Skydo is an Indian fintech platform  created to simplify cross-border payments for exporters of goods and services, freelancers, and businesses receiving international payments.

For their customers, receiving international payments is part of their day-to-day operations. An Indian software company, for example, that sells its solutions directly to a customer in the United States needs an efficient way to receive those funds. In this context, providing a smooth experience from end to end is a key priority for Skydo.

Ensuring speed and predictability for the funds its direct customers receive is crucial, but offering overseas payers an experience that feels closer to a domestic payment is equally important.

Payment bureaucracy, limited access to local payment methods, and delays are among the factors that can contribute to churn, and strained supplier relationships. For this reason, protecting the liquidity and operational flow of the business also requires considering the experience of the payer.

Challenge: Friction across the cross-border payment journey

Traditionally, Indian exporters rely on international wire transfers and correspondent banking infrastructure to receive payments from the United States. This often means longer settlement times, higher fees, and limited visibility into the status of a transaction.

Because correspondent systems involve multiple institutions that may apply different fees and charges, often with limited predictability, differences between the invoiced amount and the amount actually received can increase reconciliation work and directly affect business liquidity.

For payers in the United States, the experience was often different from paying a local supplier. International payments require additional information, involve more steps, and can create a greater risk of errors or returned payments.

This creates a common challenge. When paying an international supplier requires more effort than paying a local one, that friction becomes part of the accounts payable process.

For these reasons, Skydo wanted to remove this friction without requiring each exporter to establish a legal entity in the United States or build local banking infrastructure. Both options typically involve significant administrative requirements, regulatory and operational complexity.

Solution: USD account in each exporter's name

Through the partnership with Caliza, Skydo began offering exporters USD virtual accounts in the United States, opened in their own name.

This allows a customer in the United States, for example, to pay an Indian supplier through a more familiar experience, using fully local payment methods. Transactions can be received through local US rails such as ACH, Fedwire, and RTP, while international payers can use SWIFT.

After the funds are received, Skydo can leverage Caliza’s ledger capabilities to maintain a real-time system of record and consolidate balances and transactions in one place, while automating USD transfers to India. This allows the payment flow to better fit the way businesses already manage their finances. A US company can pay an Indian supplier using a domestic payment method, while Skydo manages the process required to facilitate the cross-border flow.

Caliza provides USD infrastructure in the United States for the Skydo’s Indian small business sellers. 

Results: Greater scale and less operational friction

The partnership allowed Skydo to quickly scale its customer collections infrastructure, offering dedicated USD accounts to hundreds of exporters and creating a fully local payment experience. It also enables faster settlements for Skydo’s Indian business customers. .

This infrastructure also allows the consolidation and repatriation of funds to be automated, reducing the need for manual treasury operations.

Transactions grew rapidly in the first few months of operation, generating several positive impacts at scale, including:

“We wanted to make receiving international payments as simple as receiving a domestic payment. Caliza provides the infrastructure to deliver this end to end experience while maintaining the control and flexibility our customers need.

” Prashanth Kumar, Head - Banking and Payments Infrastructure  Skydo

As Skydo expands its international operations, Caliza's infrastructure can also support new local rails and currencies across different markets, allowing the platform to expand its offering without having to build each payment connection individually.

Expanded access to global finance

The partnership between Skydo and Caliza shows how combining local financial infrastructure with cross-border technology can create a simpler experience for businesses operating internationally.

For Indian exporters, the model makes it easier to receive payments from global customers, manage USD balances, and transfer funds to India. For their customers, paying an international supplier can feel much closer to paying a local one.

Want to create a cross-border payment experience that is as efficient as a local one? Talk to the Caliza team.