Business growth can suffer as a result of poor payment timings. Looking to ensure British and European SMEs that import from international markets do not face this issue, WorldFirst, the one-stop digital payment and financial services platform has launched a new service for World Account multicurrency business account holders.
This new service from WorldFirst will increase the speed and efficiency of secure international business payment, free of charge. With World Account, SME import businesses can pay suppliers in over 200 markets worldwide using more than 90 currencies.
In particular, SMEs in the UK and the European Union that source from China can now pay a wide range of suppliers who are also World Account users within seconds. This is a result of WorldFirst’s client base in the country. In 2023, China was the largest import destination for both the UK and the European Union.
“We are providing speedy payment that is secure with client funds deposited at the world’s leading banks, whom are our long-time partners,” said Sumit Arora, managing director UK and Europe at WorldFirst. “WorldFirst also leverages AI and other technologies to comprehensively conduct fraud prevention and risk evaluation, ensuring a streamlined and secure payment process for our clients.”
Increased speed means removing pain points
WorldFirst has also expanded one-business-day settlement capability to cover 90 per cent of all World Account transactions, providing SMEs worldwide with speedy payments to increase turnover and save on costs. In the UK and Europe, WorldFirst supports same-day settlement for payments to markets in the APAC region, compared to the typical two to five days banks in the region usually require.
This includes:
- the Chinese mainland
- Singapore
- Hong Kong SAR of China
- Australia
- Vietnam
- Malaysia
- Thailand
- Japan
- New Zealand
Payment speed is a big pain point for SMEs when it comes to global transactions. The Financial Stability Board (FSB), an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system, lists speed, along with cost, transparency and access, as the four challenges in cross-border payment. A recent analysis shows that it takes between five to 10 days for payments to reach their destined account. Consequently, many SMEs struggle to access international markets.
Tailoring to an international market
WorldFirst tailored industry solutions for e-commerce sellers looking to expand overseas. Within one minute and fully online, e-commerce sellers can open a World Account to access over 30 local currency accounts and solutions while managing all their accounts across different online stores.
This integrated platform also enables them to pay their suppliers and handle VAT payments effortlessly. WorldFirst helps SMEs quickly establish and scale their presence on over 130 global e-commerce marketplace platforms, including Amazon, SHEIN, Wayfair, etc.
