Brex
50,000 points for $100,000 in deposits on Brex
✅ Information to access to the deal :
✅ Information to access to the deal :
WorldFirst is a platform specializing in international payments and multi-currency management, designed for businesses that sell, buy, or operate internationally. Its flagship product, the World Account, allows users to open up to 10 currency accounts with local account numbers and IBANs, so that international customers can pay for their purchases as if they were paying locally, without the need for a physical address abroad. The platform is connected to over 100 international marketplaces such as Amazon, Etsy, and AliExpress, and allows users to send up to 200 payments in France and internationally in a single transaction, with native integration with Xero to simplify accounting.
To manage risks associated with currency fluctuations, WorldFirst offers advanced hedging solutions, including forward exchange contracts and conditional orders, enabling businesses to lock in exchange rates in advance and maintain control over their budgets with complete peace of mind. Founded in 2004 and now a subsidiary of Ant Group (Alibaba Group), WorldFirst has served nearly one million businesses worldwide, with a cumulative volume of $150 billion transferred, making it a global leader in international B2B payments. Join for free in just a few minutes, with no hidden fees or monthly subscription charges.
Easier than opening a bank account abroad:
Connect with the world, send and receive payments like a local:
Simple, fast, and secure payments: Pay your French and international suppliers, partners, and employees in dozens of currencies. Save time and money by sending up to 200 payments in France and internationally in a single transaction. Connect to Xero to streamline paperwork and reconciliation. Set exchange rates to manage risk.
Receive payments from around the world:
Receive secure payments from over 100 international marketplaces.
Include local bank details on your invoices so international buyers can easily pay you. Simplify your international transactions with secure exchange rates
Bring your money home when the rate is right for you.
Expand internationally:
With a World Account, international payments are just as easy as domestic ones—whether you’re sending or receiving them. Connect to over 100 marketplaces, pay your international suppliers, and expand your global trade.
We're here to help:
Create a free online account in just a few minutes. If you need help, our team specializes in international payments and currency conversion. We’re a team of real people based in the UK—not robots. We’ve helped thousands of businesses like yours grow. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Businesses just like yours trust WorldFirst:
WorldFirst is a payment international platform platform businesses, founded in London in 2004 and acquired in 2019 by Ant International, the of Ant Group, the parent company of Alipay. This positioning gives it a direct connection to the Chinese commercial ecosystem , which is one of its most concrete differentiators. Since its inception, more than $300 billion dollars have passed through the platform, which now has more than 1.2 million professional clients world.
The main product is called the World Account. It is an online multi-currency account that allows you to receive, hold, convert and send funds internationally from a , without needing to open local bank accounts abroad. In practice, you can open up to 10 accounts in local currencies with unique bank details for each country: account number, local routing code and IBAN depending on the geographic region. Your international partners and customers can therefore pay their invoices as if they were making a local transfer, which eliminates the usual friction of cross-border .
Connecting to marketplaces is one of the features most frequently used by e-commerce merchants. WorldFirst is directly integrated with over 130 , including Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, Etsy, and Rakuten. This allows you to transfer the revenue generated on these platforms into your World Account in local currencies, without going through the conversions imposed by the marketplaces themselves, which generally unfavorable rates.
Dalongside outgoing payments, the platform covers more than 200 countries and regions in over 100 currencies. Approximately 80% of payments arrive the same day via local networks, according to data provided by WorldFirst. For businesses that make pay numerous suppliers on a regular basis, the bulk payment bulk payments allows you to send up to 200 transfers simultaneously in a single transaction, which represents a significant operational time savings . Native integration with Xero is available to automate .
Change risk management is also covered. WorldFirst offers three distinct mechanisms: the spot contract for an immediate exchange at the real-time market rate real time, the forward contract to lock in a rate for a period of up to two years in order secure margins on planned transactions, and theconditional order which automatically triggers a conversion when a target rate is reached. These tools, usually reserved for large accounts at , are now available here to SMEs and entrepreneurs with no minimum volume requirements .
In 2025, WorldFirst launched the World Card, a virtual multi-currency Mastercard developed in partnership with Mastercard. It allows you to pay for purchases in over 150 currencies across 210 countries and regions, with no foreign exchange fees on 15 major currencies when paying directly from your WorldFirst balance. A rollout is currently underway across all markets in Asia, Europe, Oceania, and Africa, with Apple Pay and Google Pay announced.
