By
Godfrey Benjamin
September 1st, 2023
The deal will let Monzo users send money from their current account to 16 of the most popular currencies, with some more added in the future.
Monzo, the UK-based challenger bank, has partnered with a financial technology startup TransferWise. As a result of the partnership, Monzo customers will be able to transfer in 16 currencies using the Monzo app, which will be powered by TransferWise.
Sending money abroad, in 16 different currencies, now straight from your @Monzo app, powered by us. https://t.co/gnX3vZg9HW pic.twitter.com/KwIaCKMHf7
— Wise (@Wise) June 25, 2018
Currently, users having a Monzo account are able to make payments overseas in such currencies as Euro, US Dollar, Indian Rupee, Swedish Krona, and others. More currencies will be added in the near future.
TransferWise charges a small fee for each overseas payment you make, of which a small share goes to Monzo. This will always be shown transparently before you send any money and it’ll never cost you more money because you’re going through Monzo, according to the Monzo blog.
TransferWise CEO and co-founder Kristo Käärmann is very excited about the deal. He said:
“Monzo shares our passion for bringing fairness and transparency to the banking sector, so giving their customers access to international payments through our API is a perfect fit. Monzo is our first UK bank partnership to go live, and joins a suite of European partners dedicated to offering their customers a better service, including French bank BPCE and Germany’s N26.”
He further added:
“Together, we’re setting new standards for retail banking, creating smart, low cost services that truly meet the hopes of the modern consumer.”
❤️❤️❤️ https://t.co/o37UGA4FA0
— Monzo (@monzo) June 25, 2018
The service is first being rolled out to a group of Monzo’s 750,000 customers, and the rest over a five week period.
Monzo customers, who don’t have an existing TransferWise account, will have an account automatically created for them when they first initiate an international money transfer. If they already have a TransferWise account, they can use their existing details to authenticate with and link their account to Monzo, which means that any international money transfers made from within Monzo will also show up in your TransferWise account and the TransferWise app.
Tom Blomfield, Monzo CEO, said:
“We’ve been eager to bring international payments to Monzo customers for a while. Thousands of our customers have friends and family living abroad, and they shouldn’t have to pay over the odds to send them money. Both TransferWise and Monzo are committed to building fair, transparent and easy to use products. TransferWise has disrupted international payments,and we’re so pleased our customers will now have access to fast, low cost and convenient international transfers, straight from the Monzo app.”
Monzo is the UK-based startup founded in 2015. Since its foundation, the company has received hefty investment. In November of 2017 it hit a valuation of £280m after landing a huge additional £71m from investors including Goodwater Capital and Stripe. The company now employs more than 300 people across offices in London, Cardiff, and remotely around the world.
TransferWise is one of the largest and well-funded fintech companies in Europe. It is supported by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, and PayPal founder Max Levchin. Launched in 2011, TransferWise aims to make it easier for businesses and customers to conduct cross-border payments. The company makes over £2 billion in money transfers every month in 47 currencies alongside having three million customers.
