TransferWise Limited
Wise (formerly TransferWise Limited) provides cross-border money transfers, multi-currency accounts, debit cards, and international business banking to 14.8 million consumers and 700,000+ businesses across 160+ countries.
- Company typePublic
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount5,001–10,000
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What TransferWise Limited does
Wise (formerly TransferWise Limited) is a London-headquartered, publicly traded fintech that provides cross-border money transfer services, multi-currency accounts, debit cards, and international business banking. The company was founded in 2011 by Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus, rebranded from TransferWise to Wise in February 2021, and listed on the London Stock Exchange under ticker WISE in July 2021. Wise operates through wholly owned regulated subsidiaries including Wise Payments Limited (UK, FCA Firm Reference 900507), Wise Europe SA (Belgium, NBB-supervised), Wise US Inc. (US, FinCEN-registered and CFPB-supervised with 48-state money transmitter licensing), Wise Asia-Pacific Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, MAS-licensed), Wise Australia Investments Pty Ltd (ASIC AFSL 545411), Wise Assets Europe AS (Estonia), Wise Assets UK LTD, and Wise Payments Japan K.K., supported by JPMorgan Chase Bank as US Program Bank and Community Federal Savings Bank as sponsor bank in select states.
The platform is built on proprietary technology that delivers mid-market exchange rates with transparent fees starting at 0.1%, multi-currency accounts supporting 22 receiving currencies and 40 total currencies with local bank details (SWIFT/BIC, IBAN, sort code), and the Wise Multi-Currency Card usable in 215 countries and territories. Reported performance metrics include 74% of transfers arriving in under 20 seconds, $16 billion moved monthly by 14.8 million customers, and an anti-fraud system executing 7 million checks daily. The product surface spans Wise Account (Personal), Wise Business (with BatchTransfer, Accept Card Payments, team management, and accounting integrations to Xero and QuickBooks), Wise Platform APIs for banks and enterprises, and the Assets product (Wise Interest via JPMorgan, Wise Stocks via BlackRock's iShares World Equity Index Fund, and Jars).
Wise generates revenue primarily through transaction fees on transfers (as low as 0.1%), currency exchange margins, interest income on customer balances (particularly USD held at JPMorgan Chase), cashback programs funded by deposit interest in New Zealand and the EEA, and managed services revenue from Assets/Stocks. Distribution is largely self-serve via the Wise website and mobile apps (4.8/5 on Google Play from 1.3M reviews, 4.3/5 on Trustpilot from 295K+ reviews), supplemented by Wise Platform API integrations for banks, marketplaces, travel platforms, workforce platforms, education platforms, and spend management companies. Customer segments include individual consumers, SMBs and scale-ups (over 700,000 businesses), banks and financial institutions, and platform partners across 160+ countries.
TransferWise Limited firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- TransferWise Limited
- Legal name
- Wise Payments Limited
- Website
- https://wise.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 5,001–10,000 employees
- Short description
- Wise (formerly TransferWise Limited) provides cross-border money transfers, multi-currency accounts, debit cards, and international business banking to 14.8 million consumers and 700,000+ businesses across 160+ countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
TransferWise Limited industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cross-border Money Transfer Services
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & IBAN Services (FSAMAIAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & FX Management (Consumer/SME) (FSAGAKAF), International / Multi-Currency Wallets (FSAMAEAL), Cross-Border Card-Based Transfers & Multi-Currency Cards (FSAGAKAE), Cross-Border & FX Payments Platforms (BPAMAFAK)
Keywords
Where TransferWise Limited is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices6 records
Markets served
TransferWise Limited business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Money Transfer Fees: Wise charges transparent fees on international money transfers, with fees as low as 0.1%. The fee is shown upfront before transfer completion.
- Currency Exchange Margins: Wise earns revenue through the exchange rate margin - offering rates without markup compared to traditional banks.
- Interest Income (US): Wise passes through interest earned on customer USD balances held at program banks (JPMorgan Chase Bank) to US customers who opt in, while earning income from the bank on those balances.
- Cashback Program: Wise offers cashback on balances held in certain currencies (NZD, AUD, EUR, GBP, USD) in New Zealand and EEA, funded by interest earned on customer deposits.
- Assets Product (Interest and Stocks): Wise offers Interest and Stocks as part of its Assets product, where customers can invest money in funds. Regulated entities (Wise Assets Europe AS, Wise Assets UK LTD, etc.) manage these investments.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Personal Money Transfers - Low transparent fees starting from 0.1% |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Business Account - Multi-currency business account with transparent pricing |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Wise Multi-Currency Card - Free debit card with no foreign transaction fees |
| Usage-based | Monthly | Interest on USD - 3.14% APY for USD balances |
| Usage-based | Monthly | Cashback (New Zealand) - Variable rates by currency |
| Usage-based | Monthly | Cashback (EEA) - Variable rates with 30% withholding tax |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Wise Platform - For banks and enterprises |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
TransferWise Limited product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Wise (TransferWise Limited) operates a digital international money transfer and multi-currency account platform, enabling individuals and businesses to send and receive money across 140+ countries in 40+ currencies, hold balances in 22 currencies with local bank details (SWIFT/BIC, IBAN, sort code), and spend internationally with the Wise Multi-Currency Card across 215 countries and territories. The offering is delivered through a self-serve website and mobile apps, plus the Wise Platform API for banks and enterprises, with transparent fees starting from 0.1% and mid-market exchange rates.
