Money transfer service Wise and payments processing company Plaid have formed an open finance agreement to help customers move money across different financial institutions (FIs).
“FinTech has become so critical to daily life that most U.S. consumers (69%) would consider switching institutions if their primary account could not connect to their favorite fintech apps and services,” the companies said in a press release Wednesday (Aug. 10), citing a 2021 survey by Plaid and The Harris Poll. “To meet this growing demand, Wise and Plaid have partnered to serve millions of consumers the secure data access they need to live healthy financial lives.”
The integration is based on Plaid’s open finance solution Core Exchange and gives Wise’s 13 million customers the ability to move money conveniently and securely across their own accounts, according to the release.
Customers connect their Wise USD local account details in their app of choice and use Wise with one of several Plaid-powered apps and services. The Core Exchange integration is live for Wise customers, with customers using it to send funds to payroll companies, connect to neobanks, and pay credit card bills and taxes, the release stated.
“By working with Plaid, we’re giving customers the ability to connect their accounts to the apps and services they know and love in the U.S. instantly and without hidden fees,” said Wise Senior Director of Global Expansion Sharon Ann Kean in the release. “As we build money without borders, our customers will continue to see deeper integrations in the market to ensure the Wise account meets the local functionality needed for American consumers.”
PYMNTS spoke to Kean in April about Wise’s cross-border payments work. To make those payments happen, the company holds its own accounts in each country where it operates, in some cases with partner FIs.
Read more: Wise on Powering Instant Transfers in a Non-Instant World
“Up to 40% of our payments are actually instant,” Kean said. “So, if you send money from the U.K. to Australia, or from the U.S. to Europe, often it’s instant.”
See also: Wise’s Revenues Rise as Customers up Money Transfers
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