The Wise Business platform offers a range of multi-currency and payment options, physical and virtual card support, and cross-border money transfers which are often at the mid-market rate.
The platform is also used by banking partners like Monzo, and cross-border payment gateways like GoCardless to provide currency conversion. This is also used by enterprise-level clients for multi-currency and treasury management, above the basics that the business account offers.
By offering conversion to these solutions at the mid-market rate, it is often the case that using a Wise Business-powered service will be cheaper as well.
We've covered both areas of the account, depending on the needs of the business.
Multi-currency account offering
The business multi-currency account offering is commonly used by businesses looking to make regular cross-border payments and manage their own currency risk.
Monthly Fee | Exchange rate | Transfer fees | Multi-currency account |
|---|---|---|---|
$0 / £0 | 0% | from 0.33% | 10 local account |
- Offers the mid-market rate on transfers and spending from virtual cards
- Local accounts can be opened in 10 currencies, only Airwallex offers more than this (12) and EUR, USD, GBP balances can earn interest
- For expense management, it is possible to set spending limits on each card and there's also the potential to receive up to 0.5% cash back on some transactions
- Guaranteed rates are offered on batch payments for 2 days, but other currency risk tools, like forward contracts are not available
- For businesses, the platform is largely self-managed. Although, fintechs and API users can access support
Features | Insight |
|---|---|
Batch payments | Up to 1,000 per transaction with guaranteed rates |
Expense management and tracking | Available, although cards are not currently being issued to US businesses |
Pay invoices | Invoices can be paid and synced directly to accounting software |
Receive Payments | Receive payment through both payment links and payment requests, includes a range of different payment methods |
Integrations | Xero, Intuit, FreeAgent, QuickFile, Zoho Books, Odoo, Ember, FreshBooks, Oracle, MicroSoft Dynamics 365, Emma, Moneyhub, Plum, Cheddar |
Supported accounts and currencies
The multi-currency account offering from Wise Business is for local accounts in 10 locations, with the ability to hold in just over 40 more.
To compare, companies like Sokin offer 4 local accounts and Airwallex 12 local accounts.
Local accounts are great for a mix of spending and sending money in local markets. They also greatly reduce the cost of receiving cross-border payments.
Local accounts and Details
Hold and convert
Spending and sending limits
For sending cross-border payments the limits are:
Sending limits | |
|---|---|
Per Day | $50 million |
Per Year | $100 million |
For spending on cross-border payments, the limits are:
Business registered in... | Monthly spend limit | Monthly ATM limit* |
|---|---|---|
UK | 45,000 GBP | 4,000 GBP |
EU | 45,000 EUR | 4,000 EUR |
Japan | 6,000,000 JPY | 530,000 JPY |
Singapore | 78,750 SGD | 7,000 SGD |
Canada | 82,500 CAD | 7,000 CAD |
Australia | 78,750 AUD | 7,000 AUD |
New Zealand | 78,750 NZD | 7,000 NZD |
While the ATM limits are in the thousands, daily limits are low before companies pay higher exchange rates.
Anything over £200 a day in cash withdrawals will result in fees in excess of 1.75%.
Managing expenses
Expense management through Wise Business multi-currency accounts comes in the form of connecting and syncing to accounting platforms.
Businesses can issue cards to individuals or teams to better manage expenses, so no need to input personal expense claims either. These cards can be synced to multi-currency options within the business account itself.
All-in-all, it's convenient and works well, but lacks some of the nuances that Airwallex has, like individual workflows, budgets, or cards by teams or budget reason. An example of this would be creating a card specifically for ad campaigns.
Business account fees
One of the perks of using Wise Business is the transparency in the fees upfront.
For the business account, these are:
Service | Wise |
|---|---|
Domestic Transfers | Free |
International Transfers | From 0.33% |
Currency Conversion Fee | Mid-market rate |
Receiving Fee | Free/local, $6.11 USD wire, $10 CAD SWIFT |
Holding 70+ currencies | Free |
Card Payments | 1.75% ATM over £200/month |
Monthly Fee | None |
Setup Fee | None (in US), €45 in Europe |
Payment Tracking | Included |
Additional Fees | 0.6% annual fee for investments |
ATM use* (up to $100 pm) | Free |
ATM use* (over $100) | 2% + $1.50 |
Wise Business offers batch payment for up to 1,000 recipients at a time.
Exchange rates for these batch payments will be the same as making an individual payment, but can be guaranteed for up to 2 days.
This is not the same as a forward contract.
For the most part, this 2 day period will give you a little time to prepare a payment and ensure funds are in place, but missing it will cause a reset in the conversion rate offered.
Supported integrations
Wise Business is one of the leaders in the market for integrations - and can make withdrawing and using e-commerce marketplaces in particular, cheaper than going directly into a bank account.
Xero
QuickBooks
FreeAgent
QuickFile
Zoho Books
Odoo
Ember
FreshBooks
Oracle
MicroSoft Dynamics 365
Emma
Moneyhub
Plum
Cheddar
Signing up for a Wise Business account
Set Up Your Wise Business Account
Start by visiting the Wise website or using the app to open a business account.
Enter your business details.
If you already have a personal Wise account, you can link it to your new business account for easier management.
Verify Your Business
Complete the verification process by submitting necessary documents like your business registration and proof of identity.
Wise ensures your account’s security through HTTPS encryption and two-factor authentication.
Connect with Your Business Tools
Integrate your Wise account with your existing business tools, such as accounting software like Xero, using Wise's open API.
This will allow you to automate payments and sync transactions, simplifying your financial processes.
