When you need to pay an invoice in a currency other than EUR, Banqup converts your EUR balance at a live exchange rate and sends the payment to the beneficiary. This is called a foreign exchange (FX) payment, and it works for invoices from beneficiaries worldwide.
You can also use the same flow to transfer money in a foreign currency to an external beneficiary, even without an invoice.
Before you start
You need:
A Banqup payment account in EUR with enough balance to cover the payment and the fees.
An invoice or a saved beneficiary in a supported foreign currency.
Financial responsible role in your Business Space.
Note: The minimum amount for a foreign currency payment is 2 EUR (or the equivalent). Payments below this threshold are not possible.
Paying a foreign currency invoice
Follow these steps to pay an invoice issued in a non-EUR currency.
Go to Outbound Payments or Purchase Invoices.
Select the invoice(s) you want to pay.
Click Pay. The payment review screen opens.
Select your Banqup payment account as the payment method.
Banqup detects the foreign currency automatically.
Review the exchange rate, the amount in EUR, and the fees displayed on screen.
Check the beneficiary details. Fill in any missing required fields.
Click Pay invoice to confirm. You accept the exchange rate, fees, and Terms & Conditions by clicking this button.
On the confirmation page, you can see the payment status and the updated invoice balance.
Note: Clicking Pay invoice is your confirmation. There is no extra approval step for the fees.
Transferring money in a foreign currency to an external beneficiary
You can also send a foreign currency payment without linking it to an invoice.
Open Payment Accounts in your Business Space.
Select your Banqup payment account.
Start a new transfer and select a beneficiary whose account is in a foreign currency.
Enter the amount you want to send in the beneficiary's currency.
Review the exchange rate, the EUR amount to debit, and the fees.
Complete the beneficiary details if any required fields are missing.
Click Pay to confirm. You accept the exchange rate, fees, and Terms & Conditions by clicking this button.
Exchange rates and fees
Banqup fetches the exchange rate in real time from the foreign exchange rate provider when you start the payment.
Fixed SWIFT fee: 5 EUR per transaction. This is added on top of the converted amount.
Conversion markup: Any other fees are already included in the exchange rate shown on screen.
Total to debit: The converted EUR amount plus the 5 EUR SWIFT fee. This is the amount taken from your Banqup payment account.
Note: The exchange rate is valid for 30 seconds. If you do not confirm in time, Banqup fetches a new rate automatically and updates the total. Your beneficiary details stay the same.
Beneficiary details
Required beneficiary fields depend on the destination country and currency. For example, US dollar payments to a US bank need an ABA Routing Number instead of an IBAN.
Banqup shows only the fields needed for the selected country and currency combination. Common fields include:
Beneficiary name and country (these are frozen and cannot be edited).
Street, building number, postal code, city, and state or province.
IBAN or account number.
BIC (for non-IBAN accounts).
Bank account country.
Any missing or invalid field is flagged on screen with an explanation of how to fix it.
Tip: You can save the updated beneficiary details so the information is pre-filled the next time you pay this beneficiary.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum amount I can pay in a foreign currency?
The minimum per transaction is 2 EUR (or the equivalent in the foreign currency). Partial payments are allowed, but the partial amount must also be at least 2 EUR.
Can I pay several foreign currency invoices in one batch?
No. Foreign currency payments are always processed one at a time. If your batch contains invoices in different currencies, Banqup shows a warning on the payment review screen. You can either remove the foreign currency invoices from the batch or pay each one separately.
Why does my large payment take longer to process?
Payments above the equivalent of 500,000 GBP trigger a warning and take more time than usual. The payment still goes through, but cross-border checks on larger amounts take extra processing time.
When can I make a foreign currency payment?
The foreign exchange provider is available from 00:00 Monday to 21:30 GMT Friday. Outside these hours, you can prepare the payment, but it will only be executed when the provider is open again.
Does Confirmation of Payee apply to foreign currency payments?
Confirmation of Payee checks run only for payments to SEPA-zone countries. For destinations outside the SEPA zone, make sure the beneficiary name and account details are correct before you confirm. Banqup cannot verify them for you.
Why do I see two transactions for one foreign currency payment?
Each foreign currency payment is split into two transactions with the same reference ID:
One for the amount sent to the beneficiary.
One for the 5 EUR SWIFT fee paid to Unifiedpost Payments.
Both transactions share the same reference number, so they are easy to match in your account history.
What happens if I send a currency that is not used in the destination country?
If you send a non-native currency to a destination, for example DKK to Ghana, the receiving bank may reject the transaction or convert it at its own rate. Banqup shows a warning before you confirm so you can decide whether to continue.
Which countries are not supported?
Some countries and regions are excluded due to international sanctions or operational restrictions, including Belarus, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, and specific regions of Ukraine. If you try to pay a beneficiary in an unsupported country, Banqup blocks the payment on the payment review screen with an explanation.
Which currencies does Banqup support?
Banqup supports more than 30 currencies for foreign currency payments, including USD, GBP, CHF, JPY, AUD, CAD, and many more. A small number of currencies, such as INR, IDR, MYR, and PHP, are available for collection only and cannot be used for outbound payments.