So, I’ve been messing around with Airwallex for a bit now, specifically for my small biz here in Singapore. Thought I’d throw down my experience, you know, from a local guy actually using the thing. I needed something that wasn’t going to murder me with exchange rates and fees every time I dealt with overseas clients or suppliers.
The Starting Line: Why I Even Looked at Airwallex
Before Airwallex, I was juggling a couple of different bank accounts and Wise (formerly TransferWise, yeah). It was okay, but when volumes started picking up, those little fees here and there felt like death by a thousand cuts. Plus, the sheer admin of tracking everything across platforms was driving me nuts. I primarily sell digital products to the US and Europe, but my manufacturing happens largely in Vietnam and China. See the mess? SGD, USD, EUR, VND, CNY—it was a headache.
I heard about Airwallex from another founder at a networking event down at Launchpad. He was raving about how seamless it was for multi-currency holding and transfers. Sounded like a proper solution, not just another hack.
Diving In: Setting up the Account
The sign-up process was pretty painless, honestly. It felt quicker than setting up a regular corporate bank account here, which can take ages and require piles of paper. I did the whole online application, uploaded my ACRA details, director IDs, and proof of address. They verified my stuff within a few business days. What I really liked was the ease of setting up local accounts in other currencies. This was the game-changer.
- First major move: I immediately set up a USD account. This meant US clients could pay me directly in USD without it automatically converting to SGD at a terrible bank rate.
- Second move: Getting the Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) and Euro (EUR) accounts ready for specific European clients and some logistics payments.
It was simple. Click, click, done. I didn’t have to call anyone or wait for physical mail.
The Day-to-Day Grind: Handling Transactions
This is where Airwallex really started proving its worth. The core benefit for me has been the interbank exchange rates. Seriously, the spread they offer is significantly tighter than what my previous bank or even Wise sometimes charged for large conversions. When I have to pay my supplier in China (CNY), I just convert the necessary USD held in my Airwallex wallet, and the conversion cost is minimal.
Making Payments Overseas
I use their bulk payment feature quite a bit now. I have a list of Vietnamese and Chinese suppliers. Instead of doing individual bank transfers that cost $20-$30 each, I load up the batch payment, hit send, and the fees are negligible, often close to zero if it’s an Airwallex corridor. The money usually hits their accounts within a day or two, sometimes faster.
Receiving Funds
This is my favorite part. When a US client pays me in USD into my Airwallex USD account, I see the full amount. No incoming wire fees, which used to happen with my local bank. I let the funds sit there until I need to convert them to SGD for payroll or local expenses. I wait for a decent exchange rate, then convert it within the platform.
The Hiccups (Because Nothing is Perfect)
It hasn’t been completely smooth sailing, though. Early on, I had a bit of confusion regarding the Singapore dollar local account. While you can hold SGD, sometimes integrating it perfectly with local accounting software like Xero felt slightly less polished than a major local bank connection. I had to manually categorize a few more things initially.
Also, their customer service, while generally responsive through chat, sometimes feels like it’s based somewhere far away. Usually, they fix things, but when you need that fast, Singaporean-speed response, you might have to wait an hour or so for a detailed reply.
Final Thoughts After Months of Usage
Look, for any Singaporean entrepreneur who deals regularly in multiple currencies—especially if you’re pulling in USD or EUR—Airwallex is a massive efficiency boost. It drastically cut down the time I spent reconciling currency conversions and, more importantly, saved me a good chunk of cash on fees and poor rates. It acts like a global financial hub that sits perfectly alongside my local Singapore bank for local transactions.
I started this journey trying to cut costs and admin. I ended up with a system that feels genuinely integrated into my international business structure. I definitely recommend giving it a spin if you’re tired of the old way of moving money around the world.