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Table of Contents
Alpian is my top pick for holding CHF, EUR, USD and GBP inside a Swiss bank with low weekday conversion costs.
Wise offers much broader currency holding, while Revolut suits smaller regular exchanges that remain inside its monthly allowance.
Yuh keeps everyday account and card costs low, and Swissquote fits existing investors who want cash currencies beside a portfolio.
Receiving and holding multiple currencies
Wise offers over 40 currency balances, receiving details in supported currencies and a debit card without a monthly subscription.
Conversions use the mid-market exchange rate with a separate fee, making the cost easy to see before exchanging.
Small regular conversions
Revolut Standard includes a CHF1,250 monthly exchange allowance without a subscription fee.
It suits planned weekday conversions, because weekend exchanges and amounts above the allowance attract additional charges.
What is a multi-currency account?
A multi-currency account lets you hold, convert, receive or spend more than one currency without converting every payment into CHF.
The useful functions vary because a held balance may lack local receiving details, while a card can spend currencies the account does not hold.
At a glance
Here are the best multi-currency account options right now:
Four major currencies in a Swiss bank: Alpian
Broad currency holding and receiving details: Wise
Small regular currency exchange: Revolut
Free physical card and 13 balances: Yuh
Currencies beside an investment portfolio: Swissquote
Best multi-currency accounts for Swiss residents
9.2
Wise
Fees
0.1% - 2.6%
Exchange Rate Markup
0%
Transfer Speed
Minutes - 24 hours
"Over 15 million customers use Wise, mostly for their excellent mobile app, transparent fee structure & use of mid-market rates. Now increasingly used for larger transfers."
8.8
Revolut
Fees
0.3% - 1%
Exchange Rate Markup
0.1% - 0.6%
Transfer Speed
Minutes - 5 days
"Revolut has 70+ million customers globally. You can hold up to 25+ currencies in the app and send money quickly in 25+ currencies to 140+ countries."
US Disclaimer: Revolut is not a bank. Banking services are provided by Lead Bank, Member FDIC. Fees may apply. See revolut.com/en-US/ for details.
Alpian
Alpian holds four major currencies with a low weekday exchange markup.
Key information
Alpian
Type
Swiss bank account
Currencies held
CHF, EUR, USD and GBP
Ongoing costs
Account and virtual card free
CHF funding
First activation from an eligible own-name bank account
Receiving
One IBAN, incoming held currencies remain in currency
Card
Virtual Visa free, physical Visa CHF60
Its exchange markup is 0.2% on weekdays and 0.5% at weekends, making timing a clear cost decision.
On CHF5,000, those percentages equal CHF10 and CHF25 respectively, before any separate payment or recipient-bank cost.
The four-currency scope is narrow beside Wise or Swissquote, but it covers the balances many residents use most often.
Foreign ATM withdrawals cost 2.5% plus possible third-party charges, so Alpian is less attractive for frequent cash access abroad.
Applicants must be adult Swiss tax residents, and non-Swiss citizens need an accepted permit or FDFA card while US persons are excluded.
The first activation payment must come from an eligible own-name bank, with Wise and Revolut among the excluded first-funding sources.
Alpian is FINMA-licensed, and eligible deposits receive esisuisse protection up to CHF100,000 per client.
Wise
Wise lets you hold many currencies and receive supported payments without a monthly subscription.
Key information
Wise
Type
Payment account
Currencies held
More than 40
Ongoing costs
No account subscription, physical card CHF8
CHF funding
Method depends on currency, amount and app availability
Receiving
Account details in 22 currencies
Card
International Wise debit card
Receiving details in 22 currencies do not mean every held balance has local account details or a Swiss IBAN.
Wise uses the mid-market rate and adds a displayed conversion fee from 0.19%, with the exact price changing by currency and action.
ATM withdrawals are free within a CHF230 monthly allowance, then Wise charges 2.69% on the excess.
This account works well for international income and broad currency holding, provided the required receiving details are available.
Wise safeguards customer money rather than offering a Swiss bank deposit, so its protection differs from Alpian, Yuh and Swissquote.
Revolut
Revolut suits small weekday exchanges within the Standard plan allowance.
Key information
Revolut Switzerland
Type
Bank or safeguarded payment account, depending on entity
Currencies held
Supported currencies shown in the app
Ongoing costs
Standard subscription free, first card delivery charged
CHF funding
Swiss virtual CHF IBAN for eligible Bank UAB customers
Receiving
CHF virtual IBAN, LT IBAN and GBP details depend on entity
Card
Virtual card free, physical card available
Standard includes a CHF1,250 monthly exchange allowance, followed by a 1% fair-usage charge on the excess.
A separate 1% weekend exchange fee makes a planned weekday conversion cheaper even when the amount remains inside the allowance.
The account's legal entity changes the receiving details and protection, so check the app before relying on a Swiss CHF route.
Eligible Revolut Bank UAB customers receive a virtual CHF IBAN through PostFinance, alongside LT and UK GBP account details.
Eligible Bank UAB deposits use Lithuania's deposit scheme up to EUR100,000, while Revolut Ltd customer money uses safeguarding instead.
I would use Revolut for active balance management, while Alpian gives a clearer Swiss-bank structure for four core currencies.
Yuh
Yuh combines a Swiss IBAN, 13 currencies and a physical card without account or card fees.
Key information
Yuh
Type
Swissquote-provided banking account
Currencies held
13, including CHF, EUR, USD and GBP
Ongoing costs
Account, custody and physical or virtual card free
CHF funding
First payment from an own-name bank account
Receiving
Personal Swiss IBAN
Card
Multi-currency Mastercard
Currency exchange costs 0.95%, which equals CHF47.50 on CHF5,000 before any separate payment or recipient cost.
That conversion price is much higher than Alpian's weekday markup, despite Yuh removing the physical-card charge.
EUR SEPA transfers are free, while another currency sent within SEPA countries costs CHF4 and can still face intermediary deductions.
One Swiss ATM withdrawal each week is free, followed by CHF1.90, while a foreign ATM withdrawal costs CHF4.90.
Yuh is supplied through Swissquote Bank, and the CHF100,000 deposit-protection limit aggregates your eligible Yuh and Swissquote balances.
Swissquote
Swissquote lets existing investors keep many cash currencies alongside their portfolio.
Standard online currency exchange costs 0.95%, although larger conversions can receive lower tiered pricing down to 0.15%.
At the standard rate, CHF5,000 costs CHF47.50 to exchange, compared with Alpian's CHF10 weekday markup for the same amount.
That arithmetic covers exchange pricing only and excludes transfer charges, intermediary deductions or a different live rate.
The free Light card package includes a virtual Mastercard, while Bright costs CHF6.90 monthly after its introductory period.
An outgoing EUR SEPA payment costs €2, and a shared-charge USD payment costs US$10, while incoming bank wires are free.
Securities custody starts at CHF20 per quarter plus 8.1% VAT for relevant invested assets, with cash excluded from that asset base.
Swissquote is an esisuisse member, although eligible balances share one CHF100,000 protection ceiling with money held through Yuh.
Compare conversion and card costs separately
Alpian's weekday markup is 0.75 percentage points below Yuh's conversion charge, a difference equivalent to CHF37.50 on CHF5,000.
Exchanging CHF8,000 at those rates produces a CHF60 difference, matching Alpian's physical-card price before other costs enter the calculation.
If you use a free virtual card, that physical-card expense disappears, while weekend conversions and cash withdrawals change the comparison.
For Revolut Standard, first subtract exchanges already made during your allowance period before deciding how much remains available without the fair-usage charge.
An additional CHF1,000 exchanged after using the allowance costs CHF10 in fair-usage fees, with weekend charges adding further cost.
Receiving foreign currency without converting it
A Swiss IBAN can receive foreign currency without converting it automatically, provided the account supports retaining that currency.
Alpian retains incoming CHF, EUR, USD and GBP, but other supported incoming currencies are converted into CHF.
That makes Wise or a broader Swissquote balance useful when you need to retain a currency outside Alpian's four.
Check the payment instructions for the specific currency, because a Swiss IBAN does not automatically provide domestic US or UK receiving details.
Understand the protection with these account
Alpian and Swissquote are Swiss banks with eligible deposits protected through esisuisse up to the applicable CHF100,000 limit.
Yuh banking sits at Swissquote, so balances across both products count towards one shared protection ceiling rather than two separate amounts.
Revolut's protection depends on whether your account has migrated to Bank UAB or remains with Revolut Ltd.
Wise safeguards customer money and should not be treated as a Swiss deposit account merely because Swiss residents can use it.
If you only need to send money from Switzerland
Opening a multi-currency account can be unnecessary when you only need one international payment and will not hold foreign balances.
The comparison below shows external CHF-funded transfers through Wise and Revolut, rather than conversions between balances inside either account.
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