Wise unveils international business payment account in Hong Kong

It has no minimum balance requirement and no monthly subscription fees.

Wise has launched its international business account in Hong Kong, aimed at enabling small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to pay, get paid globally, and access over 40 currencies.

The account has no minimum balance requirements and no monthly subscription fees, according to a press release.

Users can receive payments globally using local account details for 9 major currencies— USD, GBP, EUR, SGD, amongst others— with no fees. They can also receive payments via 14 additional currencies such as CNY via SWIFT, with full transparency on fees

Businesses can use received funds right away, such as paying suppliers in the same currency without incurring additional conversion fees. They can also send the funds globally, or convert the sum to another currency, all at the mid-market exchange rate with low, upfront fees, Wise said.

Other services include making batch payments to pay up to 1,000 people in one click; generation of professional invoices for free, and tracking invoice statuses; and creating unique Quick Pay links and QR code to receive payments in multiple currencies repeatedly from customers and clients

An early study commission by wise found that of 200 SMEs polled, nearly 96% have made or received a cross-border payment in the past six months. Over half or 52% of the respondents do so on a weekly basis.

SMEs who have made a cross-border payment in the past six months expect the demand for this service to increase further:  56% expect more payments from overseas business partners, 55% from consumers, 52% for paying suppliers abroad and 47% to set up new overseas entities.