Banking

Bank & payment account opening

The company is easy. The account is the bottleneck. Banks refuse more international files than they accept, and they rarely say why. We read the profile, pick the two or three institutions that will actually take it, and prepare the source-of-funds file before the questions arrive.

Last verified July 2026

What this covers

  • Open corporate accounts for newly formed and existing companies, and personal accounts for internationally mobile individuals.
  • Match the client profile, meaning nationality, residence, activity and structure, to banks and licensed EMIs that will realistically onboard it, rather than applying blindly.
  • Prepare the source-of-funds and source-of-wealth file to the standard a compliance officer must be able to defend two years later.
  • Arrange practical fintech and EMI accounts, with multi-currency capability, IBAN and cards, as a working layer alongside, or instead of, a traditional bank.
  • We coordinate the whole chain. Introductions, forms, certified documents, follow-up questions, all of it, so the file does not stall in a queue.

Scope & conditions

Traditional banking hubs
Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Luxembourg for private and corporate banking; Hong Kong, Singapore, the UAE and Cyprus for operating companies. Each has its own risk appetite, minimum relationship size and documentary standard.
EMI / fintech layer
Licensed electronic money institutions provide fast, remote, multi-currency accounts with IBANs and cards — excellent as a working account, but they are not deposit-insured banks and can offboard a profile at short notice. We treat them as a tool, not a substitute for a real banking relationship.
Personal & UHNW accounts
Private banking relationships gated by minimum assets and a clean, evidenced source of wealth — the account is the easy part once the file is right.

How it works

  • Everything turns on KYC and source of funds. A bank is buying a risk. Your file has to make that risk easy to accept.
  • A weaker passport, a nominee structure or a high-risk activity narrows the field sharply. We tell you honestly which institutions are open to you and which are not.
  • Substance helps. A real address, real activity and a resident director open doors that a paper company cannot.
  • We prepare and introduce. The bank decides. No one can guarantee an account, and anyone who tells you otherwise is not being straight with you.
What can go wrong
  • No account can be guaranteed. Any provider promising a certain bank for a fixed fee is either selling an EMI, which is not a bank, or misrepresenting the process.
  • Opening the account is half the job. Keeping it is the other half. Accounts get closed when the activity does not match what was declared at onboarding.
  • We will not paper over a profile a bank should refuse. If a file only works by hiding the beneficial owner, we decline it.

Frequently asked

Why do banks keep rejecting my company's account application?

Almost always because the file fails to answer the compliance question before anyone asks it: who owns this, where did the money come from, and does the activity match the structure. Non-resident ownership, nominee directors, offshore vehicles and high-risk sectors all raise the bar. The fix is rarely another application. It is a better-evidenced source-of-funds file and the right institution for the profile.

Can I open a business bank account without living in the country?

Sometimes, but it is the hard case. Many banks now want a director with genuine local presence and substance, and some require an in-person visit. Licensed EMIs will often onboard remotely and give you a working multi-currency account quickly. That is useful, but they are not deposit-insured banks, and they can be less stable for long-term treasury.

Is an EMI account (like Wise or Airwallex) as good as a bank account?

For day-to-day payments, often yes. It is fast, multi-currency and remote to open. But an EMI is not a bank. Your money is safeguarded rather than deposit-insured, you have no lending relationship, and an EMI can offboard a profile with little notice. Treat it as a working account layered alongside a real banking relationship, not as a replacement for one.

Need bank & payment account opening done properly?

One named person on your file, and an honest answer on scope, timeline and cost.