Banking🌍 Global
How to Open a Business Bank Account as a Non-Resident
Step-by-step guide for foreign entrepreneurs.
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Find out if banks will accept your business type in Singapore, Hong Kong & UAE and get personalized recommendations based on your profile.
This determines your baseline banking eligibility
Get your personalized banking assessment in three simple steps
Choose from 36 business categories ranging from low-risk professional services to high-risk regulated activities. Each industry has different banking acceptance rates across jurisdictions.
Tell us about your client locations, transaction volumes, company structure, and regulatory status. These factors significantly impact your eligibility with different banks and financial institutions.
Receive a detailed eligibility assessment for Singapore, Hong Kong, and UAE, along with personalized bank recommendations and actionable tips to improve your approval chances.
Our eligibility algorithm analyzes your complete profile against real-world banking acceptance patterns. We consider factors like industry risk classification, geographic exposure, ownership structure, and regulatory compliance to provide accurate, jurisdiction-specific guidance.
Understanding your banking options before incorporating can save months of frustration
Opening a business bank account as a foreign entrepreneur is one of the biggest challenges when expanding internationally. Banks in Singapore, Hong Kong, and UAE have strict compliance requirements driven by anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) regulations.
Many entrepreneurs incorporate their company first, only to discover months later that no bank will accept their business type. This leads to wasted incorporation fees, delays in operations, and sometimes having to dissolve the company entirely.
Checking your bank eligibility before incorporation helps you choose the right jurisdiction for your specific business model. Some industries that face restrictions in Singapore may have better options in UAE free zones, while others might find Hong Kong more accommodating.
Understanding the landscape also helps you prepare the right documentation, structure your company appropriately, and set realistic expectations for the account opening timeline and requirements.
Banks categorize businesses by risk level. High-risk industries like cryptocurrency, forex trading, and money services face significant restrictions, while professional services and e-commerce are generally accepted.
Serving clients in sanctioned countries or high-risk jurisdictions triggers enhanced due diligence. Banks prefer businesses with local or regional client bases over those with worldwide exposure.
Having a local director or shareholder significantly improves your chances, especially in Singapore. Complex ownership structures with multiple layers of holding companies face additional scrutiny.
Licensed businesses in regulated industries have much better banking access than unlicensed operators. Holding relevant permits demonstrates legitimacy and compliance commitment.
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