WhatsApp and Telegram +44 7563 115980
[email protected]
Airwallex and Nium side by side in the Cross-border Payments and Remittance Index and Virtual Accounts and IBANs Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
In the Cross-border Payments and Remittance Index, Airwallex scores higher overall: 4.7 out of 5 (93 out of 100) against 3.2 (64), ranking 2 and 5 of 11. Airwallex also scores higher in every segment. In the Virtual Accounts and IBANs Index, Airwallex scores higher overall: 4.3 out of 5 (87 out of 100) against 3.8 (75), ranking 1 and 3 of 10. Airwallex also scores higher in every segment.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 4.7 | 3.2 |
| Score out of 100 | 93 | 64 |
| Overall rank | 2 of 11 | 5 of 11 |
| For SMEs and exporters (out of 100) | 92, rank 2 | 56, rank 6 |
| For payment and e-money firms (out of 100) | 94, rank 2 | 70, rank 4 |
| For marketplaces and platforms (out of 100) | 92, rank 2 | 66, rank 5 |
| Type | Global business account and payments platform | Cross-border payments infrastructure |
| Score | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 4.3 | 3.8 |
| Score out of 100 | 87 | 75 |
| Overall rank | 1 of 10 | 3 of 10 |
| For payment and e-money firms (out of 100) | 83, rank 1 | 81, rank 2 |
| For marketplaces and platforms (out of 100) | 86, rank 1 | 75, rank 3 |
| For businesses collecting from abroad (out of 100) | 92, rank 1 | 69, rank 3 |
| Type | Global accounts and embedded accounts | Multi-currency accounts and virtual accounts for platforms |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Payment reach | 4/5 200+ countries and 60+ currencies published. | 5/5 190+ countries and 125+ currencies published. |
| Published pricing | 4/5 Exact FX margins, plan prices and free domestic transfers published; Swift fee published as a £10 to £20 range. | 0/5 Not published on the pages read. |
| Payment speed | 5/5 Share of funds arriving the same day published. | 2/5 "Real-time" settlement stated without delivery times. |
| Collection accounts | 5/5 Local bank details in 20+ currencies published. | 3/5 Collection in 100+ currencies stated without a count of local account details. |
| Integration | 5/5 API, batch transfers, accounting connections and a self-serve trial published. | 4/5 API, sandbox and self-serve portal sign-up; no batch file or accounting connections published. |
| Regulatory standing | 5/5 Licences in more than ten regions published with regulator and licence numbers. | 5/5 Licences in more than ten regions published with regulator and licence numbers. |
Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Cross-border Payments and Remittance Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored
| Criterion | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Currencies and markets | 5/5 23 receiving currencies across 16 regions published. | 5/5 20+ issuing currencies and 28 collection currencies published. |
| Account ownership | 3/5 Dedicated account numbers published; naming not stated. | 5/5 Accounts and virtual accounts in customers' names published. |
| Published pricing | 5/5 Opening, monthly and receiving fees published. | 0/5 Not published. |
| Local rails and speed | 5/5 Instant local receipt in the EU, UK, US, Hong Kong and Singapore. | 5/5 Same-day or real-time receipt on local systems in several markets. |
| Regulatory standing | 4/5 Licences with numbers published; safeguarding terms not on the pages read. | 4/5 Licences with numbers in many markets; safeguarding terms not on the pages read. |
| Integration | 4/5 API, self-serve opening and a stated launch time; sandbox not confirmed on the pages read. | 3/5 API and webhooks; sandbox and launch time not stated on the accounts page. |
Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Virtual Accounts and IBANs Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored
What each provider publishes on its own pages, read on 26 October 2026.