Add Team Members
Finally, add team members to your account. You can assign different permission levels to manage tasks like payments and payroll securely.
Now you should have a Wise Business account fully functional and running.
Using Wise API and platform to power your platform
The Wise API and platform work slightly differently in that businesses can use this to provide services to customers, or enhance and customize multi-currency solutions within their own operations.
There are some key features associated here, but the top-level news is the API and platform can be configured to suit the global payment needs of banks (providing services) and fintechs (using services).
In some cases, there are out-of-the-box solutions on offer.
Key features of using the API and platform
62% of payments are instant and received in under 20 seconds
94% of payments are received within 24 hours
The account has 65 banking licenses, 90 banking partners and 5 direct connections to payment systems
Treasury management allows for currency balances in 40 currencies that can be converted at the mid-market rate
Issue and manage cards for users and customers, with both physical and virtual cards provided
The platform is also part of a collaboration with SWIFT, with a view of making bank transfers simpler overall, as opposed to just through money transfer apps.
While in the very early days of inception, it does potentially pave the way to integrate cross-border solutions with traditional banking methods.
Cooperation such as this will be vital in our collective efforts to achieve the G20 targets for cross-border payments and enable the seamless, efficient and secure movement of value around a fragmented world.Thierry Chilosi, Chief Strategy Officer at Swift
Features
The features within the Wise Platform and API offering include:
Providing services through the Wise Platform
Guide Name | Description |
|---|---|
KYC options | There are a few options for KYC with the Wise Platforms, ranging from using Wise KYC methods, to integrating into your own. |
Receiving funds | Options can be set up for customers to receive funds from abroad, similar to how Go Cardless or Monzo might operate. |
Open banking | A collection of RESTful APIs that enable Third Party Providers (TPPs) to access account information, initiate payments and confirm availability of funds on behalf of Wise customers. |
Using the API platform for internal management of services
Guide Name | Description |
|---|---|
Make cross-border payments | Managing cross-border money transfers via Wise. |
Batch payments | Sending multiple payments in one batch efficiently. |
Multi-currency accounts | Integrating Wise’s multi-currency accounts for holding and converting currencies. |
Payout | Automating payouts to recipients globally. |
Cards | Issuing and managing payment cards through Wise. |
Currency conversion | Accessing real-time currency conversion services. |
Service
Support from account management
Account management is available for enterprise-level clients.
The nature of this support will differ based on the account and when enquiring to use the Wise Platform, all support will be agreed.
API documentation and tickets
As with most companies, Wise offers technical support in the form of tickets and API documentation.
Regulation
Wise is regulated across Australia, EEA & Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, the UK and the US.
Here's a table summarising Wise's regulations along with their entity names.
Country/Region | Entity Name | Regulatory Authority/Details |
|---|---|---|
Australia | Wise Australia Pty Ltd. | Regulated by ASIC, holds an AFSL (license number 513764) and APRA PPF license as ADI. Reporting entity with AUSTRAC. |
Belgium and EEA | Wise Europe SA | Authorised by the National Bank of Belgium, registered number 0713629988. |
Belgium and EEA | TINV EUROPE AS | Authorized by the Estonian Financial Supervision Authority, activity license number 4.1-1/174. |
Brazil | Wise Brasil Corretora de Câmbio Ltda. | Exchange brokerage firm authorized by the Central Bank of Brazil, CNPJ 36.588.217/0001-01. |
Brazil | Wise Brasil Instituição de Pagamento Ltda. | Payment institution, the issuer of electronic money, registered CNPJ/MF No. 40.571.694/0001-31, currently in authorization process with the Central Bank of Brazil. |
Canada | Wise Payments Canada Inc. | Registered with FINTRAC as MSB, registration number M15193392. MSB license with Revenu Québec, license number 902804. |
Hong Kong | Wise Payments Limited | Regulated by the CCE of Hong Kong as an MSO, license number 15-01-01584. |
India | Wise Payments Limited | Approved by the RBI for outward remittances under RBI guidelines, FED Master Direction No. 19 2015/2016. |
Indonesia | PT Wise Payments Indonesia | Licensed by Bank Indonesia as a Fund Transfer Operator, license number 21/304/DKI/B/14-001. |
Israel | Wise ILS Ltd. | Authorized by the Capital Market Insurance and Savings Authority, license number 62727. |
Japan | Wise Payments Japan K.K. | Regulated by the Kanto Local Financial Bureau, registration number 00040, licensed as a Funds Transfer Service Provider. |
Malaysia | Wise Payments Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. | Regulated by Bank Negara Malaysia as a licensed remittance, money-changing, and e-money issuance business. |
New Zealand | Wise Payments Ltd. | Operates as a foreign entity, supervised by the DIA for anti-money laundering. |
The Philippines | Wise Pilipinas Inc. | Licensed by BSP as a Remittance and Transfer Company with a Type “C” EMI/MC/FXD, institution code 53-0044-00-000. |
Singapore | Wise Asia-Pacific Pte. Ltd. | Licensed by MAS as a Major Payment Institution under PSA 2019 and has a Capital Market Services Licence under the Securities and Futures Act 2001. |
United Kingdom | Wise Payments Limited | Authorised as an EMI by the FCA, registration number 900507. |
United Kingdom | TINV Limited | Authorised by the FCA to carry out investment activities, registration number 839689. |
United States | Wise US Inc. | Registered with FinCEN, licensed as a money transmitter in several states, supervised by respective state authorities. Other services offered through Community Federal Savings Bank. |
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