Virtual Bank Accounts for Freelancers

Are you into small business, freelancing, or any other type of online money making, then having a virtual bank account is worthwhile to consider. These days virtual banks are offering personal accounts, accounts for freelancers as well as for small businesses, allowing you to have a business checking account and a personal checking account, all in one place. Some of these offers are even available for free.

But what is a virtual account? A virtual account is one of the new account types being offered by banks. The term “virtual” refers to the ability to do your banking online and handle most aspects of your business online. You can do everything from managing your money to making deposits and withdrawals. You can even manage multiple accounts, all from the comfort of home.

Cross-border payments

Especially if your freelance business is involved in cross-border transactions, an online virtual business account will very much suit your business. With such a business bank account, you can hold, spend, send and receive money. You can also easily convert currencies while you can also accept and make online payments.

To make the best out of an online business bank account, you need to select the best online bank. Let’s review some of the pros and cons of different providers that you can choose from when opening an online business bank account. If you are thinking about opening an online business bank account, read on to find out if this is something you should consider doing right away.

Wise

Wise is a very popular fintech well-known for cross-border payments. Did you know it also offers business accounts? Some of the features of the Wise business account include multi-currency accounts. This means you can open a local bank account from many different countries and transact as if you’re from there. You can open GBP, USD, EUR, RON, SGD, NZD, HUF and AUD local accounts.

Wise business account supports 54 currencies and is available in many countries across the world. When you open a Wise business account, you get a debit MasterCard that you can use everywhere in the world. You can use a Wise business account to send, receive, hold and spend money.

Monese

Monese is a digital bank that offers business accounts and personal accounts. You can open a business account and separate your personal and business finances. You can manage personal and business accounts on a single app. You can use a Monese business account to send money internationally like a local. Payments between Monese accounts are free regardless of the currency.

Monese app helps you send and receive money, send invoices, get notifications of all spending, get bank statements and manage cards. You can also use the app to order Monese MasterCard debit cards that you can use for in-store shopping and ATM withdrawals worldwide. Monese business account costs £9.95 per month and you get 6 free ATM withdrawals and above that, you pay £1 per withdrawal.

N26

N26 is an online bank that also offers online freelancer accounts. It is very popular but recently it is not available for US or British residents. You can still open an account from most European countries though.

You can download the N26 app from the app store and manage your business account from there. You get a free business MasterCard that comes with cashback on card purchases. You also get notifications for every transaction through the app.

When you open a N26 business account, you get a free MasterCard virtual debit card. You can make payments and send money using SEPA Instant Credit, MoneyBeam. You will not be charged foreign currency fees or ATM withdrawals while abroad.

Revolut

With Revolut business account, you can hold, send, receive and spend money in 28 currencies. It also offers two local accounts; EUR and GBP. You get prepaid debit cards and you can also create virtual cards. You can use debit cards to make payments and ATM withdrawals for a 2% fee.

You can open two types of Revolut business accounts, Revolut freelancer account or Revolut corporate account. Revolut freelancer account has 3 plans, Free plan, Pro plan for £7 and Ultimate plan for £25. Revolut corporate account has four plans; Free plan, Grow plan for £25, Scale plan for £100 and Enterprise plan for custom pricing.

Penta Bank

Penta Bank is a German online bank that offers business accounts with a German IBAN. You can use the bank to make international payments through BIC and SEPA for international payments. Penta Bank is ideal for freelancers, SMEs and startups. Penta Bank offers business loans and you can access tools to manage your business expenses. It also offers accounting tools like DATEV Enterprise online and lexoffice.

Penta Bank does not offer a free plan. Instead it has three premium plans. Their starter plan costs £9 per month, Comfort is £19 per month and the Enterprise would  cost £49 per month.

PayPal

The best well known example of a virtual payment account is PayPal. It is an online bank that is preferred by most freelancers. It is available in over 200 countries and is available in Asia, Africa, Euro Zone and the US. When you sign up for an account, you get a business debit MasterCard. PayPal card does not charge fees apart from conversion fees.

PayPal accounts come with a variety of tools like accounting software and shopping cards. With PayPal, you can accept online payments, get in-store payments, and collect donations online and access business financing solutions.