Cross border payments refer to the movement of money between two countries. In the past, these payments were often slow and expensive, due to the need to exchange currency and move funds through the banking system. However, the advent of digital currencies has made cross border payments much faster and easier. For businesses, this can mean lower costs and faster payment processing.
The Royal Bank of Canada has unveiled Swift Go, a solution that allows businesses to send cross border payments anywhere across the globe, directly from their bank accounts. In partnership with Swift and JPMorgan Chase, Canadian businesses can send up to $10,000 in foreign currencies. According to Finextra, the collaboration makes RBC the first Canadian bank to offer this solution to its business clients.
More Canadian businesses are realizing that international payments must be fast and frictionless in order to survive in this ultra-competitive market. According to Lisa Lansdowne-Higgins, Senior Vice President of Business Transformation and Deposits at RBC:
“By offering cost-effective, fast and predictable cross-border payments, the introduction of Swift Go will make it easier for Canadian companies to plan their cash flow, forecast their liquidity position and do business globally.”
Although legacy systems are still being used to make payments, more businesses are expecting to be paid via electronic payment methods. In order to make this a reality, businesses must consider investing in digital payment technology to modernize their outdated systems.
“No other global payments innovation effort has garnered as much recent attention as cross border payments, where improved user experiences have been a focal point for the financial services industry,” said Steve Murphy, director of commercial payments at Mercator Advisory Group. “At greater than 80% of value transfers, the B2B use case predominates cross-border payments for goods and services.”
