Understanding B2B international payments: A guide for businesses

B2B international payments are financial transactions between two businesses located in different countries. They can cover invoices, contracts, services, or recurring expenses and typically involve different currencies and payment networks.

While the concept sounds simple, the execution of international payments often isn’t. Sending money across borders introduces new challenges, like currency conversion, regulatory compliance, delayed settlements, and unpredictable transaction fees. These pain points slow down operations and expose companies to financial risk.

How B2B international payments work

International B2B payments rarely move instantly. You can expect transfers to take anywhere from 1 to 5 business days depending on the countries involved. The timeline can extend further if your payment triggers compliance checks or passes through multiple banks.

• Step 1: The business initiates the payment. A company submits the payment through its bank account or a payment provider. This includes the amount, recipient details, and preferred currency. Errors at this stage, like incorrect account numbers or SWIFT codes, can cause delays before the payment even leaves.
• Step 2: The payment moves through intermediary banks. Few international payments travel directly from the sender to the recipient. Instead, they’re routed through a chain of correspondent banks, each adding payment processing time and potentially charging fees. Each stop increases the chance of a delay.
• Step 3: Currency conversion is applied. If the payment needs to be converted, it’s done mid-transfer, usually at rates that include hidden markups. These conversions are not always instant and may hold up the settlement depending on time zones and liquidity.
• Step 4: Compliance checks take place. Payments are screened for sanctions, fraud, and anti-money laundering regulations. These checks can add hours or even days to the timeline, especially for high-value or first-time payments.
• Step 5: The recipient’s bank settles the funds. Once the payment clears, the recipient’s bank applies any incoming wire fees and credits the account. Something like the name or account type can trigger a reversal or manual review if something doesn't match.

Why businesses send money across borders

Cross-border payments involve finance, procurement, and operations teams, each with different goals but overlapping needs. Even in smaller companies, cross-border transactions involve multiple stakeholders. Without the right tools, managing these payments becomes error-prone, time-consuming, and expensive.

Paying vendors, suppliers, and service providers abroad

Most businesses rely on international partners to source products, materials, or services. These partners require payment in their local currency and through specific regional banking systems. B2B transactions often involve strict deadlines tied to delivery schedules. A late or failed payment can disrupt production, delay shipments, or hurt the relationship with a strategic supplier.

Managing these payouts manually increases the risk of input errors, compliance violations, or duplicate payments. Companies that operate globally need systems that support multiple currencies, ensure timely processing, and keep transactions traceable from start to finish.

Manual tracking isn't scalable when working with dozens of international vendors or paying remote teams. Ramp automatically links every transaction to the correct vendor profile, extracts contract dates, and flags upcoming renewals.

This helps finance teams avoid missed business payments, duplicate spending, and vendor contract lapses. It also tracks foreign currency spend and provides clear records for every vendor relationship, no matter where they’re based.

Funding international operations and payroll across borders

Global businesses often manage entities or subsidiaries in multiple countries. These offices need regular funding to cover operational costs like payroll, rent, vendor invoices, and tax obligations. In this context, cross-border bank transfers are recurring and time-sensitive payments tied to local compliance requirements.

For example, a U.S.-based company with teams in India and Germany must send funds on a schedule that aligns with regional payroll deadlines and exchange rate windows. Any delay in processing or poor FX handling can lead to overpayment, cash flow issues, or missed salary disbursements. A reliable cross-border payment setup allows finance teams to centralize control while accurately meeting local needs.

Paying international contractors and remote employees

The global talent pool is more accessible than ever. In the last two years, there has been a 260% increase in U.S. businesses hiring freelancers or remote vendors. Paying these workers presents unique challenges, especially when dealing with varying tax laws, banking requirements, and currencies.

International contractors expect fast, predictable digital payments. Any delays, unclear deductions, or surprise fees can impact trust and long-term engagement. On the company’s side, manual processing creates reconciliation issues, especially when contractors submit invoices in different formats or currencies. A structured cross-border payment solution can streamline the process, ensure timely delivery, and reduce back-and-forth between teams.

Supporting strategic investments, partnerships, and subscriptions

Global expansion often means transferring capital to overseas entities, entering joint ventures, or paying licensing fees to foreign partners. These payment terms must meet both business goals and legal standards. For instance, depending on the destination country, cross-border investments may trigger tax documentation or government approvals. Mishandling the payment or missing the documentation trail can stall a partnership or lead to compliance penalties.

