3 Financial Tools to Ease Crossborder Payment Operations For African Entrepreneurs

So you’ve built an international business and now need to pay suppliers or clients in other countries. As an entrepreneur, you know every penny and every minute counts. Who has time for complicated wire transfers, lofty foreign exchange fees, and clunky payment processes? Not you. 

Therefore, you need solutions that make cross-border payments as easy as paying someone down the street. Lucky for you, fintech has your back. There are tools built specifically with global entrepreneurs in mind that simplify cross-border payment. 

In this article, we’ll explore three innovative options to move funds across borders quickly, securely, and cost-effectively so you can get back to growing your business. With the help of technology, paying globally can be as simple as it is locally. 

The Challenges of Crossborder Payment Operations for African Entrepreneurs

As an African entrepreneur doing business across borders, you face challenges that entrepreneurs in other parts of the world may not experience. 

Sending and receiving payments is likely one of the biggest headaches Traditional banks often don’t offer affordable options for international money transfers, especially for small or medium-sized businesses. Their fees tend to be quite high, and the transfers themselves can take days to process, which doesn’t work if you need to pay suppliers quickly or get paid by clients on time.

Luckily, fintech companies have developed solutions tailored for entrepreneurs operating globally. Here are three financial tools to ease your cross-border payment operations:

1. Automate Bulk Payments With Mass Payouts

If you make regular bulk payments to suppliers, contractors, or employees across borders, automating the process can save you tons of time and hassle. Mass payout services like YoguPay, Payoneer, PayPal Mass Payments, or TransferWise allow you to pay multiple recipients at once.

You simply upload a spreadsheet with the payment details for each recipient and the service will automatically process the payments and transfers on your behalf.  

For instance, Yogupay for Business offers a mass payout solution for bulk payments to several African countries with low fees and a real exchange rate. You can pay recipients via bank transfer or to their mobile money wallets. 

Using a mass payout service eliminates the need to log in to multiple systems to process individual payments one by one. Not only does it save you valuable time, but it also reduces the risk of errors when handling a large volume of payments. The services handle all the compliance and reporting requirements, so you have peace of mind that your payments are processed accurately and on schedule.

2. Streamline Invoicing With Online Invoicing Tools

Online invoicing tools can streamline how you bill clients and get paid. Rather than wasting time creating and sending invoices manually, these services automate the process. Below are reasons why you should leverage these solutions for your business. 

Easy to set up and use: Most online invoicing services are simple to set up. You just connect your business bank account, add client and product/service details, and the platform can generate professional invoices for you. It only takes a few minutes to get started with many options.

Streamlines recurring or one-time invoices: If you bill the same clients on a regular schedule, recurring invoices are ideal. Just set it up once and the platform will automatically send invoices on the schedule you define. For one-off projects, you can easily create single invoices as needed. Either way, online tools save you from having to manually generate each new invoice.

Get paid faster:  Online invoices make it simple for clients to pay quickly, often with just a click or two. Integrated payment options like credit cards, ACH, and wire transfers enable customers to pay right away. This can significantly speed up the time you take to get paid. Some services also offer payment reminders to help ensure you get paid on time.

Detailed reports and analytics: Most online invoicing platforms provide reports and analytics to give you insights into your business. See details like your most profitable customers or products, days sales outstanding, revenue, expenses, and cash flow. Track invoice status, view reports on paid and unpaid invoices, and see other key metrics to gain visibility into the financial health of your business. 

Using online tools to create and send invoices is an easy way for entrepreneurs and small businesses to streamline billing and get paid faster. The automation, integration, and analytics these platforms provide can save you time while helping to improve your cash flow. 

3. Accept Payments in Multiple Currencies

As an entrepreneur doing business across borders, getting paid in different currencies is inevitable. However, managing multiple currencies can be complicated and expensive. Here are some tools to simplify cross-border payments and make your life easier.

Multi-Currency Business Accounts

Opening dedicated business accounts that support multiple currencies is a simple solution. Services like Wise, Revolut, Payoneer, etc., offer multi-currency accounts where you can hold, send, and receive funds in different currencies. Transaction fees are typically lower than traditional banks. These accounts also provide local bank account numbers in multiple countries so your customers can pay you as if you had a local bank account in their country.

Virtual IBAN’s

Some payment services provide virtual IBANs (International Bank Account Numbers) that you can use to receive payments in foreign currencies. For example, PayPal offers virtual IBANs for businesses so European customers can pay you using SEPA bank transfers in Euros (EUR) or British Pound Sterling (GBP). The funds are automatically converted to your home currency.  This allows you to advertise local payment options on your website and invoices to improve conversion rates.

Currency Converters

Using a currency converter, you can quickly determine the real-time exchange rate between currencies so you know exactly how much to charge your customers in their local currency. Popular currency converters include Oanda, XE Currency Converter, and Wise Currency Converter. 

Some also allow you to set up notifications and alerts for when exchange rates reach a target level so you can lock in the best rates. With the help of these useful tools, you’ll be able to smoothly navigate the world of cross-border payments and grow your business internationally.

Moreover, receiving and making payments in your customers’ local currencies will help build trust and improve relationships with new clients from foreign markets.

Conclusion

So there you have it. Three simple yet powerful tools to streamline your international payments and scale your business globally.

With invoicing, mass payout, and multicurrency solutions at your fingertips, you’ll be sending and receiving payments across borders in no time. No more wasting time, money, and effort on archaic bank wires and foreign exchange brokers. These innovative fintech solutions were built

for entrepreneurs like you, designed to remove the friction from global commerce so you can return to doing what you do best – growing your business. 

With the right tools and technology on your side, the possibilities for your business are endless.