The security of operations relies on two-factor authentication via the Authy app, active monitoring of fraud risks, and a real-time alert system. are held with major financial institutions, with segregation of assets in accordance with regulatory requirements of the jurisdictions in which WorldFirst operates.
WorldFirst uses a subscription-free pricing model: opening an account is free, there are no monthly fees or annual fees, and incoming payments are free. The platform’s revenue is based on two components: a margin on the exchange rate applied to each conversion, and a fixed fee on outgoing payments depending on the type of transaction.
| Expense item | Rates |
|---|---|
| Open an account | Free |
| Account maintenance fees (monthly / annual) | Free |
| Incoming payments (marketplaces, bank transfers) | Free |
| Interest on deposits | 0% |
| Foreign exchange margin (major currencies) | Up to 0.75% of the converted amount |
| Foreign exchange margin (minor currencies / futures contracts) | Higher than 0.75%: based on a quote depending on the profile |
| Outgoing payment fees | From €1.50 to €15, depending on the payment method |
| World Pay service fees (bulk payments) | Capped at 0.2% of the monthly transaction volume |
| World Card (virtual Mastercard) | No currency conversion fees on 15 major currencies when using your WorldFirst balance |
| Futures contracts / conditional orders | Included: exchange rate margin applied in accordance with market conditions |
1️⃣ If you are a freelancer or consultant:
For entrepreneur bill clients abroad or pay for services in foreign currencies, WorldFirst is accessible but may seem overkill if transaction volumes remain moderate. Two alternatives are worth considering depending on your usage profile. Qonto is designed for freelancers and entrepreneurs a comprehensive business account in France, with integrated everyday banking features: a French IBAN, a Visa card, expense tracking, and integration with accounting tools. If your international activity remains secondary, Qonto offers foreign currency transfers at competitive rates in a simpler and more familiar environment for users without a finance background. The interface and mobile app are also more polished for everyday use. Shine is another relevant option for French micro-entrepreneurs and freelancers. Its positioning is intentionally simple, with strong support for the administrative and tax aspects specific to the statusentrepreneur. For those whose international activity is limited to a few transactions per year, Shine offers sufficient coverage without the operational complexity of a platform dedicated to large-scale cross-border payments.
2️⃣ If you are a startup:
Startups that expand internationally in their early years often have a variety of needs: accepting payments from international customers, paying vendors in multiple currencies, and maintaining clear visibility into their cash flow in real time. WorldFirst handles these scenarios well, but more integrated alternatives exist. Airwallex is WorldFirst’s most direct competitor in this segment. The platform also offers a multi-currency account, APIs to automate payments, virtual and physical expense cards for teams, and integration with major marketplaces. What sets Airwallex apart is its more developer-focused approach: the APIs are better documented and allow for deeper integration into a tech startup’s financial workflows. For a company that wants to automate its payment flows rather than manage them manually, this is a key differentiator. Stripe is not a direct substitute for WorldFirst when it comes to currency exchange and wire transfers, but for startups whose business model relies on online collections (SaaS, e-commerce, marketplaces), Stripe supports payment acceptance in over 135 currencies with a robust technical infrastructure. In fact, using both tools together is quite common: Stripe for customer payments, and WorldFirst for supplier payments and currency conversion.
3️⃣ If you are a small business or an SME:
For an established business that handles regular import/export transactions or operates in multiple markets, the issue isn’t just about foreign exchange fees, but also about integration into existing accounting and financial processes, as well as the support available when needed. Qonto stands out here in a different way, with its offerings tailored to small and medium-sized businesses and teams. Multi-user management, department-specific expense cards, automated accounting exports, and integration with major management software make it a very comprehensive day-to-day banking tool for small businesses. For occasional foreign currency transactions, Qonto now handles them effectively. For larger foreign exchange volumes or forward hedging needs, the partnership with WorldFirst remains a solid choice. Payplug is worth mentioning for SMEs with e-commerce operations looking to optimize online payment acceptance for their European customers. Rather than managing currency risk upfront like WorldFirst, Payplug focuses on conversion and card payment acceptance rates on the customer side. For an SME whose main challenge is to increase its online revenue rather than optimize supplier currency exchange costs, this is a different priority that warrants a different tool. The two approaches are complementary within a cohesive financial stack.
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