Local payments vs local account details: what is the difference?
Being able to make a local payment does not mean your business also has local account details to receive funds in that currency. Learn how local rails and local accounts differ, and how to combine them in one multi-currency setup.
Practical guide
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An internationally active business may need to pay suppliers and collect customer revenue in the same market. It is tempting to treat this as one banking requirement. In practice, the outgoing and incoming flows rely on different capabilities.
A provider may be able to send a currency through a domestic payment system without having local account details for receiving that currency. Before agreeing invoice terms or sharing payment instructions, you therefore need to check each direction separately.
Key distinction:
A local payment route answers “How will we pay?”
Local account details answer “How will our customer pay us?”
Local payments and local account details solve different needs
A local payment route determines how funds reach a supplier or beneficiary
The transfer moves through the market’s domestic payment infrastructure rather than relying solely on an international wire route. Common examples include ACH in the United States, SEPA for euro payments and Faster Payments in the United Kingdom.
The business does not necessarily need to open its own conventional bank account in that country. A payment provider can use its local infrastructure or a banking partner to send the payment through the relevant domestic network on the client’s behalf.
Local account details serve the opposite flow
They identify where an incoming payment should be sent and allow it to be attributed to the correct business. Depending on the market, these details may take the form of an IBAN, an account number or an equivalent local identifier. Where available through SwissFx, the details are provided within the client’s existing multi-currency account and are fully in the business’s name.
Business question | Local payment rail | Local account details |
|---|---|---|
Purpose | Send funds to a supplier or beneficiary through a domestic system | Receive and identify customer payments through local details |
What the business needs | Access to the provider’s local payment infrastructure | Assigned local details in the business’s name, where available |
Separate local bank account? | No. The provider supplies access to the domestic payment rail. | No separate conventional account: eligible details sit in the business’s name within its SwissFx multi-currency account. |
One multi-currency setup instead of several local bank relationships
With a traditional banking setup, expansion into several markets may mean opening a separate account in each country, establishing a new banking relationship and managing another onboarding process, platform and account structure.
Where SwissFx provides eligible local account details, they sit in the company’s name within its existing multi-currency account. The business can therefore use those local collection routes without maintaining a conventional bank account in every market.
A currency may offer one flow without supporting the other
Currency availability is not a single yes-or-no feature. Payment and collection capabilities may differ because local infrastructure, market liquidity and currency rules are not the same in every jurisdiction. The practical point is to identify the available route, rather than assume that one capability automatically includes another.
SwissFx supports payments in more than 140 currencies, with local payments and/or collections available in more than 30 currencies. Not every locally supported currency includes both directions. Businesses should check the current supported currency list before setting up a new flow.
The SwissFx Currency Capabilities guide therefore separates four functions: Local Pay, Local Collect, International Pay and International Collect. This makes it possible to check the precise capability required for each commercial flow.
How local routes differ from international transfers
They use different infrastructure.
A local payment or collection travels through a domestic payment system, such as ACH, SEPA or Faster Payments.
An international transfer crosses borders, generally through the SWIFT network, and may involve correspondent banks.
An international transfer remains useful when no suitable local option is available, the beneficiary requests a wire, or the transaction needs broader reach.
For more detail, see our guides about wire transfer vs bank transfer: key differences and how local accounts work.
A Malaysia-Singapore example shows why both directions must be checked
Consider two Swiss companies expanding into Southeast Asia. Both need to pay local suppliers and invoice customers, but their operating setups cannot be identical.
Company A: paying suppliers in Malaysia
Company A buys services and materials from Malaysian suppliers. It can use a local payment route to pay them in Malaysian ringgit (MYR).
SwissFx can make payments in MYR but cannot currently collect customer payments in MYR. Company A could therefore invoice Malaysian customers in another supported currency, such as USD, EUR or SGD, receive the funds into its multi-currency account, and convert them into MYR when needed for supplier payments.
Company B: paying and collecting in Singapore
Company B works with Singaporean suppliers and customers. Singapore dollar (SGD) supports local payments and local collections. The business can provide local SGD account details, receive customer funds into its SwissFx multi-currency account and use the balance to pay eligible Singapore suppliers in their currency. It may also hold the funds or convert them into another currency, depending on its operating needs.
Market and currency | Available local flow | Operational implication |
|---|---|---|
Malaysia (MYR) | Local supplier payments | Plan customer collections through another supported receiving currency and route |
Singapore (SGD) | Local supplier payments and local customer collections | Receive, hold, reuse or convert SGD within the multi-currency setup |
No setup should be judged in isolation
Company A has an efficient outbound MYR route but needs a separate inbound decision. Company B can connect both directions in SGD. The right structure follows the company’s actual counterparties, invoice currencies and use of collected balances.
Build the setup around the underlying commercial flow
Start with the commercial transaction. For each market, sales, procurement and finance should agree who pays whom, in which currency, how the funds should travel and what happens to the balance after receipt.
The technical capability and the agreed commercial terms must also match. A local route may be available while a supplier requests another settlement currency; a preferred invoice currency may require a different collection route.
Use this six-step check before you commit
1. Map the counterparties. List who will pay the business and whom the business needs to pay.
2. Separate incoming and outgoing flows. Treat supplier payments and customer collections as distinct requirements.
3. Verify the available route. Check local payments, local collections, international payments and international collections capacities separately.
4. Agree the settlement currency. Confirm which currency will appear on contracts and invoices before sharing payment instructions.
5. Plan the balance. Decide whether incoming funds will be reused for same-currency payments, held for future needs or converted.
6. Confirm the operating details. Check onboarding status, account identifiers, payment references, documentation, limits and indicative delivery times.
Tip for recurring flows
Record the chosen route, invoice currency, assigned account details, internal owner and date of the last capability check. When several approved payments are due at once, the finance team can use SwissFx bulk payments to group transactions for multiple suppliers or employees. Each payment keeps its own currency and recipient details, while the team avoids repeating the same manual steps for every transfer.
How local routes can simplify cross-border cash management
By bringing supported local payment and collection routes together within one multi-currency account, SwissFx allows finance teams to manage incoming and outgoing flows without opening separate bank accounts in every market.
Where available, local routes use domestic payment infrastructure rather than a standard international transfer. Depending on the currency and route, this can mean fewer intermediaries, potentially lower transaction costs, faster settlement and greater certainty over the amount received. Local account details in the company’s name can also make it easier for customers to pay and for finance teams to reconcile receipts, while suppliers receive funds through familiar domestic payment channels.
Available balances can then be held, used for eligible payments or converted within the same account. A dedicated relationship manager can help the business identify the most suitable combination of local and international routes before invoice terms are agreed.
How quickly can local account details be provided?
Once onboarding is complete, SwissFx may be able to provide local account details for an eligible currency in around four hours. This is an indicative timeframe, not a guarantee. Timing depends on the currency and market, as well as any additional checks or requirements.
Important: This article is provided for general educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal, regulatory, tax or financial advice. Currency and payment capabilities depend on the market, transaction type, documentation and applicable requirements, and may change over time.
Do your payment and collection routes match?
If you are expanding into a new market or reviewing an existing setup, SwissFx can map your outgoing and incoming flows by currency and explain which local or international capabilities are currently available.