Member Article

Xero joins forces with London startup Transferwise in foreign currency app

London-based startup TransferWise has fully integrated with Xero, an online accounting app, to help SMEs save on foreign currency payments.

Using TransferWise, Shoreditch’s foreign currency transfer startup, small businesses will save up to 89% when sending foreign currency invoices directly from Xero.

Businesses will be offered the fair mid-market exchange rate and a small, transparent fee of no more than 0.5%.

Transferring £1,000 into a euro account with Xero and TransferWise costs just £5, compared to around £40 to £50 when paying via a bank, a huge breakthrough for small businesses looking to save money.

In January Transferwise, which was developed in Estonia, was named the London’s second $1 billion tech company.

Xero and TransferWise, each high growth companies and disruptors in the global financial technology sector, boast backing from Valar Ventures, which is co-founded and chaired by renowned venture capitalist and Paypal co-founder Peter Thiel.

Gary Turner (pictured right), managing director of Xero, said: “This partnership is fantastic for many of our small business customers that are dealing with different markets around the globe. Small businesses can now easily avoid paying banks those hefty 3-6% commissions, instead paying just a small fee and using a fair exchange rate.

“TransferWise and Xero share a similar ethos,

“Both companies are focused on using digital technology to disrupt the fintech sector and simplify financial management for small businesses. Together we will continue to work hard to challenge banking and force innovation within the sector.”

Small businesses using TransferWise and Xero can pay invoices in 25 currencies to 46 countries and pay a 0.5% fee, compared with up to 5% from banks.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ellen Forster .