| Fact | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Payment reach | Business account page: payouts "in 60+ currencies and 200+ countries". Pricing page: "Local transfers to 120+ countries" and "SWIFT transfers to 200+ countries". | "Send funds to 190+ countries in local currencies and methods"; "Real-time conversion across 2,000+ currency pairs and 125+ currencies". |
| Pricing | Explore plan: "£0 or £19 /month" (£0 with £10k deposited or held each month); Grow: "£49 /month". FX: "0.5% above interbank rates for major currencies, 1% for all others". Domestic transfers in EUR, GBP and CHF: "Free". Swift: "£10-20/ transfer (SHA and OUR)". | Not published on the pages read. |
| Payment speed | "93% of funds arriving within the same day" (business account page). | "Add real-time global settlement without rebuilding your core infrastructure." No delivery times or shares published. |
| Collection accounts | "Accounts with local bank details in 20+ currencies"; Global Accounts page: "receive funds from 70+ countries". | "Hold, convert, and collect in 100+ currencies from one account." No count of local account details published. |
| Integration | "Automated FX transactions and transfers via API", international batch transfers, Xero and QuickBooks sync, "Core API access" on Explore, free one-month trial. | API documentation; "Sign up for the Nium Web Portal" and "start building with Nium Sandbox today"; beneficiary account validation "across 50+ countries". |
| Regulatory standing | Licence page lists, among others: FCA EMI licence number 900876 (UK); Bank of Lithuania EMI licence no. 88; DNB relation number R179622 (Netherlands); MAS Major Payment Institution PS20200541; ASIC AFSL 487221; HK MSO 16-09-01929 and HKMA SVF0009; US money transmitter licences. | Licence page: Nium Fintech Limited, FCA reference 901024, and Nium Payments UK Limited, FCA 900800; UAB Nium EU, Bank of Lithuania EMI licence no. 14; NIUM Pte. Ltd., MAS Major Payment Institution PS20200276; ASIC AFSL 464627; HK MSO 16-01-01797; Kanto Local Finance Bureau licence 00073; FINTRAC M15669293. |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Airwallex: nothing in this profile is marked as not published or not stated.
Not published or not stated by Nium: pricing, payment speed, collection accounts and integration.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: airwallex.com/uk/pricing, airwallex.com/uk/business-account, airwallex.com/uk/global-accounts, help.airwallex.com/hc/en-gb/articles/…; and nium.com, nium.com/global-coverage, nium.com/licenses.
| Fact | Airwallex | Nium |
|---|---|---|
| Currencies and markets | Receiving coverage table: 16 regions and 23 currencies; platform accounts "with local bank details in 70+ countries". | "Issue accounts under your own brand in 20+ currencies"; "inbound collections in 28 local and global currencies"; hold and convert in 100+ currencies. |
| Account ownership | Accounts come "with dedicated account numbers and local bank codes"; whether they are named or pooled is not stated. | "Issue a local account in your customer's name"; "Give each customer a dedicated virtual account"; "VANs are issued in your customers' names." |
| Pricing | "Global Account Creation Fee: $0"; receiving "0% for other currencies", "$15 for US Fedwire collections", "0.60% for KRW, VND, BRL and MYR collections"; no monthly fee on the Explore plan. | Not published; "No hidden markups". |
| Local rails | SEPA Instant and SEPA; ACH, Fedwire, FedNow and RTP (eligible customers); Faster Payments, Bacs and CHAPS; Hong Kong FPS; Singapore FAST; Interac e-Transfer; SPEI and others. | Not listed in this index |
| Regulatory standing | Airwallex (UK) Ltd FCA e-money institution 900876; AWX Lithuania, UAB e-money institution 88; Airwallex (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. MAS PS20200541; Airwallex US, LLC NMLS #1928093 with Lead Bank and Evolve Bank & Trust. | NIUM Pte. Ltd. MAS Major Payment Institution PS20200276; Nium Fintech Limited FCA e-money institution 901024; UAB Nium EU Bank of Lithuania licence No. 14; Nium, Inc. NMLS ID 1528562. Security badges: ISO/IEC 27001, SOC 2 Type 2. |
| Integration | API; "Open an account in minutes"; pre-built components to "Launch in days". | Single API with webhooks; documentation at docs.nium.com; white-label, "Nium stays invisible" to end users. |
| Local rails and speed | Not listed in this index | "local rails (SEPA, Faster Payments, ACH, FAST, and others)" plus SWIFT and USDC; "Most local rail funding settles same-day or in real time." |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Airwallex: account ownership, regulatory standing and integration.
Not published or not stated by Nium: pricing, regulatory standing and integration.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: airwallex.com/docs/…, airwallex.com/us/features/global-accounts/…, airwallex.com/us/terms/fee-schedule, airwallex.com/en-us/…, help.airwallex.com/hc/en-gb/articles/…; and nium.com/products/multi-currency-accounts, nium.com/regulatory-disclosures, nium.com/products/global-payouts.
Awards follow from the published scores and cannot be bought.
From each provider's strongest criteria and published terms.
Businesses and platforms wanting exact FX margins, wide reach and many licences.
Payment firms and platforms building payouts through an API.
Platforms and businesses needing local receiving details in many currencies at published prices.
Payment firms and platforms issuing accounts in their customers' names under their own brand.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.