Boston-based money transfer firm Flywire has launched a new offering, targeted at international business-to-business (or B2B) payments.
The fintech will enable faster settlement between businesses, seeking to make those transaction “local.”
“We’ve built a very healthy business based on education and healthcare, but the [new] business segments we have conservatively estimated in the trillion-plus range,” Jason Moens, vice president of product for Flywire, told Bank Innovation. “We think we are in a really good position to meet these [B2B] challenges in a way other companies can’t.”
Moving from the billion-dollar markets, where Flywire currently operates, into the “trillion-plus” market for international B2B transfers is a step forward for the fintech.
Here’s how the receivable process works: the payee sends funds in their local currency, which Flywire will then convert to the destination currency. The payment is then settled with the client through the local banking account or local banking relationship Flywire holds in that destination.
This will do a few things for B2B payments: first it will cut costs. Secondly, it will allow businesses to ease compliance costs, as they no longer have to worry quite so hard about each country’s separate snarl of regulation.
Flywire has been piloting the B2B offering since January of this year with a number of businesses; according to Jeff Althaus, general manager and executive vice president for Flywire B2B, the company already has 20 businesses signed up (or in the various stages of signing up) for the offering.
“Over the last five years, Flywire has worked very hard to set up a global network for over 220 countries,” said Althaus. “At each level, the transparency for the businesses we focused on–be they small, medium, or large–the transparency is not where they wanted it to be. With Flywire, you have visibility to know the funds have moved.”
Right now, the company serves about 1,200 global organizations outside of its new B2B service; Flywire began as a provider for international tuition payments and expanded shortly after to healthcare.
Now, the company processes payments in over 100 currencies. On the consumer end, payment for these industries can be made through a variety of methods—from traditional bank transfers and credit card solutions, to e-wallet transfers.
Flywire processes these payments in about 220 countries around the globe, and its B2B service is expected to expand into those territories. The B2B offering is currently supported for the U.S., the U.K., Japan, Singapore, and Australia.