At the same time, many recurring expenses, such as SaaS subscriptions, cloud services, and data platforms, are billed from international vendors. These charges may be small individually, but they quickly add up. Without centralized tracking, finance teams risk duplicate subscriptions, uncategorized expenses, or inconsistent FX applications. Automating these real-time payments with visibility and control helps finance teams stay audit-ready while scaling globally.

Solutions like Ramp help finance teams manage these complexities at scale. With Ramp’s global spend management capabilities, businesses can issue cards and budgets in local currencies and make payments to vendors in over 40 currencies, all while staying compliant with tax codes and approval workflows. Its unified dashboard and real-time insights ensure every transaction is visible, categorized, and audit-ready.

B2B cross-border payments vs. domestic payments

A domestic B2B payment is a transaction between two businesses located in the same country, settled in a single currency through local banking rails. An international B2B payment, on the other hand, involves two international businesses in different countries. These transactions often require currency conversion, pass through multiple banking systems, and must comply with international regulations.

Typical flow of a cross-border B2B payment

Cross-border business-to-business payments don’t move from sender to recipient in a straight line. Behind every transaction is a network of participants, each playing a specific role and each adding time, cost, or risk to the process.

• The sending business: This is the company initiating the payment, typically a finance, procurement, or operations team paying a vendor, contractor, or overseas subsidiary. They enter the recipient’s banking information, payment amount, currency, and any required references. Mistakes at this stage, like a wrong SWIFT code or account mismatch, can delay the money transfer or cause it to fail entirely.
• The payment platform or sending bank: The provider handles the technical side of sending the funds. This could be a traditional bank, a treasury platform, or a modern B2B payment system. It’s responsible for routing the payment, applying any currency conversions, and ensuring compliance with local regulations. The payment infrastructure and policies of the provider directly impact how fast and accurately the money moves.
• Intermediary banks: When the sender’s and recipient’s banks do not have a direct relationship, the payment passes through one or more correspondent banks. These intermediaries help bridge the gap between different banking systems. Each additional stop can slow the transfer and introduce hidden fees, reducing the final amount received.
• FX (foreign exchange) provider: If the payment involves a currency conversion, the FX provider executes the currency exchange rates. Some banks and platforms handle this internally, while others rely on third-party providers. FX providers set the exchange rate and often add a margin to it. Without transparency, the sender may lose 1–3% of the payment amount to marked-up rates.
• Compliance and regulatory systems: International transactions must be screened to meet legal and regulatory standards. Banks and providers run checks for anti-money laundering, sanctions, and fraud. If a payment triggers an alert, such as sending a large amount to a high-risk country, it may be held for manual review. These reviews are essential for compliance but often slow the process down.
• The recipient’s bank: This bank receives and deposits the funds into the recipient’s account. If instructed, it may charge an incoming international wire transfer fee or convert the currency again. If account details do not match or the required information is missing, the payment may be rejected or returned, extending the timeline and increasing costs for both parties.
• The receiving business: This is the final party in the chain. They expect to receive the full amount in a timely and trackable way. Delays or missing information can cause problems with reconciliation and planning. If a vendor or contractor does not know when they will be paid or how much they will actually receive, it can disrupt delivery timelines, budgets, or working relationships.

Make international payments work like local ones

Cross-border B2B payments do not need to be slow, expensive, or unpredictable. But for many businesses, they still are. Payments can take up to five business days, pass through multiple banks, and lose 1–3% of value to FX markups and hidden fees. That’s not sustainable, especially for companies scaling globally.

The key is treating international payments with the same level of speed, transparency, and control as domestic ones. That means using tools that automate manual steps, standardize compliance, and give you full visibility into every transaction from start to finish.

Modern payment services remove friction by consolidating rails, optimizing FX, and eliminating unnecessary intermediaries. You gain faster settlement, fewer errors, and better cash flow visibility, all while reducing costs.

Ramp gives companies the tools to manage global payments as smoothly as domestic ones. With automated compliance, built-in FX tracking, and real-time visibility into every transaction, finance teams can avoid costly surprises and move faster.

Paired with features like contract alerts, vendor-level reporting, and customizable fields, Ramp turns international vendor and contract management from a manual process into a competitive advantage.