How Does Specie Work?

TL;DR

Specie helps global businesses receive, hold, convert, and send money across borders without relying only on slow bank wires or expensive traditional FX routes.

Instead of making every international payment feel like a SWIFT wire, Specie connects USD accounts, modern settlement infrastructure, and local payment rails like PIX, ACH, SEPA, SPEI, and other familiar networks. That means your customer can pay in a way they understand, your supplier can receive in a way they already use, and your business can keep more control over cash flow.

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Why traditional international payments are still painful

For many importers, exporters, and logistics companies, international payments are not just “bank transfers.” They are a margin problem.

A traditional cross-border payment often includes several layers:

• A sending bank

• A correspondent bank

• A receiving bank

• FX conversion

• Compliance checks

• Cutoff times

• Weekend delays

• Hidden fees or spread inside the exchange rate

SWIFT has improved significantly, but even SWIFT’s own data shows the difference between a payment reaching the destination bank and actually landing with the end customer. SWIFT reported that 90% of payments on its network reach the destination bank within an hour, but only 43% reach the end customer’s account within that same timeframe.

That gap matters. If you run a low-margin export business, three days of trapped cash is not just annoying. It can delay supplier payments, inventory purchases, payroll, and your next shipment.

The global policy goal is clear too. The Financial Stability Board’s G20 targets call for 75% of cross-border retail, wholesale, and remittance payments to become available within one hour by the end of 2027. Specie is built around that same idea: international payments should feel closer to real-time domestic payments.

What is Specie?

Specie is a modern payments and treasury platform for global businesses. It is designed for companies that need to receive money internationally, hold USD, convert currencies, pay suppliers, and move funds through local payment networks.

Specie is not a bank. Specie does not hold customer deposits like a traditional bank, and it does not have discretionary control over your funds. You own your funds and we cannot touch them. Funds move through regulated partner infrastructure and connected payment rails. Specie also maintains insurance for covered losses caused by Specie’s own operational error.

That structure is important. You get the user experience of a global business account, but the funds are not sitting inside Specie as a bank deposit. The goal is to give businesses faster access, better routing, transparent records, and modern treasury tools without forcing them into old banking workflows.

How does Specie work step by step?

1. Your business opens a Specie account

First, your company completes onboarding and KYB. This includes basic business information, ownership details, source-of-funds review, and compliance checks.

This is necessary because Specie supports real businesses moving real money across borders. Importers, exporters, suppliers, freight forwarders, agencies, and manufacturers all need clean records for accounting, compliance, and audit purposes.

2. You receive account details or create a payment request

Once approved, your business can receive payments through supported local and international rails. Depending on the corridor, this may include USD account details, local receiving details, or a payment request tied to a customer invoice.

The goal is simple: make it easy for your customer to pay you.

A customer in Europe should not have to figure out a confusing international wire if they can pay through a familiar European rail. A Brazilian company should be able to use payment methods it already understands. A U.S. customer should be able to pay through familiar U.S. rails.

3. Your customer pays through a familiar local rail

This is where Specie is different from many bank-first workflows.

Traditional banks often push companies into international wires, correspondent banking, and manual FX processes. Specie focuses on connecting cross-border payments to local rails that customers, suppliers, and providers already know.

Examples include:

• ACH for the United States

• SEPA for Europe

• PIX for Brazil

• SPEI for Mexico

• Local bank transfer methods in supported markets

Wise explains a similar principle for consumer transfers: it uses local bank accounts in different countries where possible, so the recipient often gets paid through local bank infrastructure instead of a traditional international bank transfer. Specie applies that type of logic to business payments, treasury flows, supplier payments, and export use cases.

4. Specie routes, converts, and records the transaction

After the payment is received, Specie helps route the funds, convert when needed, and create a clear transaction record.

For a business, this record matters almost as much as the payment itself. You need to know:

• Who paid

• Which invoice the payment relates to

• What currency was received

• What FX rate was used

• What fees applied

• What amount was credited

• Where the funds were sent next

That is especially important for exporters, finance teams, and companies that need to reconcile payments across multiple countries.

5. You hold USD, pay suppliers, or convert to local currency

Once funds are available, you can use Specie for several workflows:

• Hold USD for treasury

• Convert to local currency

• Pay suppliers through local rails

• Send another international payment

• Keep eligible balances in yield-generating treasury products

• Move funds between counterparties in the Specie network

This turns Specie into more than a payment tool. It becomes a working capital layer.

Why Specie can be better than traditional FX routes

Traditional FX routes often force both sides of a deal to manage currency risk. The sender worries about what they will pay. The receiver worries about what they will actually receive. Somewhere in the middle, banks and intermediaries may take spread.

