The End of Expensive Borders
Once upon a time, moving money across countries was a privilege.
Banks owned the rails, dictated the rates, and quietly pocketed profits through hidden fees.
Then Wise came along and changed everything.
It didn’t promise a revolution — it delivered one.
By removing secrecy and middlemen, Wise made global finance what it should have been all along: open, fair, and fast.
1. From Two Frustrated Expats to a Global Fintech Leader
In 2011, Taavet Hinrikus and Kristo Käärmann, two Estonians working in London, were losing hundreds every month just to move their money between currencies.
They built a simple workaround:
- Taavet paid Kristo’s rent in pounds.
- Kristo sent euros to Taavet’s Estonian account.
No wire transfers. No inflated exchange rates. No nonsense.
That practical fix became Wise, a company that turned frustration into a new financial architecture — one where money doesn’t need borders.
2. The System That Replaced SWIFT
Traditional banks send funds via SWIFT, a 50-year-old messaging system that passes money through multiple banks, each taking its cut.
Wise built something smarter: a global web of local accounts.
When you send money:
- You deposit into Wise’s local account in your country.
- Wise pays your recipient from its account in theirs.
- No international wires, no middlemen, no delay.
It’s the same value transfer — just redesigned for the internet age.
3. Transparency as a Product
Wise doesn’t hide behind vague “exchange rates.” It shows you everything.
Every transfer includes:
- The real mid-market rate, no markup.
- The exact fee, shown upfront.
- The arrival time, tracked in real time.
While banks earn by obscuring costs, Wise earns by revealing them.
That honesty became its most powerful currency.
4. The Wise Account: Your Money, Everywhere
The Wise Account turns complex global finance into something simple and human.
You can:
- Hold 40+ currencies.
- Get local bank details in 10+ countries.
- Spend globally with a Wise debit card.
- Transfer instantly to over 170 countries.
Whether you’re a freelancer, digital nomad, or business owner — Wise makes the world your wallet.
5. Wise for Business: The Backbone of Global Commerce
Companies that hire, sell, or pay internationally rely on Wise to make global work seamless.
Wise Business enables them to:
- Pay remote teams instantly.
- Manage multi-currency accounts.
- Integrate payments with QuickBooks, Xero, and NetSuite.
- Automate large payouts via API.
Wise has become the global payroll and payment engine for modern business.
6. Wise Platform: The Hidden Infrastructure of Global Finance
Most users don’t realize they’ve already used Wise.
Through Wise Platform, banks and fintechs integrate its technology directly into their own systems.
It powers global payments for:
- Google Pay
- Monzo
- N26
- GoCardless
- Deel
That makes Wise not just a company — but the network beneath the next generation of finance.
7. Regulated, Reliable, and Resilient
Wise operates under some of the world’s strictest financial regulators, including:
- FCA (UK)
- FinCEN (US)
- MAS (Singapore)
- ASIC (Australia)
- National Bank of Belgium (EU)
Customer funds are safeguarded in segregated accounts, completely separate from Wise’s own operations.
End-to-end encryption, multi-factor authentication, and real-time fraud monitoring ensure every transaction is secure.
Wise didn’t win trust through slogans — it earned it through structure.
8. Wise in Numbers
- 16+ million customers worldwide
- $10+ billion transferred each month
- 170+ countries supported
- 40+ currencies available
- Publicly listed (WISE.L) on the London Stock Exchange
- Profitable since 2017
It’s rare for fintechs to be both global and profitable. Wise did both — by building a system that scales on fairness.
9. The Wise Effect on Global Finance
Before Wise, “sending money abroad” meant high fees and days of waiting.
After Wise, it meant instant, affordable, and transparent transfers.
Its model pushed competitors like PayPal, Western Union, and Revolut to adapt.
Transparency went from novelty to necessity — because Wise made it non-negotiable.
10. The People Behind the Transfers
Wise isn’t just code. It’s connection.
Each transfer represents:
- A nurse sending money home.
- A freelancer getting paid from another continent.
- A small business scaling internationally.
Wise doesn’t just move money — it moves lives, ambitions, and trust.
11. The Mission That Drives Everything
Wise’s vision hasn’t changed since day one:
“Money without borders — instant, convenient, transparent, and eventually free.”
More than 55% of Wise transfers now arrive instantly.
The company continues connecting directly to national payment systems to make that dream universal.