How teams pay contractors abroad: stories with numbers

Music labels

100–⁠250 artists

UAE music label group pays 100–⁠250 artists a month through an API, with funds arriving in about 24 hours

A group of music labels headquartered in the UAE makes 30–⁠35 monthly payouts to its remote team and long-term freelancers and pays royalties to 100–⁠250 artists each month in the US, Poland, France, Spain and Kazakhstan. It connected its in-house royalty system to the payout provider's API, so recipients request payouts in the company's own system and the company gets one consolidated invoice instead of many. Calculating and sending payments used to take weeks; now an artist receives funds about 24 hours after the company submits a payout, by bank card, e-wallet or crypto.

Mobile games

Cyprus mobile game studio pays freelancers from South America to Japan with automatic paperwork

An independent mobile game studio based in Cyprus, developing games since 2020, has paid its international freelancers through the payout provider since August 2022, including contractors in South America and Japan. Some contractors are paid to an e-wallet, and the studio uses a fixed-fee plan for certain USD payouts. Document packages are generated automatically after payouts, which cut manual administration and left the team more time for game development.

AI software

German AI company gets contractors paid within hours instead of days

A German company building a privacy-focused AI platform pays external contractors in Georgia, Armenia, Europe and Latin America. It used to pay each contractor separately, juggling different invoice formats, payment channels and fees, and a payout could take several days. Since moving to a single payout provider with standard document packages and predictable fees, contractors can receive funds within a few hours of work being confirmed and usually get paid within one day.

Web development

Web development company centralises contractor payouts across Latvia, Portugal, Spain and other countries

A company providing web development, advertising campaign management and internal corporate solutions works with independent developers, front-end specialists and DevOps engineers in Latvia, Portugal, Spain and other countries. Approving work, preparing documents and arranging a payout used to take several days and loaded the in-house finance team. With the payout provider, task approval, contractor confirmation, documents and payout run in one documented workflow, which cut manual operations and lets managers track task and payout statuses.

Real estate advisory

Thailand-based real estate advisory restores payments to partners where SWIFT stopped working

A real estate investment advisory operating in Thailand works with partners, contractors and freelancers in several countries. When SWIFT transfers stopped working for some of them, including partners connected through CIS-based banks, it moved these settlements to the payout provider to keep them documented and multi-currency. Payments to previously unreachable regions work again, and the company reports exchange rates consistently better than other providers', modest fees disclosed upfront and near-instant support responses.

Animation studio

7–⁠10 h → <2 h

Animation studio cuts payment paperwork from 7–⁠10 hours a week to under 2 hours

An animation studio producing promotional and brand videos works with in-house specialists and freelancers in Georgia, Armenia, Spain, Cyprus, Germany and Italy. Banks asked for different documents for each transfer and sometimes blocked payments, and contracts, invoices and NDAs for every freelancer plus dealing with banks took 7–⁠10 hours per week. With the payout provider, freelancers self-register, documents are generated automatically and payment follows task confirmation; time spent on documents and freelancer payments dropped to under 2 hours, and the studio can now hire in any country.

Wholesale

German stock-goods wholesaler keeps paying CIS contractors after its banks restricted transfers

A German wholesaler of stock goods and hard-to-liquidate inventory relies on translators, content managers, marketers and developers in several countries, including the CIS. When its German banks restricted transfers to some regions and the finance team was manually collecting invoices in different formats, it moved contractor payouts to one B2B workflow with the payout provider. The company now funds one corporate balance, documents are generated automatically once a task is confirmed, and CIS contractors keep receiving payouts through their usual channels.

Music label

~100 contractors

UAE-registered music label pays around 100 contractors across the CIS, Europe and the US in one process

An international music label with a UAE legal entity and over 500 artists pays fees and royalties to artists and contractors in the CIS, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Germany, Poland and the US. CIS banks often restricted incoming transfers from the UAE and Europe, and the team handled payment details, stalled transfers and documents by hand. Through the payout provider, around 100 contractors are now paid in one process without correspondent-bank disruptions, and closing documents are generated automatically for each payment.

Online school

US-registered online school pays its worldwide team in dollars, euros and pesos from one account

A remote-first online school teaching remote professions and AI tools is registered in the US and pays experts and employees around the world in US dollars, euros and pesos. Without a central payment system, managers kept spending time on transfer methods, fees and making sure people received the full amount. Now the company tops up one account and payouts run without managers or accountants, recipients are paid without extra fees, and proper documentation and IP-transfer processes lower legal risk.

