Wise sees revenue soar in 2021

Newly listed fintech powerhouse Wise, formerly Transferwise, has recorded a 43 per cent uplift in revenues for the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter in 2020, according to a trading update from the firm. 

Revenues hit £123.5m, representing growth compared to £86.3m in Q1 of 2020 driven by soaring volumes and 9 per cent growth in businesses using the its platform.

Volumes grew by 54 per cent year-on-year to £16.4bn, faster than its growth in customers. This was mainly driven by the average volume per customer, which was significantly lower (19 per cent), in the first quarter of last year due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on customer demand for international payments.

During 2021, Wise launched in India, one of the largest global markets for money transfers, allowing Indian residents to send money to 40+ countries.

It also announced partnerships with Google Pay, Shinhan Bank, Temenos and Thought Machine over the period. 

“Wise’s mission is to make moving and managing money across borders faster, easier, cheaper and more transparent for everyone, everywhere, said Kristo Käärmann (pictured) co-founder & CEO of Wise.

“We were pleased that in the first quarter of this financial year we were able to reduce pricing by 2bps to 0.67%, dropping prices for 19 currencies while also delivering 38 per cent of all transfers instantly, he added. 

Wise listed on the London market in an £8bn direct listing in July 2021. Since 2017, the business has been profitable but it has also taken on fresh capital in May 2021, with a £160m line of credit from Silicon Valley Bank.