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Nium and Wise Business 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, Wise Business scores higher overall: 4.2 out of 5 (85 out of 100) against 3.2 (64), ranking 3 and 5 of 11. Wise Business also scores higher in every segment. In the Virtual Accounts and IBANs Index, Wise Business scores higher overall: 4.0 out of 5 (79 out of 100) against 3.8 (75), ranking 2 and 3 of 10. Nium scores higher for payment and e-money firms; Wise Business scores higher for marketplaces and platforms and businesses collecting from abroad.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 3.2 | 4.2 |
| Score out of 100 | 64 | 85 |
| Overall rank | 5 of 11 | 3 of 11 |
| For SMEs and exporters (out of 100) | 56, rank 6 | 84, rank 3 |
| For payment and e-money firms (out of 100) | 70, rank 4 | 88, rank 3 |
| For marketplaces and platforms (out of 100) | 66, rank 5 | 84, rank 3 |
| Type | Cross-border payments infrastructure | Multi-currency business account |
| Score | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 3.8 | 4.0 |
| Score out of 100 | 75 | 79 |
| Overall rank | 3 of 10 | 2 of 10 |
| For payment and e-money firms (out of 100) | 81, rank 2 | 75, rank 4 |
| For marketplaces and platforms (out of 100) | 75, rank 3 | 78, rank 2 |
| For businesses collecting from abroad (out of 100) | 69, rank 3 | 84, rank 2 |
| Type | Multi-currency accounts and virtual accounts for platforms | Multi-currency business account |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Payment reach | 5/5 190+ countries and 125+ currencies published. | 3/5 40+ currencies published; no country count for business payments. |
| Published pricing | 0/5 Not published on the pages read. | 3/5 Set-up and receiving fees published exactly; sending and conversion fees published only as "from 0.24%". |
| Payment speed | 2/5 "Real-time" settlement stated without delivery times. | 5/5 Share of payments arriving within 20 seconds and within 24 hours published. |
| Collection accounts | 3/5 Collection in 100+ currencies stated without a count of local account details. | 5/5 Account details in 22 currencies published. |
| Integration | 4/5 API, sandbox and self-serve portal sign-up; no batch file or accounting connections published. | 5/5 API with sandbox, batch payments, accounting connections and self-serve sign-up. |
| Regulatory standing | 5/5 Licences in more than ten regions published with regulator and licence numbers. | 5/5 Licences by country 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 | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Currencies and markets | 5/5 20+ issuing currencies and 28 collection currencies published. | 5/5 22 receiving currencies published. |
| Account ownership | 5/5 Accounts and virtual accounts in customers' names published. | 3/5 Dedicated account details for the business; virtual accounts not published. |
| Published pricing | 0/5 Not published. | 5/5 Set-up and receiving fees published. |
| Local rails and speed | 5/5 Same-day or real-time receipt on local systems in several markets. | 3/5 Domestic receipt in nine currencies; instant rails not named. |
| Regulatory standing | 4/5 Licences with numbers in many markets; safeguarding terms not on the pages read. | 4/5 FCA reference and security audits published; safeguarding terms not on the pages read. |
| Integration | 3/5 API and webhooks; sandbox and launch time not stated on the accounts page. | 3/5 API and self-serve sign-up; sandbox and go-live time not published on the pages read. |
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 | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Payment reach | "Send funds to 190+ countries in local currencies and methods"; "Real-time conversion across 2,000+ currency pairs and 125+ currencies". | "Pay in 40+ currencies" (ways to pay page). No country count for business payments on the pages read. |
| Pricing | Not published on the pages read. | One set-up fee: "All in for 50 GBP"; account details in 22 currencies: 50 GBP. Sending and converting: "Fee varies by currency", "From 0.24%". Receiving: domestic payments free; USD wire and Swift 6.11 USD, GBP Swift 2.16 GBP, EUR Swift 2.39 EUR per payment. Volume discount above 20,000 GBP a month. |
| Payment speed | "Add real-time global settlement without rebuilding your core infrastructure." No delivery times or shares published. | "70% arrive in 20 seconds and 95% in under 24 hours", "Accurate as of Q3, 2025". |
| Collection accounts | "Hold, convert, and collect in 100+ currencies from one account." No count of local account details published. | "Getting account details to receive in 22 currencies"; domestic receipts free in AUD, CAD, EUR, GBP, HUF, NZD, PHP, SGD and USD. |
| Integration | API documentation; "Sign up for the Nium Web Portal" and "start building with Nium Sandbox today"; beneficiary account validation "across 50+ countries". | Open API with a free sandbox account; batch payments of "up to 1,000 transfers at a time" by CSV upload; accounting software connections; online sign-up. |
| Regulatory standing | 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. | Wise Payments Limited: FCA EMI, Firm Reference 900507. Licence page by country includes ASIC AFSL 513764, National Bank of Belgium payment institution, FINTRAC MSB M15193392, HK MSO 25-03-03263 and Kanto Local Financial Bureau registration 00040. |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Nium: pricing, payment speed, collection accounts and integration.
Not published or not stated by Wise Business: nothing in this profile is marked as not published or not stated.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: nium.com, nium.com/global-coverage, nium.com/licenses; and wise.com/gb/business, wise.com/gb/pricing/business, wise.com/gb/business/ways-to-pay, wise.com/gb/business/api, wise.com/help/articles/2932693/….
| Fact | Nium | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Currencies and markets | "Issue accounts under your own brand in 20+ currencies"; "inbound collections in 28 local and global currencies"; hold and convert in 100+ currencies. | "Account details for receiving in 22 currencies"; hold over 50 currencies. |
| Account ownership | "Issue a local account in your customer's name"; "Give each customer a dedicated virtual account"; "VANs are issued in your customers' names." | Account details issued to the business; naming and virtual accounts for end customers not described on the pages read. |
| Pricing | Not published; "No hidden markups". | Set-up "All in for 31 USD"; domestic (non-SWIFT) receipt in AUD, CAD, EUR, GBP, HUF, NZD, PHP, SGD and USD free; USD wire and SWIFT 6.11 USD, GBP SWIFT 2.16 GBP, EUR SWIFT 2.39 EUR per payment. |
| Local rails and speed | "local rails (SEPA, Faster Payments, ACH, FAST, and others)" plus SWIFT and USDC; "Most local rail funding settles same-day or in real time." | Domestic receipt in nine currencies; payouts "more than 50%* arrive within one hour". |
| Regulatory standing | 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. | "authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, Firm Reference 900507"; US money transmitter; "SOC 1 type 2, SOC 2 type 2, PCI DSS and ISO 27001 certified". |
| Integration | Single API with webhooks; documentation at docs.nium.com; white-label, "Nium stays invisible" to end users. | Wise API; self-serve sign-up with a one-off fee. |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Nium: pricing, regulatory standing and integration.
Not published or not stated by Wise Business: account ownership, local rails and speed, regulatory standing and integration.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: nium.com/products/multi-currency-accounts, nium.com/regulatory-disclosures, nium.com/products/global-payouts; and wise.com/pricing/business, wise.com/payouts.
Awards follow from the published scores and cannot be bought.
From each provider's strongest criteria and published terms.
Payment firms and platforms building payouts through an API.
Small businesses wanting fast payments and a full public API.
Payment firms and platforms issuing accounts in their customers' names under their own brand.
Small and mid-sized businesses collecting from customers abroad.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.