Is Wise Safe?Long gone are the days when we had to wait and wait and wait for money we transfer somewhere else to arrive at the appointed destination across the globe.Whether transferring money to family members in another country or wiring funds to a corporate branch on the other side of the world, there was a time when it seemed to take forever for those funds to land. First, there was paperwork to handle at the local bank. Then the money was received and authorized at a bank at the other end. And if something went wrong, a glitch in that paperwork? Good heavens!It could take a long time to sort out the snafus. In the meantime, the recipient waited, sometimes for an extraordinarily long time, which made doing business inconvenient at best or impossible at worst. Thankfully, those dark days of slow money transfers are long behind us.In this article, we take a look at a hugely popular money transfer company now called Wise, originally called Transfer Wise. Wise moves more than 100 billion (USD) annually from place to place in dozens of countries around the world. If clients trust this high-tech firm with that much money, it must be doing something right!Here, we offer a bit of background on Wise and suggest reasons that you, too, should consider using it to send money to other places. Whether you’re just sending some funds to a strapped family member back home or you need to put regular monthly transactions in place when opening a new branch of your company, Wise is the money-moving company you can count on.
First, a Little Background…
Wise was founded in 2011, meaning it’s been in the funds-transferring business for well over a decade. The company is based in London, in the U.K.The company’s mission back then, and it remains committed to it today, is to reduce or eliminate the hidden fees banks traditionally charge customers transferring money. The company’s co-founder, Kristo Kaarmann, wrote on the firm’s blog in February 2022, “Sending, spending and receiving money internationally is too expensive, slow and inconvenient. We’re fixing that for people and businesses.”And indeed, Wise is fulfilling that goal and branching out. It has made the entire process of shifting resources from A to B – which, in a nutshell, is what money transfers do – easier and faster for clients, though not always less expensive than its competitors. Nonetheless, the slightly higher fees have not proven to be a barrier for many people and businesses. The fast transfers are the goal, and Wise can’t be beaten on that score.
- How Does Wise Work, and Why Should You Consider Using It?
1- What Wise Doesn’t Do?
One of the best features Wise offers customers is something it doesn’t do: it doesn’t jack up exchange rates as a way of increasing its own profit margins. That, unfortunately, is frequently a common practice at traditional banks. And so, while the fees for transfers may be somewhat higher at Wise than at some of its competitors, Wise never inflates exchange rates to maximize its own financial health. You’ll know exactly what you have to pay for each and every transaction.
2- Wise Services Are Fast
According to company literature, Wise transfers arrive at their destinations within seconds, a few hours, or at most five days, maximum. It depends, in part, on the type of currency you’re sending and the country to which you’re sending it.A recent article about Wise in forbes.com examined how quickly Wise transfers of American funds got to specific sample destinations from the U.S.The magazine discovered the following: funds to India took anywhere from a few seconds to one day to arrive. Funds being sent to Greece took one or two days to arrive. Money headed to Mexico took only two hours to arrive at its destination. And funds sent to Thailand took just eight hours to arrive. Those figures are impressive.
3- The Wise Website Is Quite Easy To Navigate
Naturally, there are a lot of figures and currency stats on the site, which can seem a little overwhelming if you’re not a whiz with numbers. However, overall it’s a breeze to use, and setting up an account takes very little time.Wise has promised never to sell its customers’ data – an important promise by a company that collects everything from your home address to some financial information. The site uses a two-step identification process to help ensure your personal information is safe.
4- Wise Has Plenty Of Payment Options
Once you’ve set up a Wise account to handle money transfers, there are several payment options to choose from. If you’re sending funds from America, you can use a bank account wire transfer, credit card, debit card, Google Pay or Apple Pay. You can also use the international financial system known as SWIFT, which stands for the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications.Limits on how much money you can transfer via Wise depend on several factors. Are you sending money to a branch of your company in another country using the SWIFT network? If so, you can transfer well over a million dollars per transaction.If you’re sending money to another bank just across town with a debit transaction, you can send up to $15,000 (USD) each day. How much you can transfer depends on the destination, the type of currency you’re sending, and the payment method you’re using.
- Customer Support Needs Improving
Unfortunately, according to Forbes advisor, help is not always immediately available on the Wise helpline, and that’s a nuisance when you’re having a problem that’s time sensitive and needs to be addressed right away. Still, Wise doesn’t use automated voice mails (don’t those drives you crazy?) and instead has support workers who can speak with customers in more than a dozen different languages. If the access issue is sorted out soon, Wise customer satisfaction rates will no doubt skyrocket.
Are There Any Drawbacks To Using Wise?
One drawback in particular that we found mentioned during our research is that you can’t send cash to someone’s home or business ( Money can only be transferred to bank accounts or mobile wallets ). And while that may be a shortcoming to some customers, we honestly don’t see how it presents too big an inconvenience.More than 13 million people use Wise to transfer money regularly all over the globe. The company continues to grow and expand every month – for example, it now has approximately 2.3 million ATMs around the world linked to a Wise debit card. That makes using your Wise account – just about anywhere in the world – incredibly easy, fast and secure.Here’s an example of just how low Wise fees are. We found this comparison cited on the company’s website and thought it speaks volumes about the savings you’ll enjoy once you set up a Wise account of your own.Let’s say you want to send $500 (USD) to a country in Europe. If you do the transaction through the Bank of America, it will cost you approximately $12.74. If you let PayPal handle it, the transaction will cost you a whopping $29.66 (USD). But if you have a Wise account and use your debit card, the deal costs just $3.96 (USD). Those are real savings, and in this day and age, these inflationary times, saving money in areas like this adds up to more dollars in the bank.
Final Thoughts
We know you’re worried about spending more money right now on everything from gasoline to groceries. So why spend more needlessly when you’re sending money to a family member who lives in another country? Why not save as much as you can, whether you do these money transfers regularly or it’s just once as a present to a niece or nephew going to school abroad?Wisegets the funds there quickly, securely and doesn’t overcharge you in the process. Instead of passing hidden fees onto its customers, Wise does everything possible to save you money. So the next time you want to send money overseas, stop and think: who will do this transfer for me quickly and save me money? The answer is always – Wise will!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
You have Successfully Subscribed!
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.