Fintech platform Wise has reported a 20% increase in customer numbers over the past year, bolstered by strategic partnerships with leading financial institutions. In its latest quarterly trading update, the money transfer company disclosed that cross-border volumes had leapt by 24%, or 27% on a constant currency basis, reaching £37.8bn.
Additionally, Wise account balances saw a 26% growth to £16.2bn, while the broader uptake of the firm's accounts contributed to a 39% rise in card and other revenue, as reported by .
Wise anticipates an underlying income growth of 15-20% for the full financial year on a constant currency basis, although it expects reported growth to be at the lower end of this range due to foreign exchange headwinds.
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"This quarter saw us take another step closer to achieving our mission, most notably through extending the availability of Wise to even more customers," commented Kristo Käärmann, co-founder and CEO of Wise.
During the quarter, Wise expanded its services in Brazil, initially from individual customers to now also encompass micro-businesses, as it aims to integrate with Brazil's payment system, PIX.
Furthermore, last month, Wise announced a significant agreement to manage foreign exchange payments for Morgan Stanley’s corporate clients, marking Morgan Stanley as the first major investment bank to offer "high speed cross border" payments via Wise's platform.
The agreement marked an effort by the fintech to secure more prominent financial clients, in addition to its conventional money transfer service, which enables individuals and businesses to transmit money internationally.
According to Käärmann, "Additionally, we announced that Wise will soon power faster and cheaper international payments for Standard Chartered’s cross-border payment service, SC Remit," "Given their scale, entering into relationships with such leading global institutions represents important milestones in our journey as we move closer towards achieving money without borders."