Charge in dollars, convert on purpose.
Four decisions — contract currency, invoice currency, holding venue, conversion cadence — and a clean split of who carries FX risk. The default error: quoting in local currency, which turns you into an exchange rate the client can haggle with.
The four decisions.
The split that keeps relationships clean.
Client carries FX while they hold your invoice; you carry FX only while you hold dollars. USD contract + USD invoice does the first half automatically — AP converts on their side using their bank's rate, which is routine for them. The second half is your operational policy: receive into a multi-currency or USD balance (Wise, Grey, domiciliary — holding framework), convert to local currency on a schedule driven by what you need to spend, not by a feeling about next week's rate.
What about local clients? Ghana/Nigeria/Kenya clients paying in local currency are a different counterparty class — there, quote in local currency (their native reality), with an FX-adjustment clause for long projects if currency volatility is material. The USD discipline applies to USD-earning work; forcing dollars on a local client is friction without benefit.
Cadence beats timing: "convert what I need, monthly, on payroll-day" outperforms rate-watching both in outcomes and in hours spent. Batch conversions if your rail charges flats (withdrawal costs), price the rail band into your rate (anchoring), and let the floor formula carry fee reality (floor calculator). Timing the market with client money is gambling with rent; cadence is operations.
Dollar in, cadence out.
Contract in USD, invoice in USD, hold in a balance, convert on schedule. The Kit wires all four into your workflow — invoice block, rate card, conversion checklist. $19 founding.
Questions.
Can I charge US clients in cedis, naira or shillings?
You can, but should not. USD contracts fix the amount in the currency your costs live in; local-currency quotes transfer FX movement onto you between quote and payment. US clients' AP pays USD as default — it is their native workflow.
Who bears exchange-rate risk on a USD invoice?
The client bears it while the invoice sits unpaid (their cost to pay rises if their currency weakens — motivating on-time payment). You bear it only after receipt, while holding dollars — minimized by your conversion cadence and holding venue.
When should I convert dollars to local currency?
On a needs-based schedule: convert what your upcoming local expenses require (rent, food, transport), keep the rest in dollars only if genuinely saved. Predictable cadence beats rate-watching — with client money, gambling is not a strategy.
How do I explain to a local client why you quote in USD?
For domestic clients, don't — quote in their currency (it is their reality), with an FX-adjustment clause for long projects if needed. USD quoting applies to foreign-currency earning work; forcing dollars on local clients is friction without benefit.