Inside the rise of $5 billion money transfer fintech Wise, which has been profitable for years and is exploring an IPO

• Wise, one of Europe’s earliest and most successful fintech firms, is exploring an IPO in 2021.
• Formerly known as TransferWise, the firm started out with cheap money transfers and is now worth $5 billion.
• Insider spoke to the company’s CEO, CFO, early investors, and analysts to chart its rise.

Wise, the $5 billion fintech success story, started life as TransferWise in London 2011.

The premise was simple: Major banks made a killing in fees and FX rates when people transferred money from one currency to another, and this startup wanted to change that.

Like most entrepreneurs, Wise founders Taavet Hinrikus and Kristo Kaarmann experienced the problem they sought to solve.