Product overview
Wise operates as a unified platform-plus-modules architecture with three core product lines: Wise Account (Personal) for individual international banking, Wise Business for business banking with team management and accounting integrations, and Wise Platform for banks and enterprises. These are supported by the Wise Multi-Currency Card, global Send/Receive money services, and the Assets product (encompassing Wise Interest, Wise Stocks, and Jars). The Wise Platform enables financial institutions to plug into Wise's network via APIs. Key differentiators include transfers arriving in under 20 seconds, mid-market exchange rates, and multi-currency support across 22 currencies with local bank details.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Wise Account (Personal)
Quantifiable outcome
- 74% of transfers arrive in under 20 seconds
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use TransferWise Limited
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
TransferWise Limited technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability2 records
Feature6 records
TransferWise Limited partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Genial Institucional (Genial)minorPartnership for Brazilian customers using Wise Interest feature. Genial Institucional, part of Genial, is a DTVM authorized by the Brazilian Securities Commission (Comissão de Valores Mobiliários). The partnership allows Wise to offer Interest to Brazilian customers while maintaining regulatory compliance.
- BlackRock (iShares World Equity Index Fund)coreWise offers Stocks as an investment option, investing customer funds in the iShares World Equity Index Fund (ISIN: LU0852473015). This fund tracks global equity markets and is managed by BlackRock. The fund is a UK Reporting Fund.
Scale indicators14 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
TransferWise Limited competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Airwallex: Airwallex provides multi-currency business accounts, international transfers, and borderless card issuing for SMEs and enterprises, directly competing with Wise Business and Wise Platform across overlapping geographies.
- WorldRemit: WorldRemit is a digital remittance platform for cross-border money transfers to mobile wallets, bank accounts, and cash pickup, competing directly with Wise's Send Money product in similar emerging-market corridors.
- OFX: OFX provides international money transfers and multi-currency accounts for individuals and businesses, with a comparable transparent-fee model and a strong focus on larger-value transfers, overlapping significantly with Wise.
- Remitly: Remitly is a digital remittance platform focused on cross-border money transfers from developed markets to emerging-market corridors, directly competing with Wise's Send Money product in many of the same lanes.
- Revolut: Revolut offers multi-currency accounts, international money transfers, and multi-currency debit cards to consumers and businesses globally, directly competing with Wise's core personal and business offerings across overlapping corridors.
Broad incumbents
- PayPal (Xoom): PayPal's Xoom service provides international money transfers and mobile remittances, offering overlapping cross-border capabilities within PayPal's broader digital-payments and merchant-acquiring portfolio.
- MoneyGram: MoneyGram operates a global cross-border P2P payments network via digital and cash-pickup channels, competing with Wise on remittances while offering a broader portfolio of bill-pay and money-order services.
- Western Union: Western Union is the established global money-transfer incumbent with the largest agent network, competing with Wise on international transfers while also offering retail-bill-payment and consumer-services broadly.
- Adyen: Adyen is a global payments platform offering cross-border acquiring and FX settlement for enterprises; while broader than Wise's remit, it competes in cross-border payment infrastructure that overlaps with Wise Platform's enterprise positioning.
Emerging players
- Mercury: Mercury offers US-based business banking with multi-currency support and international payments for startups, competing with Wise Business for US-domiciled, internationally active SMB and scale-up customers.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
TransferWise Limited social profiles
Digital presenceTransferWise Limited compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance11 records
TransferWise Limited financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
TransferWise Limited leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
TransferWise Limited subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries8 records
TransferWise Limited funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds13 records
Investors35 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
TransferWise Limited M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments10 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about TransferWise Limited
What does TransferWise Limited do?
Wise (TransferWise Limited) operates a digital international money transfer and multi-currency account platform, enabling individuals and businesses to send and receive money across 140+ countries in 40+ currencies, hold balances in 22 currencies with local bank details (SWIFT/BIC, IBAN, sort code), and spend internationally with the Wise Multi-Currency Card across 215 countries and territories. The offering is delivered through a self-serve website and mobile apps, plus the Wise Platform API for banks and enterprises, with transparent fees starting from 0.1% and mid-market exchange rates.
Is TransferWise Limited a public or private company?
TransferWise Limited is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was TransferWise Limited founded?
TransferWise Limited was founded in 2011. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.
Where is TransferWise Limited based?
TransferWise Limited is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does TransferWise Limited make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Money Transfer Fees are the primary driver. The others are currency Exchange Margins, interest Income (US), cashback Program and assets Product (Interest and Stocks).
Who are TransferWise Limited's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Airwallex, WorldRemit, OFX, Remitly and Revolut. Broad incumbents are PayPal (Xoom), MoneyGram, Western Union and Adyen. Mercury is listed as an emerging player.
Does TransferWise Limited have an API?
Yes. Wise offers an API for developers and businesses to build integrations. The platform section provides API integrations for business customers, and the Wise Platform is described as a solution 'where banks, financial institutions and enterprises can plug into our network.' Developers can explore API documentation at docs.wise.com and API integrations at /us/business/api. Developer documentation is at docs.wise.com/api-docs.
What industry is TransferWise Limited in?
TransferWise Limited's product category is Cross-border Money Transfer Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAMAIAG, Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & IBAN Services, with a secondary code of FSAGAKAF, Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & FX Management (Consumer/SME). Its NAICS code is 52232 and its SIC code is 6159.