Wise plc

For H1 FY26, Wise reported active customers above 13 million, cross-border volume of GBP 85 billion, customer holdings above GBP 25 billion, and underlying income of GBP 750 million, up 16%. Personal customers grew 18% to 12.8 million and business customers grew 17% to 613,000. Cross-border take rate fell 10 bps year on year to 52 bps, while cross-border revenue increased 5% year on year. Card spend exceeded GBP 15 billion and generated GBP 132 million in revenue, up 28% year on year. Operating investments rose, including servicing spend of GBP 134 million, marketing and sales spend of GBP 57 million, tech and development spend of GBP 144 million, and corporate function and infrastructure spend of GBP 131 million. Wise said profit before tax was GBP 255 million including additional interest income beyond the first 1% yield, and it reiterated full-year 2026 guidance for underlying income growth of 15% to 20% constant currency and underlying PBT around 16%, excluding a one-off dual-listing expense of about GBP 25 million to GBP 35 million.

Kristo Kaarmann emphasized that Wise is using lower prices, better infrastructure, and product expansion to deepen customer trust and increase usage. He highlighted that 70% of customers discover Wise through friends and family, that the company is adding larger use cases, and that customers now hold over GBP 25 billion with Wise. His tone was confident and deliberate, stressing that pricing cuts and reinvestment are part of building a wider economic moat, not a short-term tactic.

Emmanuel Thomassin focused on the combination of growth and disciplined reinvestment. He cited 21% annual customer growth over the last two years, 24% volume growth to GBP 85 billion, underlying income of GBP 750 million, and customer holdings above GBP 25 billion growing 34% annually. He also detailed higher investment spend across servicing, marketing, tech, and corporate functions, and said Wise is still targeting the top of its 13% to 16% underlying PBT margin range while excluding the dual-listing expense from guidance. On capital allocation, he said Wise repurchased half of the 25 million shares placed into the Employee Benefit Trust and described the balance sheet and cash generation framework as disciplined and resilient.

Analysts pressed management on platform momentum, stablecoins, pricing elasticity, margin math, hiring, and the impact of direct integrations. Wise said platform volumes are being driven by both new partners and ramping volumes from earlier integrations, with the segment now a little above 5% of volume and on track for 10% medium term. On stablecoins, Kristo said Wise would be well positioned through its regulated on- and off-ramps and local connectivity, but that it would be deliberate about use cases rather than betting on any one payment method. Management also said the pricing cuts produced an immediate customer and volume response, and that the lower take rate is mainly driven by Wise setting fees lower, with some secondary mix shift effects.