OFX vs Airwallex: Compare features, fees & alternatives for Singapore businesses

Singapore businesses need smart ways to manage their money, often across multiple currencies. While local and regional banks offer solid business services, digital first providers like OFX and Airwallex can also be an appealing option with low fees, flexible features and a fully online and in-app experience.

Not sure which digital business account to pick? This guide lines up OFX¹ vs Airwallex² side by side, and also touches on Wise Business as another great digital provider which may suit your company's needs - particularly when trading across currencies.

What is OFX?

OFX is a specialist in currency risk management and international transfers, for both business and personal customers.

OFX previously offered a Global Currency Account³ to Singapore customers, which allowed businesses to receive and hold foreign payments, but this service has been discontinued. You can still use OFX to send money abroad online, in app and by phone, and to access complex currency risk management tools to help your company hedge against FX risks.

What is Airwallex?

Airwallex is a business-only provider which offers accounts, cards, payment and transfer services to Singapore business owners.

You can open an account to hold and receive 20+ currencies, including taking customer card payments, and get corporate cards for your staff. Airwallex also offers international transfers to 200+ countries, including some local methods of payment you can use for free.

OFX vs Airwallex: Feature comparison

OFX and Airwallex both offer international transfer services to Singapore business customers. However, their fee structure and the suite of services offered beyond transfers vary a lot.

OFX is known as a specialist in international payments and perks like currency risk management, while Airwallex has a more complete set of tools for businesses managing incoming customer payments, such as ecommerce companies.

Let’s dive into a side-by-side comparison between OFX and Airwallex on key features which are useful to Singapore businesses:

Coverage and currencies

OFX offers services in Singapore for both personal and business customers, while Airwallex is a business-only provider. Both offer payments overseas to a broad range of countries, with OFX supporting 50+ currencies for payments to 170 countries and Airwallex supporting 200 countries.

Airwallex payments may be made using local transfer methods for free to 120+ countries, with SWIFT payments to 200 countries at a fee. You can also use Airwallex to open local currency accounts in 20+ currencies, to receive and hold incoming business payments.

Plan and transfer fees

OFX has no account service fees, and does not charge a fee for transfers. There may be costs added to the exchange rates used for currency conversion, and for services like currency risk management contacts.

Airwallex has a basic plan with no monthly fees, or you can upgrade to accounts with more features for up to 399 SGD/month. Fees apply for transactions such as taking customer payments, instant withdrawals and some transfers, which can vary based on the plan you sign up for. We’ll dig into the Airwallex fees in more detail in a moment.

Exchange rates

OFX sets its own exchange rates when you send a payment, which may include a small markup on the interbank or mid-market rate. This markup is variable, so to figure out what you’re paying, you’ll need to compare the rate you’re offered against the mid-market rate for your currency pairing, which you can find on Google.

Airwallex uses the interbank rate and adds a fee depending on the currency you send. This is 0.4% for USD, HKD, CNY, EUR, GBP, CAD, SGD, CHF, NZD and JPY, and 0.6% for other currencies.

Card features

OFX no longer offers a business holding account and does not have a business card service.

Airwallex does have this feature, offering cards which are Apple Pay and Google Pay compatible, and helpful for managing employee expenses. You can get 10 company cards on a free plan, up to 50 for the mid-tier account and unlimited for the top-tier plan, which costs 399 SGD a month. You may need to pay additional fees to access some employee expense management tools.

Currency risk management solutions

OFX allows business customers to get help with planning for FX hedging, using tools like forward contracts, limit orders and stop-loss orders.

These are more complicated approaches to managing foreign exchange risk, which can involve fees, and OFX offers full support through its team of brokers. This means you can talk through your business FX needs with a broker to get ideas and advice, and come up with a custom-made strategy to reduce your exposure to risk as needed.

Integrations and other perks

Both OFX and Airwallex offer various other perks for business customers, but their focus is a little different. OFX has a strong selection of tools for making payments and currency management, while Airwallex leans towards broader transaction support, including taking incoming one-off and regular payments in multiple currencies.

OFX perks can include:

• Broker support to arrange transfers by phone 24/7
• Currency risk management tools, such as forward contracts
• Customized FX risk solutions
• Batch payments for up to 500 recipients at a time
• Xero integrations

Airwallex benefits can include:

• Take customer payments in multiple currencies, with cards and local payment methods
• Receive and hold 20+ currencies using local payment details
• Arrange batch transfers, create invoices, pay bills
• Accounts are interest-earning on SGD and USD holdings
• Integrations across Xero and QuickBooks, plus NetSuite, and HRIS platforms for top-tier accounts

OFX vs Airwallex: Fee comparison

OFX and Arwallex offer Singapore businesses different feature sets, and their pricing structure reflects this. Here we have a comparison of costs, which highlights some of the core differences:

As you can see, OFX has no ongoing account fees, but also offers a less comprehensive range of features to business customers. Airwallex has a basic account plan with no ongoing fees, which has some limitations in terms of feature availability, or you can upgrade to a top tier plan with higher ongoing costs but an impressive array of features. This gives flexibility for you to choose the account type that best suits your business size, stage and needs.

OFX vs Airwallex: Reviews

OFX gets a Trustpilot score of 4.2 out of 5⁶, from over 11,000 reviews. This covers both personal and business users, with reviewers frequently commenting on the high-quality service available from OFX brokers.

Airwallex gets a Trustpilot score of 3.3 out of 5⁷, from just over 2,000 reviews. Reviewers seem split on their experience with Airwallex, with 60% giving the top 5-star rating, and 33% handing them only the lowest available 1-star. It’s worth reading through the specific review comments to understand the issues which are being raised and decide for yourself if it may suit your needs.

Wise Business: Alternate solution for Singapore businesses

Not sold on OFX vs Airwallex? Wise Business can be a strong alternative to OFX and Airwallex for Singapore businesses.

Wise Business serves as an alternative to traditional business account as you can hold, send, receive and exchange 40+ currencies all in one place. You’ll always get the mid-market rate with low, transparent fees. Even better, you can connect Wise Business cards to your account to control team spending in real time and reduce admin.

Here's what you get with a Wise Business account:

• Hold and manage 40+ currencies for all your international transactions.
• Get account details to receive in 8+ currencies for a one-time fee of 99 SGD
• Pay foreign currency bills and ad-hoc business travel expenses using the Wise Business card without hefty foreign transaction fees.
• Get your first Wise Business card for free when you open a Wise Business account.
• Always get the mid-market rate with transparent conversion fees.
• Seamless integrations with popular accounting software.
• Earn a variable return** on SGD, GBP, EUR, and USD through Wise Interest

➡️Get started with Wise Business today

** Growth is not guaranteed. Capital at risk.

Sources:

1. OFX Singapore
2. Airwallex Singapore
3. OFX - Global Currency Account
4. OFX FAQ - transfer fees
5. Airwallex pricing
6. Trustpilot: OFX
7. Trustpilot: Airwallex

Details correct at time of writing - 8th May 2026