6 Key Things to Know Before Opening an Airwallex Account [2024]

If you are considering using Airwallex for your business, you’ve made the right choice to do some research before opening an account. 

This article outlines five essential details about Airwallex so you don’t need to spend hours looking for the information on the website. We'll cover how the Airwallex business account works, its core features, eligibility criteria, available services by region, required documents, and associated costs.

Read on to find out everything you need to know before opening an Airwallex account.

Established in 2015 in Australia, Airwallex is a global payment and financial platform company. It offers financial services tailored for businesses of all sizes, including virtual business accounts, cross-border payment solutions, , business cards, and business APIs. 

The company has grown to over 1,500 employees in 23 international offices and is supported by Tencent, a Chinese technology giant.

Airwallex is a licensed money service provider in countries where it operates, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, China, Lithuania, Malaysia, and New Zealand.

Airwallex only provides business accounts for business transactions, meaning that it does not offer personal accounts.

Airwallex business account is a combination of local currency accounts and a multi-currency wallet. It works by providing Global Accounts, which are local accounts in different countries that allow businesses to receive payments in local currencies. For example, if you open a Global Account in the US, you can receive payments in USD with local bank details, making it seem like you have a US-based bank account. This can make deposits easier and potentially more cost-effective. 

After receiving funds through these accounts, they are stored in your Multi-Currency Wallet. The wallet allows you to hold, manage, and send money.

Below are the key benefits you can expect from the account.

• Multi-Currency Capabilities: Manages funds in over 20 currencies, including HKD, SGD, EUR, and USD.
• Flexible Payment Collection: Collect funds from various payment methods, such as local payment networks, payment gateways (i.e., PayPal and Stripe), and payment links.
• Local Accounts Options: Set up local currency accounts with unique local account numbers in 13 major markets, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, the EU, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, the UK, the US, and the UAE. 
• Global Transfers: Make international online payments to over 150 countries via SWIFT and local payouts.
• FX Services: Offers competitive exchange rates based on interbank rates. You can convert money at spot rates or lock in your preferred rate with forward contracts.
• Borderless Cards: Use virtual and physical Visa corporate cards to make payments in multiple currencies from the balance in your account. Direct Billing supports USD, AUD, CAD, SGD, NZD, HKD, JPY, EUR, GBP, and CHF. For other currencies, the equivalent amount is debited from your base currency wallet, with conversion based on Visa’s daily rate. These cards facilitate payments, but they do not support ATM withdrawals.
• Software Integration: Connect with accounting software like Xero and Quickbooks and ecommerce platforms such as Amazon and Shopify for seamless financial management

Airwallex offers financial solutions to businesses worldwide. To determine if your business is eligible, you'll need to check if Airwallex operates in the country where your company is registered.

Please note that the country where your company is registered will determine which Airwallex entity will manage your account, and this will affect the products, pricing, and terms of service available to you.

Countries Eligible

Refer to the table below to check if Airwallex operates in your company’s registered country and see which Airwallex products are available for your business.

*The United Arab Emirates is currently not supported, except for special approval.

Airwallex is unable to onboard businesses whose UBOs or directors live in Russia or Belarus. However, Russian or Belarusian citizens with valid residence permits in countries that are not restricted or sanctioned can still be onboarded.

Physical cards can only be issued in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Delivery to locations outside these regions may not be possible.

Company Types Eligible

According to Airwallex, every business entity is eligible to apply for a business account as long as it is for business purposes. However, you must not be operating in any prohibited industries, including but not limited to investment firms, arms dealers, gambling companies, pharmaceutical companies, and charities.

The documents required to open an account with Airwallex vary depending on the region and your company type. In most cases, you will need:

• Certificate of Incorporation or Business Registration
• Personal ID, such as a passport, a national ID, or a driver’s licence 
• Proof of address
• ID of authorised person and the Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) 
• Ownership structure chart or organisational chart (if applicable)
• Memorandum and Articles of Association (M&A) of your company (or equivalent company constitution documents)

The amount of documents you need to provide will depend on where your company was incorporated and the type of your company.

For example:

Let’s say you are a UK-based sole trader; you only need to provide your personal ID and proof of legal entity address (any bill or bank statement dated in the last three months).

Please refer to Airwallex’s “Preparing KYC Documentation” page for an updated list of required documents.

It costs nothing to open an Airwallex business account. There are no initial fees, minimum deposits, or balance requirements.

However, like most providers, various fees apply once the account is in use. These include fees for receiving payments, FX conversion, sending payments, and others. Notable Airwallex fees include a 0.3% charge on payments received from non-owner accounts, which may add up over time, as well as an FX markup fee that varies by currency. 

The fee structure varies by region. For instance, while most regions do not charge a monthly fee, Airwallex in Australia uses a tiered monthly fee model. 

For precise, country-specific details, refer to Airwallex's fee schedule and select your country for accurate information.

Statrys is an alternative to consider if your company is incorporated in Hong Kong, Singapore, or the BVI.

Founded in 2019, Statrys is a modern payment solution for SMEs. It is fully licensed and operates as a Money Service Operator in Hong Kong and a Small Payment Institution in the UK. 

Statrys multi-currency business account includes payment cards, competitive FX services, accounting software integration, and dedicated account managers to support each customer for seamless global business operations. What differentiates Statrys from Airwallex is its simpler pricing and more personalised support through phone, live chat, and email. 

The account opening process is entirely online, and 96% of successful applicants opened their accounts in less than 3 days.

Below is a summary of Statrys' services: