Choosing the best joint business account for your small business

Financial management, although sometimes overlooked, plays its role in the company’s success. It is especially the case for small businesses and partnerships (such as a limited partnership, limited liability partnership, general partnership, or other business types), where all the main financial operations and processes need to be quickly established and transparent. 

This is why such companies might look into opening a joint business bank account to simplify their experience and ensure future growth. 

Learn more about how joint business bank accounts work and how Genome’s shared business account allows our clients to manage their business finances with their team.   

What is a joint business account?

A joint business bank account (sometimes also known as a partnership business bank account) is a type of business account that allows two or more people involved in company ownership or management to access the business account and utilize its main features, such as balance checks, transfers, money withdrawals, etc. Thus, thanks to a joint business bank account, a company can share its financial responsibilities and involve more than one person in managing the funds. 

The difference between a personal account and a joint business bank account is that the former is owned and used by just one person, while a joint business account is jointly owned and accessible by all authorized employees of the company. 

By the way, personal joint accounts exist as well, but access to them is usually shared between friends or family members. 

If you are in a partnership agreement or a part of a business, you need both personal (single account) and business accounts to keep personal and professional finances separate.  

Note that some high-street banks even offer joint business accounts to sole traders. However, if you are a sole trader, you don’t necessarily need a joint bank account, as you won’t have partners or co-owners. Instead, a sole trader can open a standard business bank account to handle financial operations.

Benefits of a joint business bank account

Joint business accounts can be very advantageous for general financial management, not only for small companies or business partnerships.

Let’s examine the main reasons why a company would want to open a joint business account. 

• Simplified bookkeeping. A joint business account allows you to better keep track of your finances, as all the transactions occur within one account. Thus, monitoring, tracking, and gathering reports on your financial performance and overall situation is easier. 
• Shared financial responsibilities. Using a joint business account, multiple employees can access its features at once, making it easier to perform and collaborate on business-related financial tasks efficiently. 
• Enhanced transparency. A joint business bank account can make your corporate operations more transparent: usually, all parties involved are monitored, promoting trust and accountability within the business.
• Streamlined transactions. Because of the involvement of employees and business partners, a joint business account can help facilitate seamless transfers and payments as responsibilities are shared.

Key considerations when choosing a joint business bank account

Before starting a joint business account (aka a partnership bank account), you need to consider the criteria to select the right payment service provider. Although not as common as your typical business bank account, you can still open a joint business account at some financial institutions. 

Here’s what to look out for when selecting the best joint business account:  

Service area. Check if the financial institution works with companies (particularly limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, and general partnerships) in your country. Also, if they service businesses within your industry.

The capabilities of joint business accounts. Check if the partnership bank account allows you to add all the business co-partners and employees you need; carefully read through the conditions.

Additional features. It’s not enough for the joint bank account to just serve one purpose. You need to ensure that the partnership business accounts have services that your company needs. For instance, corporate debit cards, money transfers, payment processing, business finance management, payouts, business loans, etc. 

Accessibility of the financial platform. Consider how flexible the partnership bank account is, including mobile banking features, mobile app availability, and ATM network coverage.

The fees. Evaluate the joint business account fees, including monthly fees, transaction fees, and overdraft charges, to ensure they align with the business’s budget and expected transaction volume.

Customer service. A partnership account can be difficult to handle at first. Thus, a financial institution needs responsive customer support so you can contact them anytime. 

Legal and financial implications

So, what are the legal and financial implications of such a dedicated business account? Usually, there are some common things a bank can request or you will need to handle yourself before you open a joint business account. 

Even before starting the main procedures, you need to outline your legal entity status: if you represent a separate legal entity (Limited Liability Partnership, small businesses, etc.), the joint account should be opened in the name of the entity rather than individual. It is important to separate professional finances from personal ones. 

Moving on, business partners need to agree to a legal contract with the financial institution that outlines their rights and responsibilities when using a joint account and business finances.

In addition, the contract will likely specify that the account holder and business partners are liable for the activities inside the joint account, such as debts, overdrafts, etc. 

Another thing to handle is equal access to the joint business account. The business will need to check how the joint account authorization happens and establish the list of business partners and employees who will have access to and manage the account.

It will be helpful to keep records of all the transactions within your joint business bank account, as well as provide access to account statements and financial records to all the account users.

Importance of choosing the right payment provider

Apart from some differences we described in the previous section, the experience of opening a joint business account will be similar to that of a regular account.

