Overview
Eqwire, at a glance.
Eqwire is an e-money institution headquartered in the United Kingdom, regulated by FCA. Business accounts cost from £0 a month. Opening an account takes 3–5 days.
Customer funds are held in segregated safeguarding accounts at European Merchant Bank. EQWIRE is not a bank and the FSCS does not cover e-money.
Why businesses pick Eqwire
- No opening fee and no monthly fee on the standard tier
- Named IBANs in GBP, EUR and USD, with Faster Payments, SEPA, SWIFT and CHAPS
- Payments to and from 66 currencies, with a 0.50% exchange margin
- Batch payments with role-based approvals, and an API with webhooks and a sandbox
- Opened fully online, with no branch visit
Watch out for
- Only for companies domiciled in the UK or the EEA
- Online gambling, crypto, adult entertainment, cash-based businesses, weapons and trusts are not accepted
- Medium-risk businesses pay £100 a month and high-risk ones £750 plus £1,700 to open; Eqwire sets the tier after review
- SEPA and SWIFT payments cost £10 or €10 plus 0.20% each way
- No Trustpilot reviews yet
Business fit
Will Eqwire accept your business?
Four quick answers. Where your company is registered and what it does rule a provider in or out faster than anything else.
Based on Eqwire's published rules
Likely fit
Eqwire lists both United Kingdom companies and E-commerce as accepted.
Eqwire does not publish a minimum company age or turnover, so those two answers are not checked here.
This is one provider. Your profile checks all of them.
- Every provider that fits your business
- The reason behind each match
- Company age and turnover checked too
Who it works with
Accepted and not accepted.
What Eqwire publishes about the businesses it takes on.
Who Eqwire serves
- E-commerce
- IT and software
- Professional services
- Startups and SMEs
- Import and export
Not supported
Industries and countries Eqwire does not accept, from its own published lists.
Industries
- Cash-based businesses
- Online gambling
- Adult entertainment
- Unregulated entities conducting activities that require regulations
- Weaponry industry
- Chemical, biological, nuclear or radiological sector
- Heavy industry which severely impacts the environment, such as the coal industry etc.
- Trusts (unless a clear rationale and full documentation of the individuals is obtained)
- Cryptoasset businesses
- Shell companies
- Shell banks
Countries
- Cuba · company or owners
- Iran · company or owners
- Iraq · company or owners
- Yemen · company or owners
- Afghanistan · company or owners
- North Korea · company or owners
- Syria · company or owners
- Myanmar (Burma) · company or owners
- Côte d’Ivoire · company or owners
- Venezuela · company or owners
- Russia · company or owners
- Belarus · company or owners
- Libya · company or owners
- Palestinian Territories · company or owners
- South Sudan · company or owners
- Bosnia & Herzegovina · company or owners
- Burundi · company or owners
- Central African Republic · company or owners
- Guinea · company or owners
- Guinea-Bissau · company or owners
- Haiti · company or owners
- Lebanon · company or owners
- Mali · company or owners
- Nicaragua · company or owners
- Somalia · company or owners
- Sudan · company or owners
- Congo - Kinshasa · company or owners
- Zimbabwe · company or owners
Coverage
Where can you use Eqwire?
Coverage is a starting point. It does not confirm that every business in these markets is eligible.
Supported currencies
GBP, EUR and USD
Hold and receive · 3 currencies
- EUR
- USD
- GBP
Send and receive · 66 currencies
- EUR
- USD
- GBP
- CHF
- CAD
- AUD
- JPY
- AED
- ARS
- BBD
- BDT
- BHD
- BRL
- BWP
- CLP
- CNY
- COP
- CZK
- DKK
- FJD
- HKD
- HUF
- IDR
- ILS
- INR
- JMD
- JOD
- KES
- KRW
- KWD
- KYD
- LKR
- LSL
- MAD
- MUR
- MXN
- MYR
- NGN
- NOK
- NPR
- NZD
- OMR
- PEN
- PHP
- PKR
- PLN
- QAR
- RON
- RSD
- SAR
- SEK
- SGD
- THB
- TND
- TRY
- TTD
- TWD
- TZS
- UGX
- UYU
- VND
- XAF
- XCD
- XOF
- ZAR
- ZMW
Payment reach
Not published
Who can apply
Company incorporation countries31 countries · show list
- United Kingdom
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czechia
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Iceland
- Liechtenstein
- Norway
Owner nationality
Not publishedOwner residency
Not publishedCompany types
Private limited companies, Public companies, Sole traders and freelancers
Pricing
What does Eqwire cost?
