You ask, we answer

The iBanFirst platform is a secure online platform designed for businesses operating internationally, particularly those managing payments or revenue in multiple currencies.

From a single interface, businesses can send and receive payments in multiple currencies, convert currencies, manage FX exposure, and monitor transactions across entities and accounts. The platform centralises cross-border payment operations that are traditionally fragmented across banks and tools.

You can explore how the iBanFirst platform works and discover its key features in our product tour.

With iBanFirst, you can hold and receive funds in 25 currencies and execute payments in 135+ currencies. You can check the list of currencies available here.

At iBanFirst, we offer competitive and transparent foreign exchange rates and fees. Here you can find a complete overview of all our fees applied.

Unlike most corporate banks, iBanFirst does not charge any fees to open an account nor any monthly subscription fees.

iBanFirst earns a spread on every currency conversion, calculated as the difference between the market rate and the client rate. This spread is transparent and shown on the web platform or communicated over the phone.

iBanFirst doesn't currently offer credit solutions.

A multi-currency account allows businesses to hold, send, and receive funds in different currencies without opening separate local bank accounts.

With an iBanFirst multi-currency account, companies can open accounts and hold balances in 25 currencies, each with its own account details and dedicated account number, avoiding the administrative burden of setting up and managing accounts with multiple banks.

No, iBanFirst doesn't currently offer card payments.

Yes, you can connect iBanFirst to your accounting or treasury software, bank accounts and internal tools via the open banking PSD2 API, the iBanFirst API, EBICS, Isabel 6, or SwiftNet, plugging into your existing workflows to streamline payments, FX, reconciliation and more.

The iBanFirst REST API covers all the main tasks that you need to automate your accounts payable processes: You can submit payments, get real-time FX quotes, execute spot transactions, open accounts autonomously, create beneficiaries, retrieve your financial history and upload invoices.

iBanFirst S.A. is a payment institution authorised and regulated by the National Bank of Belgium under company number 0849.872.824.

As a regulated payment institution, iBanFirst must comply with strict regulatory requirements relating to security, safeguarding of client funds, and anti-money laundering controls.

The foreign exchange services offered by iBanFirst are limited to spot FX transactions and deliverable forward payment contracts intended to cover an underlying payment for identifiable goods or services. iBanFirst does not offer FX options or other financial instruments for investment or speculative purposes.

At iBanFirst, we do our utmost to keep our clients’ accounts safe and secure by investing in robust infrastructure and SSL connection encryption and carrying out steady audits and penetration tests. 

Our servers are hosted in industry-grade data centres and protected by hardware and software firewalls. Data transmitted between your web browser and our servers is encrypted using SSL certificates and RSA SHA-256 encryption. Our servers and software regularly undergo independent audits and penetration tests.

No. You control who can initiate payments through customisable user permission rights. You can configure payment limits and multi-level approvals for different user roles, with granular access rights across different entities.

Additionally, iBanFirst requires dual authentication via our mobile app to approve and execute sensitive operations, including payments.

iBanFirst uses Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) methods to keep accounts and funds secure.

Two-factor authentication requires you to authenticate access credentials using both something you know (your iBanFirst username and password) and something you hold in your possession (your phone).

Click here to learn more.

Additionally, there are other measures that you, as a user, can and should do to protect your accounts against fraudulent attempts: 

• Do not share a single user access with people in your company
• Do not store your user ID and password
• Do not share your SCA method with anyone
• Use a unique, strong password
• Use time-based one-time password (TOTP) or Yubikey rather than SMS as your SCA method

iBanFirst will NEVER ask you for your user ID, password, or strong authentication code.

If you believe that your user ID, password, or strong authentication code have been compromised, please contact your account manager as soon as possible.

No sensitive data is accessible by iBanFirst teams. We cannot access the data related to external account balances or transactions. We only have access to the account name, the account currency, the synchronization dates and the connection state.

If you suspect fraud or any unauthorised activity on your iBanFirst account, you should contact your account manager directly.

Opening an account with iBanFirst is a 100% paperless process. 

1. Fill out the account opening form to be contacted by a member of our team.
2. Send us the documents identifying your company and its beneficial owners.
3. Our customer support team will set up your account so you can be up and running right away.

You will need to activate your iBanFirst account by making an initial transfer from your main bank account. Your account will be ready to use upon receipt of this activation transfer.