Alternatively, you can start a business wallet at Genome and enable the shared account feature, which will allow you to share access to your business wallet with your employees.  

As an account holder, you will be able to assign roles and responsibilities to other company staff and share the workload.

The roles the team can have with inside Genome’s shared account

Director – has access to all the features of the business account: view and add accounts and merchants, view details and reports about accounts and merchants, create and confirm payments, manage team members, handle verification and limits, order and manage cards.

Financial director – can view and add accounts and merchants, view details and reports about accounts and merchants, create and confirm payments, manage team members, and handle verification and limits.

Accountant – can view and add accounts and merchants, view details and reports about accounts and merchants, create payment requests for approval, and handle verification and limits.

Payer – can view and add accounts and merchants, view details and reports about accounts and merchants, create and confirm payments, and handle verification and limits.

Analyst – can view and add accounts, as well as view details and reports about accounts.

Moreover, inside the Genome wallet, you can have up to 15 accounts, 5 accounts per currency: EUR, USD, and GBP. This allows you to better manage your finances, as you can use different accounts for different business purposes or allow company members to use them. 

In addition, you can order multiple virtual and physical Visa Business cards and link them to the accounts! Not to mention seamless integration with other services vital for a company – see for yourself at Genome’s website. 

How to open a joint business account

Commonly, to start a joint business bank account, you will need to choose among suitable account options and prepare necessary documentation to apply for it. 

Alternatively, you can try Genome if you find our shared account option suitable for your company.  

With Genome, accessing the shared account feature that allows more than one person to access and manage the wallet is easy, as all our business wallets come with the feature enabled. 

How to start a business wallet inside Genome:

1.  Sign up to Genome using your email or phone number and select the business wallet option.

2. Start the onboarding process: fill out the main information about your company. 

3. Provide the necessary documents: upload a full company profile/ extract from the business registry or upload separate company documents/certificates with the company data.

4. Fill out the ownership structure and finish the onboarding process.

Once your business wallet is approved, the wallet owner can start inviting other team members to manage it together with you. To do so:

• Open the Genome Dashboard;
• Go to the Settings menu;
• Select the My Team tab;
• Here, you can oversee all the members, change tier access roles, and invite new members. 

Managing joint business bank accounts

Whether you have a limited company or a small company, you still need to get used to managing a joint business account. Here are some tips on how to do just that.

Step 1. Define roles, responsibilities, and decision-making processes upfront. Decide if the account holders will have equal access and responsibilities and what these will be.

Step 2. Work together to set specific financial goals for the business bank account. Having common objectives helps keep everyone aligned and motivated.

Step 3: The account holders must be transparent about planned and performed financial operations in day-to-day banking and keep bank statement records. 

This will help maintain the business’s finances, protect business savings, and avoid trouble, such as overspending or a poor credit score.

Step 4: Check in with your colleagues. Schedule regular meetings to discuss business bank account activity, financial performance, and any concerns or ideas.

Step 5: Keep records and documentation of all the money-involving decisions. It will be helpful to have a reference in case of disputes.

Key takeaways

All in all, joint accounts make the management of business finances easier for companies, specifically if you are part of a small business, general partnership, limited partnership, or other partnership agreement-based companies. 

All you need to do is choose your financial provider wisely based on the tips provided in the article. 

FAQ

Can multiple partners access a joint business account?

Yes, multiple partners can typically access a joint business account. What can be different is the access levels. For instance, one partner can make transfers, access cash flow reports, and withdraw money, while another account holder will only have access to transfers and cash flow reports. 

Are there limits on the number of transactions for a joint business account?

The number of business transactions allowed does not correlate to the status of joint business accounts. This number is set by financial institutions independently and can depend on different factors, such as the size of your business (small business, medium business, corporation, limited companies, and other business structures), the industry your company belongs to (low-risk or high-risk), and, of course, the bank’s technical capabilities.   

How do banks ensure the security of joint business accounts?

As in the case of other business bank accounts (current, savings business accounts. etc.), this dedicated business account is protected by multi-factor authentication for account access, encryption of sensitive data during online transactions, and monitoring for suspicious activity. Genome enables these, as well as other security measures, as well. 

Can we use a joint business account for international transactions?

Yes, a joint bank account can be used for international transactions. If you need international payments for your business, make sure to check which options are available within your financial provider.