{"id":50907,"date":"2026-07-23T09:58:40","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T09:58:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/biz\/?p=50907"},"modified":"2026-07-23T10:02:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T10:02:28","slug":"telegraphic-transfer-singapore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.you.co\/biz\/blog\/telegraphic-transfer-singapore\/","title":{"rendered":"Telegraphic Transfer Singapore: Fees & How It Works (2026)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Why the fee your bank quotes is the smallest part of a TT’s cost<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A telegraphic transfer (TT) is how your company’s bank wires money overseas, usually to pay a supplier, a contractor, or an overseas invoice. It runs on the SWIFT network, it’s reliable, and it works almost anywhere. The catch is the cost: the flat fee on the quote is only a fraction of what your company actually pays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If your business pays overseas vendors, SaaS bills, or contractor payouts, the fees add up fast. There’s a commission, a cable charge, a correspondent bank fee you can’t see upfront, and a margin baked into the exchange rate. That last one is usually the biggest, and it’s the easiest to avoid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u26a1 TL;DR: Telegraphic Transfers at a Glance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Question<\/strong><\/th>Quick answer<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
What is a TT?<\/td>A bank-to-bank international wire sent over the SWIFT network. Also called a wire or telex transfer.<\/td><\/tr>
What does it cost?<\/td>A commission (about 0.125%, min S$10), a cable fee (about S$20 online), and a correspondent fee, plus a margin built into the exchange rate.<\/td><\/tr>
The cost most businesses miss<\/td>The exchange-rate margin, often 1\u20133%<\/strong>, usually costs more than every flat fee combined.<\/td><\/tr>
How long does it take?<\/td>1\u20134 working days, and you have to beat a daily cut-off time.<\/td><\/tr>
A cheaper way to pay overseas<\/td>Pay by YouBiz Mastercard at real 0% FX fees<\/strong>, or send an overseas transfer at the wholesale rate, no margin added on top.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The flat S$20 on the quote is the part every business notices. The exchange-rate margin is the part that quietly costs more, because it’s hidden inside the rate rather than shown as a fee. That’s the line more than 10,000 finance teams<\/strong> now route around with a multi-currency account instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Table of Contents<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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  1. What Is a Telegraphic Transfer?<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. How a Telegraphic Transfer Works<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Telegraphic Transfer Fees in Singapore: What Your Business Pays<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. How Long Does a Telegraphic Transfer Take?<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. The Real Cost of a Bank TT for Your Business<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. A Cheaper Way to Pay Overseas Suppliers<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. FAQs<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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    What Is a Telegraphic Transfer?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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    A telegraphic transfer (TT) is a bank-to-bank transfer of money across borders, sent electronically over the SWIFT network. You’ll also hear it called a wire transfer or a telex transfer. They all mean the same thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    The name is a leftover from the days when banks sent payment instructions down telegraph and telex lines. The wires are long gone. The label stuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    For a business, a TT is what your bank sets up when you use its outward remittance or overseas transfer service. You’d reach for it to pay a foreign supplier, settle a vendor invoice, or send money to an overseas contractor. If your finance team has ever wired a payment abroad from DBS IDEAL, OCBC Velocity, or UOB Infinity, that’s a telegraphic transfer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    How a Telegraphic Transfer Works<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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    A TT works by sending a secure payment message from your bank to the recipient’s bank, often hopping through a third “middle” bank along the way. No cash physically moves. Banks just adjust the balances they hold with each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    The SWIFT Network, in Plain English<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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    SWIFT is the messaging system banks use to talk to each other about payments. Think of it as a private network where every member bank has a unique ID and can send secure instructions to any other member. It’s been the backbone of cross-border banking since 1973, carrying tens of millions of payment messages between banks every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    When your company sends a TT, your bank fires off a SWIFT message telling the supplier’s bank to pay out a set amount. Your account gets debited on this end, and the supplier’s account gets credited on the other. SWIFT itself doesn’t move the money. It just carries the instruction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    SWIFT\/BIC Codes and the “Bank in the Middle”<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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    To route the message, you need the recipient bank’s SWIFT\/BIC code. That’s an 8 or 11-character code that identifies the exact bank and branch, like a postal code for banks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    This is where the cost creeps in. If your bank and the supplier’s bank don’t hold accounts with each other, the payment routes through a correspondent bank they’re both connected to. That’s the “bank in the middle”, and each hop can add a fee and a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Send a currency that isn’t the destination’s local one and it gets pricier still. The money may be converted twice on the way, often through a US bank when it’s routed in US dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    What You Need to Send One<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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    To set up a TT, your finance team will usually need:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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