Specie reduces that friction by letting businesses structure payments around the real commercial need.

For example, a U.S. buyer may want to pay in USD. A Brazilian supplier may want to receive BRL through PIX. A European supplier may want EUR via SEPA. A Mexican provider may prefer SPEI.

When the receiver has less FX to deal with, the total deal can often be cheaper. Suppliers may not need to add as much buffer into the invoice. Buyers may not need to overpay to cover uncertainty. Both sides can get a clearer view of the final amount.

That is the real value of modern FX infrastructure. It is not just a lower fee. It is less uncertainty in the commercial relationship.

Specie vs banks: what is the difference?

Why instant cash flow matters for small-margin businesses

Cash flow is the hidden cost of international payments.

A large company may be able to wait three days for funds to clear. A smaller exporter may not. If margin is thin, delayed settlement can affect the next purchase order, inventory cycle, supplier payment, or shipping schedule.

That is why real-time payments matter. Faster settlement means the same money can be used again sooner.

For importers and exporters, this can improve:

• Working capital

• Supplier trust

• Inventory purchasing

• Shipment timing

• Cash conversion cycle

• FX timing

• Ability to accept new orders

A payment that arrives Friday night instead of Monday morning can make a real difference.

Export flows: how Specie helps global sellers

Specie is especially useful for exporters that sell internationally but operate locally.

A Brazilian exporter, for example, may invoice an international buyer in USD or EUR, receive through Specie, hold value in USD, and then convert only what is needed to BRL for local expenses. That exporter can also pay suppliers, logistics providers, or contractors through rails they already use.

For eligible Brazilian export revenue, IOF-FX may apply at a zero rate when the transaction qualifies as the inflow of export revenue from goods or services. Brazil’s Receita Federal has stated that foreign exchange transactions related to the entry of export revenues from goods and services are subject to IOF-FX at a zero rate under Decreto 6.306. It also notes that funds kept abroad after the export cycle and later remitted to Brazil may be treated differently.

That distinction matters. IOF treatment is about the transaction type, documentation, and classification. Companies should confirm their exact treatment with tax counsel or an accountant.

Treasury flows and yield on balances

Many global businesses do not only need to move money. They need to manage it.

Specie supports treasury workflows where companies can receive international payments, hold USD, convert when needed, and put eligible balances to work through yield options. This can be valuable for businesses that receive revenue before they need to pay suppliers or that maintain operating balances between payment cycles.

The key is flexibility. Instead of immediately converting every payment into local currency, a business can hold USD, wait for a better time to convert, or use those funds for another international payment.

That is especially useful for companies with:

• USD revenue

• Local operating expenses

• International suppliers

• Seasonal export cycles

• Multiple entities or markets

• Treasury balances sitting idle

Yield is subject to availability, eligibility, risk, and rate changes, so businesses should review current terms before relying on it as part of a treasury strategy.

Is Specie safe?

Specie is built for business payments, not speculation.

Specie does not hold deposits like a bank and cannot freely control customer funds. Funds move through regulated partner infrastructure and supported payment rails. Specie uses onboarding, KYB, transaction monitoring, and compliance processes to support legitimate business payments.

Specie also maintains insurance for covered losses caused by Specie’s own operational mistake. This does not mean every possible loss is covered, and it is not the same as a blanket government deposit guarantee. It means there is a defined protection layer for specific operational failures.

That should be stated clearly because trust matters. Businesses should always understand who holds funds, how payments are routed, what protections apply, and what risks remain.

Who should use Specie?

Specie is a strong fit for businesses that regularly send or receive international payments, especially when speed, FX cost, and local payout experience matter.

It is especially useful for:

• Exporters receiving from international buyers

• Importers paying overseas suppliers

• Freight forwarders and logistics networks

• Agribusinesses selling abroad

• Manufacturers with global customers

• Service companies billing in USD

• Businesses in Latin America that need better USD access

• Companies that want to hold USD and pay locally

Specie may not be necessary for a business that sends one small international payment per year. But if cross-border money movement is part of your operating model, the savings in time, FX, and cash flow can become meaningful quickly.

Conclusion: Specie makes global business payments feel local

Specie works by connecting global business accounts, modern settlement infrastructure, FX, treasury tools, and local payment rails into one workflow.

That is why it can be better than traditional bank routes for many global businesses. Banks are built for broad financial services. Specie is built for the specific problem of moving business money across borders faster, cheaper, and with less friction.

Your customer pays through familiar rails. Your supplier receives through familiar rails. Your business gets clearer records, faster access to funds, better treasury control, and fewer delays caused by old banking infrastructure.

Next step

See exactly what a payment would cost before you move funds.

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