Wise has released its Q2 for FY22 results (which we’ll refer to as Q3 2021 in calendar time), the second quarter since it went public on the London Stock Exchange. And as with the previous quarter, the company is continuing to see growth across both its business and consumer segments.

Wise saw revenue increase 25% year-on-year to £132.8m in Q3 2021, while volume grew by 36% to £18bn – not quite as significant growth as Q2’s 43% revenue and 54% volume increases, although still strong, particularly as Q2 was comparing to the worst point in the pandemic.

The company’s business segment, which is at present relatively small, saw particularly strong growth, with volume climbing 61% and revenue increasing by 56%. Volume per customer among business users is also the highest it has ever been, surpassing the previous record set in Q3 2019 when the number of active customers was less than half the current amount. Consumer, meanwhile, continued its run of growth, with a 30% volume and 19% revenue increase.

Wise attributed these successes to lower costs, with the average take rate dropping from 0.8% to 0.74% year on year – an improvement that the company says is benefitting around 40% of its customers. Unlike last quarter, it also reported an increase in the number of instant transfers, which has risen from 38% to 40%. 

Developing new markets continued to be key to Wise’s growth, with the company adding payments via UPI in India – a market it only recently launched in – which will make sending to the country instant. There are also signs of a willingness to look beyond money transfers to grow revenue, with the launch of Assets in the UK that allows customers to invest their money in the MSCI World Index. Wise has also hinted that it may expand this offering elsewhere.

The company looks to be in a strong position for the future, and delivered results in line with expectations, however this wasn’t enough to stop the share price falling following the results. There is growing concern that Wise may be losing its competitive edge as other players step up their innovation (or copy Wise). There is also an open question as to how much Wise can become a rails platform for other banks and fintechs or is the competition for this too tough (see the recent EBA Clearing House SWIFT announcement for example).

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Lucy Ingham

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Lucy is Head of Content & Editor-in-Chief at FXC Intelligence, overseeing all content and taking deep dives into the trends and data driving changes in payments. Before joining FXC Intelligence, Lucy worked as a technology journalist and editor, interviewing CEOs and major names across enterprise technology, including fintech. She has an MSc in Development Anthropology from Durham University.