Loop business money transfers review

What is Loop?

Loop is a business banking platform that offers cross-border banking solutions. As well as the international transfer service being reviewed here, Loop also offers multi-currency personal and corporate credit cards that allow you to spend in CAD, USD, GBP and EUR, and international money management accounts in the US, UK and EU, so you can send and receive payments in the countries where your business operates.

Is Loop legitimate?

Loop Financial is a Toronto-based fintech that was founded in 2015. It originally provided business financing and was known as Lending Loop, but it now specializes in cross-border business banking.

Loop is regulated in Canada and partners with banks in other countries to insure their customer deposits under national deposit insurance schemes. For example, deposits to the Loop US Dollar Account are covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in the USA.

Loop also says it uses 24/7 fraud monitoring and data encryption to help keep your details and our money safe.

What we like about Loop money transfers

• Send money to over 180 countries. Loop allows you to send payments in 37 currencies to most countries around the world.
• No transfer fees. There are no fees to worry about when sending an international money transfer with Loop.
• No sending limit. There’s no limit to the amount of money you can transfer with Loop. However, there may be an individual transaction limit depending on the currency you’re sending. Loop says this usually ranges from $1 million to $5 million.
• Fast transfers. International transfers with Loop take one business day to complete.
• Easy online account management. Manage your Loop account online and track all your transactions via a single dashboard.
• Other account features. Loop also offers multi-currency business credit cards, foreign currency business bank accounts (US, UK and EU), working capital and expense management solutions.
• Security. Use two-factor authentication to provide an added layer of security to your account. Create customized approval rules to manage who can make payments from your account.

What to watch out for

• Exchange rate markup. Take note that an exchange rate markup of 0.5% applies to currency conversions if you have a Loop Basic account. The markup falls to 0.25% with a Loop Plus account and 0.1% with a Loop Power account.
• Some features still coming soon. At the time of writing (June 2024), the Loop website still lists some account features as coming soon. These include importing payments from QuickBooks and Xero as well as bulk send payments.
• Monthly fees. While Loop offers a free monthly plan, Loop Plus costs $49 a month and Loop Power costs $199 a month. These paid plans offer perks such as smaller exchange rate markups on currency conversions as well as access to more physical and virtual Loop cards.
• Bank transfers only. The only way to pay for your transaction is with a bank transfer, and the money you send will be deposited into your recipient’s bank account.

Alternatives to Loop transfers

OFX

Go to site

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Min. Transfer Amount

$250

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Max. Transfer Amount

Unlimited

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Pay By

Debit card, Bank transfer

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Receiving Options

Bank account

Wise (TransferWise)

Go to site

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Min. Transfer Amount

$1

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Max. Transfer Amount

$1,500,000

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Pay By

Credit card, Debit card, Bank transfer, Interac e-Transfer, Online bill payment, Direct debit (EFT)

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Receiving Options

Bank account, Alipay (China only)

Xe Money Transfers

Go to site

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Min. Transfer Amount

$1

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Max. Transfer Amount

$750,000 online (no max offline) 

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Pay By

Credit card, Debit card, Bank transfer

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Receiving Options

Bank account

Summary of Loop reviews

Reviews as of June 9, 2024

Loop exchange rates

When you convert currencies with Loop, an exchange rate markup applies. The size of the markup varies depending on the Loop plan you select:

• Loop Basic (no monthly fee): 0.5% markup
• Loop Plus ($49 a month): 0.25% markup
• Loop Power ($199 a month): 0.1% markup

Loop offers competitive exchange rates for sending international payments. However, the account plan that offers the best value for your business will vary depending on how often you make international payments and how much you send.

Sample Loop exchange rate markups

To give you an idea of how much it costs to send Loop money transfers, let’s look at the example of sending $5,000 to the USA. If the current midmarket exchange rate is 1 CAD = 0.73 USD, here’s an approximation of the exchange rate you could receive, depending on your Loop account plan.

Loop transfer fees

There are no fees for Loop money transfers. However, Loop’s website mentions that it “may add a small wire transfer fee in the future” to cover the cost of processing wire transfers.

Loop payment and delivery methods

You can pay for Loop transfers using funds from your Loop account. The ability to make payments using credit is listed as “coming soon” on the Loop website as of June 2024. You can deposit funds into your Loop account by transferring from an external bank account.

The only supported delivery method is transferring into your recipient’s bank account.

How to sign up

You can create a Loop account by completing the following steps:

1. Visit the Loop website and select Get Started.
2. Provide your name, legal business name and work email address.
3. Create a password.
4. Provide your personal information, including your contact details and date of birth.
5. Provide your company information, including the nature of your business and ownership details.
6. Submit your application.

How to send a money transfer

Here’s what you need to do to send a Loop money transfer:

1. Log in to your Loop account.
2. From the Accounts page, select the currency you want to send money from.
3. Select Pay Payee.
4. Select an existing payee or add new payee details.
5. Enter the amount you want to send.
6. Review the transaction details before sending your transfer.

How long do Loop transfers take?

The money you send will arrive in your recipient’s bank account in one business day.

Bottom line

Loop offers a quick and cost-effective way to send international payments. Exchange rates are competitive and you can send money just about anywhere. The ability to get local bank account details in multiple currencies allows you to receive payments in the currency you want. Just keep in mind that you’ll need to pay a monthly account fee to access the best exchange rates.