As it preps for a potential
"We're building out apps to serve hundreds of millions of customers, we have been able to support banks that are switching correspondent banks to the Wise platform, so we're just getting started," Wise Co-founder and CEO Kristo Käärmann said Thursday during Wise's earnings call with analysts.
For the quarter ending June 30, Wise posted underlying income, or profits, of 362 million pounds, or $485 million, up 11% over the prior year. That was less than the 372 million pounds, or $499 million, projected by Bloomberg analysts. Wise's payment volume was $55 billion, up 24% over the prior year. Wise affirmed its full year outlook of 20% growth in income.
Wise's path
Wise, which was founded in 2011 and changed its name from TransferWise ahead of its
The fruits of these connections and technology will not be immediately apparent, the company cautioned analysts on Thursday.
"The investment horizon is in years, so things we released today will not show up in the next quarter, but will show up in the next decade," Käärmann said.
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Analysts attributed the quarter's earnings miss to international currency volatility. Though they did not mention
Wise in its most recent earnings call said it is prepared to manage a trade war, and it did not address the tariffs during Thursday's earnings call. In a research note, analysts at Jeffries said Wise's earnings miss was driven by "higher FX headwinds."
But they also said Wise's stock decline on Thursday was partly driven by a boost in Wise's stock the prior week after signing UniCredit as a client.
New York listing
Wise did not release a time frame for a New York listing, which would require shareholder approval, and did not comment on a U.S. IPO during Thursday's earnings call.
The company earlier this year said a primary U.S. listing would help it accelerate the company's expansion and would bring capital market benefits to Wise. It also noted the U.S. is the "biggest opportunity in the world for its products and would enable better access to the world's most liquid capital markets."
In Wise's earnings press release, the company said "Last month we also announced our proposal to dual list our shares in the U.S. and the U.K., with the strategic and capital market benefits positively received by owners. We believe the addition of a primary U.S. listing will help us accelerate our journey to becoming 'the' network for the world's money, and ensure our mission and the interests of our customers and Owners remain deeply aligned over the long term."
Analysts also asked Wise about its plans for stablecoins. Payment and bank executives this week have weighed in on plans to issue or support stablecoins in anticipation of the passage of the GENIUS Act in the U.S., which is expected to cause a
"Every time there is a crypto or stablecoin question, our opinion hasn't changed. If we see something that enables the movement of funds faster, cheaper and more confidently we will consider it. But we have nothing more to report," Käärmann said.