Design agency

30+ contractors

Distributed design agency grows from a five-person freelancer pool to paying 30+ contractors

A fully distributed design agency serving tech companies from 40+ countries had kept its active freelancer pool at five people because paying freelancers was complex and many lacked the documents for direct contracts. Previous providers charged a fixed fee per payment plus country-based percentages, onboarded slowly and, in one case, lost payments. With the payout provider, sign-up took a few minutes, the accountant uploads payments in bulk from a CSV file, fees are charged to the client side only, and the agency now pays 30+ contractors, with one typical transfer arriving in under 30 minutes.

Online courses

Online health-course platform replaces slow bank wires for paying authors and partners worldwide

A subscription platform of health and longevity courses with subscribers from 150 countries pays partners, course authors and employees around the world. Direct bank wires were too slow, and just coordinating and signing documents and creating invoices took up to 5 business days before a payment could go out. The company now uses the payout provider every day for payments and paperwork, with quick chat support.

Go-to-market agency

up to €3,000 / month

Estonian agency saves up to €3,000 a month on payroll costs for its European freelancers

An Estonian-registered agency that helps tech companies launch in global markets pays regular freelancers in other European countries, such as Spain, and those payments were being taxed twice. It now covers individual contractors and permanent employees with one B2B contract with the payout provider and works with it as a European legal entity under reverse VAT, so that tax no longer applies to its operations. After 9 months the agency reports saving up to €3,000 per month on payroll costs, far more than the service fee, and closing documents are generated automatically.

Umbrella company

Umbrella company for relocated IT specialists centralises incoming client payments and payouts

An umbrella company for IT freelancers and entrepreneurs who relocated abroad helps them work under B2B contracts with employers and clients worldwide and provides documents for legal work from Poland. Its clients used to struggle to receive money from different countries, which made declaring their income and keeping the paperwork harder. The company now collects incoming payments from various sources and distributes them to its clients through the payout provider, with reporting documents for each transaction for all parties.

HR software

30 → 10 min

HR-software company cuts payout processing from 30 minutes per transaction to 10 minutes for all payments at once

A company behind an HR and team-management CRM paid its remote employees and contractors through European banks, where each transfer took too long and might not arrive at all. It moved all payments to freelancers and employees to the payout provider, including crypto-wallet payouts with documentation for team members who prefer them. Payment processing time fell from 30 minutes per transaction to 10 minutes for all operations at once, and the provider's closing documents helped the company pass multiple tax audits.

Influencer marketing

Swedish influencer-marketing agency pays creators worldwide, including in crypto

An influencer-marketing agency operating from Sweden had outgrown manual payments: tracking expenses, receipts, payment requests and taxes ate hours of the team's time. It moved influencer payouts to the payout provider, which pays creators globally in the way they prefer, including crypto for influencers in the CIS, and adds monthly reporting. The agency reports lower tax-management and accounting costs and can now work with creators from countries that payment restrictions previously put out of reach.

IT services

IT services company replaces a payroll provider whose payment delays reached a month

A global IT company working on AdTech, MarTech, AI and Big Data projects pays full-time staff and contractors in various countries. Its previous provider delayed payments by up to a month without explanation. With the new payout provider, staff know exactly when money will reach their bank accounts, payments go out directly in USD without currency conversion, and every transfer comes with closing documents.

Web studio

US web studio gets a payout contract in minutes after SWIFT and crypto-exchange dead ends

A US web studio with a remote international team found SWIFT transfers (for example, to the UAE) unreliable, waited a month for a crypto exchange to verify a corporate account only to be turned down, and found most e-wallets unavailable to US clients. With the payout provider, the account was activated quickly and the contract arrived for online signing within a few minutes instead of weeks; a card-funded first payment went out almost instantly, and after switching to bank-transfer funding, at half the commission, the next payment arrived the next working day. A remote expert received funds in a crypto wallet almost instantly, with closing documents generated for both sides.

E-commerce software

−40% costs

Cyprus e-commerce software company cuts operational costs by 40% by outsourcing freelancer payouts

A Cyprus-based developer of product information management systems for e-commerce frequently hires freelancers for catalogue creation and multilingual content, often at short notice. Handling their payments and admin in-house consumed too much time and money. After delegating freelancer payouts and closing documents to the payout provider, the company reports operational costs down 40% from optimised payment and communication processes, and onboards freelancers from the CIS, Asia and Eastern Europe quickly.

Cybersecurity

Vulnerability-assessment software company pays partners and freelancers abroad in their own currencies

A software company that assesses vulnerabilities in IT systems needed a quick way to pay clients and partners abroad in their local currencies. It adopted the payout provider on a partner's recommendation and highlights a clear process for onboarding and paying freelancers, fast transfers and support at every step.

AI marketing

75% of payment options

Spanish AI marketing startup can now use 75% of available payment options for its overseas freelancers

A young Spain-based AI marketing platform hires internationally and pays influencers, and needed to stay transparent and compliant ahead of planned VC funding. Its European neobank did not cover enough countries and transfers were slow, so it added the payout provider, chosen for a reasonable per-payment commission, compliance and coverage. The co-founder says the company can now use 75% of the payment options available on the market, and the provider's closing documents are accepted by the Spanish tax office.

