Airwallex vs Carta

No. It holds payment institution, electronic money or equivalent licences in the markets it serves. Funds are safeguarded at partner banks rather than being deposits, and deposit insurance schemes do not apply.

No. Before options exist a spreadsheet reviewed by your lawyer is usually enough. The pressure to move normally comes at a priced round, or the first time you need a 409A to set a strike price.

For many operating flows it can, but consider what you lose: no deposit protection, no lending relationship, no cash or cheque handling, and some counterparties and government bodies still expect a conventional bank account. Most users run it alongside a bank rather than instead of one.

The subscription tiers bundle valuations differently and refreshes after material events can carry additional cost. Check what triggers a chargeable revaluation before you sign, because raising a round is exactly the moment you will need one.

It serves entities registered in a defined list of markets across Asia Pacific, Europe, the United Kingdom, the Middle East and North America, and the list changes. Check for your specific country of incorporation, because the answer determines both eligibility and feature set.

Yes, it produces ASC 718 expense schedules and exports. If your accounts are prepared under a different framework, expect the schedules to be a starting point that your accountant reworks rather than something they post directly.

It integrates with the mainstream cloud ledgers so transactions feed through rather than being imported by hand. Confirm the integration covers all the currencies you hold, since multi currency handling in the ledger is a separate question.

It can hold the share register and grants, and it does support some non United States structures. The 409A and United States tax workflow will not apply to you, so weigh it against local alternatives that understand your filings.

Materially better than a typical business bank's retail rate on major pairs, because it is quoted as interbank plus a stated markup. The gap narrows on thin currency pairs and small amounts, so test with your real volumes.

Harder than the export button suggests. You can export the data, but the receiving system has to reproduce every historical grant, cancellation and transfer, and someone has to verify the result against the original signed consents.

They are issued on the major networks and behave like ordinary company cards for most spend. Some merchants, particularly for deposits and car hire, treat prepaid style issuance differently, so do not assume parity with a bank credit card.

The company, even though investors and counsel are frequent users. That is the usual complaint about the pricing model: the party paying is not the only party benefiting.