Digital nomads and perpetual travelers with location-independent businesses always encounter problems with banking.
A lot of prospective digital nomads are scared of making the leap specifically because of this hindrance. There are loads of new career options coming up that allow people to earn money while living a nomadic lifestyle, but traditional banking systems have failed to cater to the needs of this new lifestyle.
In recent years, however, many new digital banking options that can be opened and operated from anywhere in the world have begun to emerge.
Unlike traditional banks which don’t have high variations in terms of services, charges, and other incidental costs, these new NBFCs (non-banking finance companies) or Fintech companies offer a great variety of services and different charges.
Thus, it is important to research and compare well before selecting the best suitable option for your banking needs.
Below, we have covered the top 5 business bank account services that you can open and operate digitally. We have compared many business bank account services based on their ease to open and operate, charges and fees, currency exchange costs, and more.
Top 5 Business Bank Account Services
Wise Business
Wise for Business is a dedicated business solutions venture of Transferwise. Wise Business account is convenient and easy for international fund transfers.
Its digital account opening process is quick and easy, allowing you to open a business account in just a few minutes. Wise for Business has allowed people to save money on administration costs of managing international bank accounts by simplifying this process.
The Wise Business bank account service allows you to open an account in the USA, UK, Eurozone, Australia, and more.
The Wise Business account is linked with a local bank account in these places, allowing you to accept and make payments in your company’s name from anywhere in the world.
Wise Business provides digital wallets in 50 different currencies, which you can maintain separately.
Wise Business provides some of the best currency exchange rates as they use mid-market exchange rates with minimum markup. I
ts transparent charging policy allows you to calculate and compare the exact costs of transactions without any hidden surprises. Wise permits fund transfers to more than 80 countries around the world.
With its batch payment facilities and features like employee debit cards, it has turned out to be a huge help to freelancers, digital nomads and local independent business owners in managing international payrolls and expenses.
You can link your Wise account to Stripe, Shopify and other platforms to receive payment at better currency exchange rates. Its mobile app is available across all platforms, making it user-friendly in all countries.
Revolut
Revolut is the most successful digital payment system with a user-base of 12 million, and growing rapidly.
It is a UK-based fintech company that provides innovative banking solutions, zero-charge currency transfer services, travel insurance and crypto trading.
Revolut is currently operating in almost all European countries and recently started its services in the United States.
Revolut provides better exchange rates with free currency exchanges up to a certain amount. However, for payment outside the EU, international wire transfer fees are applicable.
The Revolut multi-currency accounts allow users to operate, store, receive and make payments in 24 different currencies. You can transfer funds between these accounts at inter-bank rate levels.
International money transfers to over 140 countries are available via Revolut at highly competitive rates with token fees.
The mobile application of Revolut is innovative and loaded with state-of-the-art features. It allows assimilation with accounting and billing software reducing the administration cost to a great extent. It provides all kinds of user reports with audit trails for taxation, expense reimbursement, billing, etc.
Revolut grants a Revolut card to all its users, which you can be used to make payments for purchases around the world at near bank rate exchange rates. This feature attracts a lot of nomads with location-independent businesses.
Another significant feature of Revolut is its cryptocurrency conversion feature, allowing users to convert their funds to cryptocurrencies in a fast and easy way. A lot of digital nomads are getting more acceptant of cryptocurrencies, which in turn is adding to the popularity of Revolut.
Payoneer
Payoneer is a US-based digital payment settlement service operating in United States, Canada, EU, UK, and Mexico, among others. Unlike Wise, anyone can open a Payoneer business account.
Payoneer is a smart way to receive payments for corporations and businesses such as e-commerce websites and freelancing services websites.
Digital nomads having a location-independent online business or providing remote services find Payoneer to be of great use in receiving payments.
However, Payoneer can only be used to receive payments for corporations, meaning you cannot use it to receive payments from clients who aren’t registered. This is one of the biggest drawbacks of Payoneer.
Payoneer provides lightning-fast international money transfer services to more than 150 countries at the best exchange rates. Payoneer works well for freelancers and entrepreneurs with international clients engaged in B2B activities.
Even though Payoneer doesn’t have a monthly fee, its charges are comparatively higher than other service providers, at about 1% for USS. Debit card charges are also high, so it is not suitable to use in international travel. There are also some instances of hidden fees.
However, in its core service of fund transfer, it can claim to be one of the most superior at the lowest charges.
Mercury
Mercury is one of the latest digital banking solutions getting popular among location independent business owners of the United States.
Mercury is proving to be the best solution for businesses registered in the United States as LLC or corporations but operated by non-residents from anywhere else.
Mercury is almost free in providing money transfers from US-based companies. It only charges the wire transfer charges of the partner bank with no additional cost of their own.
Location-independent business owners can register their company in the US and operate and receive payment anywhere in the world using Mercury.
It also gives good interest rates on the savings amount and provides a universal usage debit card. You can receive money in a Mercury account through PayPal or Stripe.
Mercury additionally comes with many free services such as ATM withdrawals, foreign payments, and transfers. It does not have any monthly fees, minimum deposit amount, or transaction fee.
Mercury has an additional service for its premium clients who hold more than a $250,000 balance known as the Mercury Tea Room. It has extra facilities like free international wire transfer, discounts on other products of their partner banks and insurance companies.
N26
N26 is a German-based online bank operating in nearly all the European Union countries and recently began its services in the United States. Unlike some others in this list, N26 is a full-
fledged bank operating under a banking license. However, it is a 100% online bank meaning it doesn’t have any physical branch.
Its business account allows you to transfer money, use ATM withdrawals, get a MasterCard Debit Card, among other services, free of cost for up to a certain level.
Even its paid services like international money transfer are also available at very cheap and transparent prices. It also provides additional benefits like cashback on purchases.
There are 2 types of premium business accounts available, namely ‘Business You’ and ‘Business Metal’, at monthly charges that give you additional perquisites like insurances of various kinds, international free cash withdrawals and lots of discounts with their partner companies in travelling industry.
N26 has become a favourite among working nomads and location independent businesses and service providers. However, N26 services are only for individuals and corporations cannot use this bank.
One drawback of N26 is that its lack of integration to accounting and billing software. Being an online bank, you also cannot deposit cash into your account.
COMMENT
There are various other options available in the online banking industry that are worth mentioning here, such as Valyuz, Starling, Rebellion, Paysera, Monzo, Monese, and Airwallex, to name a few.
The digital finance industry is highly competitive and more and more service providers are trying to create a niche of customers.
Digital nomads and remote workers have become a highly lucrative customer base for these banks, and newer and smarter banking solution businesses are emerging daily.
It has now, more than ever, become very important to be on a constant lookout for the best service for your financial needs, and that’s where we are ready to help you at a moment’s notice!
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NOTICE: The content of this article is not to be considered as a legal opinion or tax advice. Wanderers Wealth does not hold itself out as a legal or tax advisor. If you want to receive a legal opinion or tax advice on the matter in this article please contact us directly and we will refer you to a legal practitioner.