Business club

95% without support

International business club runs almost all team payouts through one provider, 95% of them without support

An international business club of 200 entrepreneurs and angel investors from 19 countries has team members and freelancers in Portugal, the Netherlands, the UAE, Lebanon and elsewhere. It needed payouts to accounts or cards in different currencies with automatic closing documents. Almost all of its payments now go through the payout provider under one simple service agreement, new freelancers can start quickly, and the team handles 95% of payments on its own without contacting support.

Mobile app

10% → 5% fee

30-person photo-editing app team gets salaries in local currencies as its fee rate falls from 10% to 5%

The 30-person team behind a mobile photo and video editing app is spread across the world, and employees want their salaries in local currencies, but the company could not open bank accounts in every currency or rely only on crypto. It pays through the payout provider under a single B2B contract instead of multiple service agreements, with a commission that changes with the amount sent. Payroll became considerably faster, and over the partnership its commission rate dropped from 10% to 5%.

Language school

Exam-prep language school restores payments to staff and guest teachers abroad

A language school preparing students for international English exams has most of its staff abroad and regularly pays guest speakers, coaches and teachers. When its usual payment routes closed, paying them, and even an assistant in Switzerland, became nearly impossible; crypto was risky and another payment platform became unavailable after a policy change. Through the payout provider, with a personal manager guiding the first payments, the director now sets tasks and pays people easily, and payments arrive in full and without delays.

E-commerce

E-commerce solutions company pays remote freelancers without building its own payout system

A growing e-commerce solutions company that relies on remote contractors integrated the payout provider's platform into its operations instead of building its own payment and document system. Freelancers receive payments quickly, straight to their cards, and the company praises the support line. At the time of writing the partnership had lasted over a year.

Networking equipment

Cyprus networking-equipment company starts paying its foreign freelancers

A Cyprus-based provider of networking equipment and software for internet service providers relies on contractors but could not pay its foreign remote team from Cyprus. It joined the payout provider in August 2023, choosing it over a competing service for client recommendations, timely feedback and tech support. At the time of writing it had worked with only 3 freelancers so far and said its goal of a reliable, easy-to-use payout tool was met.

Software development

Software development company batches payouts to contractors in several jurisdictions

A software development company building e-commerce applications, online marketplaces, ERP and e-procurement platforms pays contractors in different jurisdictions on a time-and-materials basis. The payout provider set it up with batch processing of payments to multiple contractors, which made payment management significantly more efficient.

Online language school

−15% tax

Italian online language school saves 15% on taxes when paying teachers abroad

An Italian school teaching English online has teachers in Europe, the USA, South Africa and Jamaica, and faced a 22% VAT rate on payments to non-residents in Italy on top of multiple currencies and tax systems. Through the payout provider it pays all contractors in euro and gets all closing documents from one legal entity, while teachers can withdraw in their local currency via e-wallet or bank transfer. The school reports saving 15% on tax deductions.

Market entry

UAE market-entry company centralises pay for remote staff in the CIS and contractors worldwide

A UAE-headquartered company that helps consumer brands enter international markets has many employees working remotely from CIS countries and contractors in other regions. It wanted fully legal payouts in various currencies and crypto, a choice between fixed and percentage fees, no limits and, above all, full closing documents from a European legal entity, especially after a 2024 change in UAE tax law required proper documentation of expenses. The payout provider now pays its staff and freelancers under a B2B contract, taking these compliance tasks off the owner and finance team.

B2B sales

+17% satisfaction

B2B sales agency restores payouts to contractors in the CIS and Argentina; staff satisfaction up 17%

A B2B sales agency for IT startups, multinationals and venture investors, partly a US, UK and Hong Kong business, works with freelancers in the CIS and Argentina. In 2022 its usual payment route to the CIS through US and UK banks stopped working, and grey schemes were not an option. Through the payout provider it pays all contractors with one transfer that is then distributed, outgoing payments take much less time, and the CEO reports overall employee satisfaction up 17%.

Education consulting

7% vs €37+ SWIFT

Austrian education consultancy swaps €37+ SWIFT fees for a flat 7% fee to pay its remote team

An Austrian company that helps Russian-speaking applicants enter Austrian universities has 21 staff in four countries, including the CIS, plus 15 freelancers. Paying them by SWIFT cost at least €37 per transfer, took up to 5 business days and needed bilingual documents, costing about 10 hours of an assistant's time. Through the payout provider it signs one B2B contract, tops up by SEPA and pays contractors in any currency for a fixed 7% fee; a CIS video-editing team it then hired finished the job in 3 weeks for 5 times less than Austrian freelancers.