What are cross-border payments and how do they work for businesses?

Cross-border payments transfer money between parties in different countries and currencies, supporting activities such as paying overseas suppliers, employees, and service providers while enabling businesses to enter new markets and access global talent. Traditional international wire transfers routed through SWIFT can take up to five days and may incur bank, intermediary, and foreign-exchange fees, while currency fluctuations and manual administration can further affect costs and cash flow. Businesses can use SWIFT transfers, local payment rails such as ACH and SEPA, payment cards, and digital wallets, with locally connected fintech platforms often providing faster and less expensive alternatives by allowing transfers to be processed through domestic networks. When selecting a provider, companies should assess transfer costs and exchange rates, processing speed, supported countries and currencies, and batch-payment capabilities. Airwallex promotes its Business Account as a solution offering payments to more than 150 countries and regions in over 60 currencies, with many transactions routed through local payment rails rather than SWIFT.

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