TransferWise rebrands as Wise ahead of rumoured IPO
By Sunniva Kolostyak
TransferWise has announced that starting today, 22 February, it is changing its name to Wise. The rebrand follows reports that the FinTech has appointed banks to lead its rumoured initial public offering (IPO) this year.
TransferWise, or Wise, is one of the UK and Europe’s biggest FinTechs – it reached a $5 billion valuation last summer, and its stock market float is expected to be among the most prestigious.
According to Sky News, Wise has selected Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley as joint global coordinators, but beyond taking place in London this year, timing and venue have yet to be revealed.
The name change, on the other hand, comes a decade into its money transfer journey – and signifies the company’s intentions to expand beyond international transfers.
“Sending, spending, receiving, and holding money internationally doesn’t work like it should, because the international banking system was built for the past,” Kristo Käärmann, Co-founder CEO of Wise, said.
“For generations, banks have been defined by borders. Traditional bank accounts trap our money in one country, making international lives more difficult and expensive than they need to be. We shouldn’t have to accept this status quo,” he said. “Today, we don’t. We’ll fix it with Wise — the world’s most international account.
Currently, TransferWise offers its 10 million users instant and cheap money transfers, a debit card to spend in any currency, account details to get paid in 30+ countries, balances to hold money safely in 50+ different currencies and multi-currency direct debits.
The tool has replaced banking for a lot of its customers, Käärmann noted, pushing more than a dozen banks to use Wise’s infrastructure. Addressing Wise’s users, he said: “You’ve told us for years the problem is bigger than money transfers. Any time money moves into another currency, it’s still a maze of hidden exchange rate markups, high fees, delays, and small print.”
The FinTech assured that not much will change for the customers to begin with. Its website will redirect from transferwise.com to wise.com and its logos will change, but the experience will continue to be centred around faster, cheaper and more convenient offerings.
“We’re still making — and always will be making — money work without borders,” Käärmann said. “Onwards.”
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