payments, but the underlying funds are held in a pooled account controlled by the provider. A non-resident bank account is a real, named bank account at a regulated bank in a foreign country. The account is in your business name, funds are segregated, and you have full control over the balance. For platforms handling significant volume or operating under regulatory oversight, non-resident accounts offer stronger compliance posture and lower counterparty risk.

Timelines range from 24 hours to 6 months depending on the provider and account type. Traditional banks typically take 4-8 weeks for non-resident accounts. Fintech providers can open virtual accounts instantly but may take 1-2 weeks for named accounts. Routefusion's global bank accounts offer a 24-hour SLA on account decisions, which is among the fastest in the industry for named non-resident accounts at regulated banks.

Global bank accounts for businesses have evolved from a niche banking product into critical infrastructure for platforms operating across borders. The providers, account types, and integration models available today make it possible to build multi-currency capabilities into any platform without the traditional barriers of local entities, in-person banking relationships, and months-long onboarding processes.

The key decision for platforms is whether to use a consumer fintech product designed for direct business users, or to invest in infrastructure-layer integration that gives you full programmatic control, named non-resident accounts, and the ability to scale without hitting architectural limits. For platforms processing meaningful volume across multiple currencies, the infrastructure approach pays for itself through lower per-transaction costs, higher approval rates, and a product experience that you fully control.

Routefusion's global accounts infrastructure provides non-resident accounts in 10+ currencies, a 24-hour SLA, 90% approval rates, and a single API that also covers cross-border payments, FX hedging, and stablecoin settlement. If your platform is scaling internationally and needs multi-currency banking infrastructure, contact our team to discuss your requirements.