Currency Strategy for Founders Earning in USD and Spending in SEA

Every expat founder earning in USD and spending in Philippine Peso, Thai Baht, or Vietnamese Dong has a currency position whether they actively manage it or not. The founder who converts all incoming USD to local currency immediately is making a currency bet. The founder who holds USD and converts only what is needed for monthly expenses is making a different currency bet. The question is not whether to have a currency strategy — it is whether to have a deliberate one or an accidental one.

The deliberate currency strategy for most expat founders is not complex. It does not involve speculating on currency movements or managing a multi-currency portfolio. It involves three things: holding USD income in USD until needed for local expenses, using low-cost conversion channels instead of bank default rates, and timing larger local-currency purchases to avoid converting during periods of unfavorable rates.

For the broader money stack this currency strategy operates within, read The Expat Founder Money Stack: Banking, Entity, and Tax Setup.

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The Currency Friction Problem

The default path for most expat founders is to receive USD income into a US bank account, wire it to a local bank, and accept whatever conversion rate the receiving bank offers. This is the most expensive path and produces two layers of unnecessary cost:

The wire fee: US bank international wires typically cost $25 to $45 per transaction plus possible receiving fees at the foreign bank of $10 to $20.

The conversion spread: Banks apply a markup to the mid-market exchange rate — typically 2 to 4 percent above the rate you would find on Google. On a $3,000 conversion, a 3 percent spread costs $90. If you do this monthly, the annual cost is $1,080 — purely in conversion friction.

For a founder making $8,000 per month and converting $2,000 monthly for local expenses, the total annual cost of using traditional bank wires with default conversion rates is $1,200 to $2,400 per year in avoidable fees. That is a meaningful amount to recover with a simple infrastructure change.

The Low-Friction Currency Setup

Step 1: Receive USD income into Wise Business

Wise Business gives you US bank account details (routing number and account number) where US clients can pay you via ACH as if paying a domestic US business. International clients can pay in their local currency to their local Wise account details. Wise holds the balance in USD.

Step 2: Convert only what you need, when you need it

Rather than converting a large lump sum monthly, convert smaller amounts as needed for local expenses. Wise’s conversion fee is 0.4 to 0.7 percent of the converted amount with no additional spread markup — significantly lower than bank rates. For a $1,000 conversion, Wise charges $4 to $7. A bank charges $25 to $45 in wire fees plus $20 to $40 in spread on the same amount.

Step 3: Push local currency to your local bank account

Wise transfers directly to your Philippine BDO or BPI account, Thai Bangkok Bank or Kasikorn account, or Vietnamese Vietcombank or Techcombank account in 1 to 2 business days. This eliminates the international wire step entirely.

Step 4: Keep a USD buffer in Schwab

Maintain 2 to 3 months of local living expenses in USD in your Schwab checking account. When you need cash from an ATM, withdraw local currency from any ATM worldwide — Schwab reimburses all fees at month end. The Schwab account serves as a backup to Wise and a cash access point when ATM access is the most practical option.

Understanding the PHP, THB, and VND Rate Dynamics

The Philippine Peso, Thai Baht, and Vietnamese Dong have all shown long-term weakness against the USD over extended periods, though with significant short-term volatility. This means that over a multi-year expat founder tenure, the USD has generally purchased increasing amounts of local currency — a passive tailwind for USD earners spending in these markets.