Look beyond the monthly fee. Your total cost depends on how many transfers you make, where they go and how much you convert.
Account cost
Opening fee
From £0
depends on plan
Monthly fee
£0–750
depends on plan
Standard
Lowest cost£0 per month
£0 setup · £0 in year one
Medium risk
£100 per month
£0 setup · £1,200 in year one
High risk
£750 per month
£1,700 setup · £10,700 in year one
Transaction fees
| Cost | Listed amount | How it is charged |
|---|---|---|
| Incoming | ||
| SEPA | 0.2% + £10 | Percentage plus a fixed fee · £10 on a GBP-base account, €10 on a EUR-base account |
| Faster Payments (GBP) | 0.1% | Percentage of the amount |
| SWIFT / international | 0.2% + £10 | Percentage plus a fixed fee · £10 on a GBP-base account, €10 on a EUR-base account; intermediary and beneficiary-bank deductions may apply |
| From another Eqwire account | Free | No charge |
| Outgoing | ||
| SEPA | 0.2% + £10 | Percentage plus a fixed fee · £10 on a GBP-base account, €10 on a EUR-base account |
| Faster Payments (GBP) | 0.1% | Percentage of the amount |
| CHAPS (GBP) | 0.1% | Percentage of the amount · Where available |
| SWIFT / international | 0.2% + £10 | Percentage plus a fixed fee · £10 on a GBP-base account, €10 on a EUR-base account |
| To another Eqwire account | £1 | Fixed fee |
Other fees
Currency exchange (FX)
| Cost | Listed amount | How it is charged |
|---|---|---|
| FX markup | 0.5% | Percentage of the amount · Conversion margin; the quote is shown before you confirm |
Onboarding
From application to live account.
Opening an account typically takes three to five business days.
- 1
Eligibility check
Say what the business does, where it is incorporated and how the account will be used.
- 2
Verification
Upload corporate documents and ownership details, and verify the key individuals online.
- 3
Compliance review
Eqwire approves, postpones or declines the application and assigns the business tier.
- 4
Account live
Receive the login, IBAN details, user roles and API credentials where used.
Documents you need
- Corporate documents
- Ownership details
- Identity verification for key individuals
FAQ
Your questions, answered.
Is Eqwire a bank?
No. EQWIRE UK Limited is an electronic money institution authorised by the FCA, reference 901100. Customer funds are safeguarded at European Merchant Bank and the FSCS does not cover e-money.
How much does an Eqwire business account cost?
Standard accounts have no opening fee and no monthly fee. Medium-risk businesses pay £100 a month and high-risk ones £750 a month plus £1,700 to open. Faster Payments cost 0.10%, and SEPA and SWIFT payments £10 or €10 plus 0.20%. Currency conversion carries a 0.50% margin.
Who can open an Eqwire business account?
Companies, sole traders and freelancers domiciled in the UK or the EEA. Eqwire assesses each application and does not accept online gambling, adult entertainment, cash-based businesses, weapons, crypto businesses or trusts without a clear rationale.
Which currencies does Eqwire support?
Accounts in GBP, EUR and USD, and payments to and from 66 currencies, each with its own cut-off time and value date.
Does Eqwire offer an API?
Yes. REST APIs to create payments and beneficiaries and read balances, webhooks for status updates and a sandbox for testing.
Alternatives
How Eqwire compares.
If Eqwire is not the right fit, these providers work with similar businesses. Compare their listed licences and services below.
| Provider | Licensed in | Known for |
|---|---|---|
 EqwireThis pageE-money institution |  | Multi-currencyBatch payments |
 Wise BusinessE-money institution |  | Low FX costsStandard businesses |
 Revolut BusinessBank |  | Cards and spend controlsStartups and SMEs |
 AirwallexE-money institution |   | Global accountsOnline businesses |
 PaysetE-money institution | | 35 currenciesHigh-risk industries |
Not sure which one fits? Your profile ranks them for your business, with the reason behind each.