Well, don’t we all fancy a free life with no borders?
With our professional language support, at AVALON we’re doing our part to contribute.
But what about money? Money makes the world go round, however, isn’t the traditional banking system a huge and costly obstacle in the way?

We know a smart solution: Wise.

 

What is Wise?
Launched in 2011 as then TransferWise, London-based Wise is a global FinTech company that has set out to build the best way to move money around the world, making international transfers easier, faster, and less expensive.  

Their mission is Money without Borders – instant, convenient, transparent and eventually free. It means powering money for people and businesses in their increasingly global lives – to pay, to get paid, to spend, in any currency, wherever you are, whatever you’re doing.

Wise has created its own payment network instead of relying on the outdated SWIFT system in order to cut out the inefficiencies and excessive costs traditionally involved in sending international payments. It’s a peer-to-peer (P2P) service in which the process is seamless and is completed almost instantly. Thus, Wise has outsmarted the international payment remittance industry and today is one of the biggest international money transfer providers in the world.

More than 13 million people and businesses, from individuals using the service occasionally to make small payments, to enterprise level customers moving millions a month, have already stopped using banks, PayPal and traditional providers, because Wise is cheaper, faster and easier. Huge companies and banks use the Wise technology too, an entirely new cross-border payment network that will one day power money truly without borders for everyone, everywhere.

Each month, London-based Wise processes more than £8 billion (nearly $9.7 billion USD) worth of international transactions, saving customers over £1bn a year compared to using old-school banks.
Because of its revolutionary approach to pricing, Wise is often one of the cheapest (if not the cheapest) provider on the market.

These days, Wise has three main focus areas. Let’s have a quick look at them:

Wise Money Transfer

• Wise customers can send money to over 160 countries around the world. Payments can be made online and in the Wise app, and are deposited right into the recipient’s bank account. That means that – unlike some providers – your recipient won’t need to create their own Wise account to get their money.
• Because Wise uses its own payment network the costs are significantly lower compared with the traditional methods of moving money across borders preferred by banks. These savings are passed on to customers in the form of low fees – and because Wise cuts out the middlemen usually involved with international transfers, your money could arrive faster, too.
• This service is great for anyone who needs to send money abroad. Whether you’re sending a one-off payment as a gift to someone overseas, or making regular transfers to cover an international mortgage or support family members around the world, you could save with Wise money transfers.

Wise Multi-currency Account and Card

• If you love to travel or shop online with international retailers – or if you need to receive or send regular international transfers – a Wise multi-currency account could make it easier and cheaper to manage your money across borders.
• Open your Wise account easily online or in the Wise app to hold and exchange over 40 currencies all in the same account. You can see all your balances at a glance, send money to over 160 countries, and personal customers can also get a linked international debit card to spend and withdraw all over the world.
• This service is great for anyone who lives, works or studies abroad, people who travel frequently, or who have international income or outgoings. Maybe you get paid as a freelancer from international clients, or you have a vacation home and need to cover your costs abroad – check out the Wise multi-currency account to see how easy it is to hold, convert, send and spend in a broad range of foreign currencies.

Wise Business Account

• Wise Business customers can make international transfers and open a business multi-currency account. They benefit from many of the perks individual Wise customers do – and get a great range of business-friendly features too:
  • Make international payments 6x cheaper than high-street banks, and 19x cheaper than with PayPal
  • Get paid using local account details in 10 currencies, and withdraw money from Amazon, Stripe and other PSPs and marketplace platforms
  • Add team members and manage user permissions
  • Make batch payments – pay up to 1,000 people in a range of currencies, by uploading a single file
  • No monthly fee and no minimum balance
  • Compatible with cloud-based accounting services like Xero and Quickbooks for easy reconciliation
  • API to automate workflow
• This service is great for all businesses which have customers, suppliers or employees abroad. Check out Wise Business whether you’re looking to start up or scale up, working freelance or employing others, or already operating at corporate or enterprise level.

 Be without borders!