Finance · Banking
Wise Business vs Revolut Business for CY-legal entities
Cyprus businesses often operate in multiple currencies: EUR from EU clients, USD from US, GBP from UK, and sometimes payments to contractors worldwide. Wise Business and Revolut Business are the two main multi-currency solutions for CY entities. We'll break down what suits whom best.
A brief comparison of CRM, SaaS, ERP, MVP, API, EU, CIS, JCC, Stripe, Bitrix24, AmoCRM, HubSpot, GA4, GTM, SEO, PPC, B2B, B2C, IT, MAMP, React, Vue, Next.js, Laravel, Django, Flutter, Shopify, WordPress, Magento.
- Wise Business - leader in cross-border transfers, low fees (~0.4-0.6% of mid-market rate)
- Revolut Business - more features (virtual cards, expense management, payroll)
- Both are not banks but EMI (Electronic Money Institution) licensed in the EU
- Both accept CY jurisdiction and issue IBAN in multiple jurisdictions
- Wise is better for incoming payments in local currency
- Revolut is better for business cards and teams
Wise Business - Details
- Account cost: free (option)
- Translation errors cannot be guaranteed as some Russian terms do not have direct English equivalents. Here are a few examples based on your instructions:
- Local IBAN: EUR (Belgium), USD (US), GBP (UK), AUD, NZD, SGD, TRY, HUF
- Can open Wise Business as a CY legal entity in 1-3 days online
- Limit: $1M+ for verified accounts
- Minus points: no built-in maps for the team, no accounting integrations like Xero.
Revolut Business - Details
- Rates: Free, Grow (€19/month), Scale (€79/month), Enterprise (custom)
- Currency conversion: up to £1000 free/month on Free, then 0.4-1%
- 30+ corporate cards with limits and categories
- Expense management - employees photo-receipts via app
- Payroll - employee payments in 25+ countries
- Accounting integrations: Xero, QuickBooks, Sage
- Minuses: more expensive for large transfers vs Wise
When to choose Wise
- The main task - receive payments from EU/US/UK clients
- Contractor payments to different countries (monthly)
- Small business 1-5 employees
- Simple accounting — no need for expense cards for the team
- Minimum banking budget
- FX transactions - Wise is often more advantageous for cross-currency
When to choose Revolut
- Team of 5+ - Need corporate cards with limits
- Team travel expenses (Revolut premium travel features)
- Need interest-bearing savings accounts
- Expense management through the app
- Integration with accounting software (Xero, QuickBooks)
- High volume FX (free tier up to £1000/month)
Opening an account in Cyprus
- Wise Business: Cyprus company documents (Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum, Beneficial Owners)
- Wise: Verification takes 1-3 days, sometimes longer for regulated industries
- Revolut Business: same documents + business plan and turnover
- Revolut: 3-7 days for approval
- Both: KYC/AML compliance - for high-risk industries (gambling, adult, crypto) may be denied
- Both: Not suitable for CY companies with RU-UBO on sanctions lists
Integration with Stripe / JCC
- Stripe: payouts via Wise IBAN or Revolut IBAN - both work
- JCC: payments only to CY-bank account (Bank of Cyprus, Hellenic, Eurobank)
- Standard scheme: JCC → CY-bank → Wise/Revolut if needed
- Alternative: Wise/Revolut for receiving foreign payments directly via Stripe
- Not suitable for all - a Cypriot bank is still required for VAT/tax obligations.
What to choose?
- Most CY-startups: Wise Business - cheaper and simpler
- Corp team 5+ : Revolut Business for card management
- Large volume FX: Wise (mid-market) cheaper than Revolut
- Travel-heavy team: Revolut Premium
- Minimum transactions: Wise Free
- Frequently combined: Wise for receiving, Revolut for team + cards
Do you need help with implementation?
We are 62px, a web studio in Limassol. We deliver turnkey projects from €290. 62% discount with case study publication consent.
Discuss the project More articles