Wise (LSE:WISE) has reported second-quarter net revenue of $739.1m for the three months to 30 September, up 21% year-on-year, and told investors it now expects full-year revenue growth to land in the upper half of its 15-20% medium-term target range on a constant-currency basis.
The payments group, which operates cross-border money transfers and multi-currency accounts, said cross-border volume rose 22% to $71.7bn in the quarter, with active customers up 20% to 12.5m. Customer holdings climbed 28% to $43.5bn, while card spending rose to $14.3bn, trends Wise attributed to customers using the platform for a broader range of everyday financial needs.
Transaction revenue increased 22% to $561.3m, and the cross-border take rate fell 3 basis points year-on-year to 49bps, which Wise said reflects continued reinvestment of operating leverage into lower prices for customers.
Wise reiterated that it expects full-year income-before-tax margin to land around the top of its 20-25% range, and guided to a first-half margin of approximately 23%, which includes one-off expenses equivalent to around 2 percentage points, among them around $15m tied to the company's dual listing.
"More than 12 million customers chose Wise this quarter to move over $70 billion around the world, paying 49bps on average, with 78% of transfers completed instantly," said Kristo Käärmann, co-founder and chief executive.
The company pointed to continued network expansion during the quarter, including a ninth direct integration in Malaysia, the launch of the Wise Account and Wise Card in Thailand, the introduction of Wise Assets in New Zealand, and a Wise Platform partnership with OakNorth to power international payments for the bank's UK business customers.
Wise said it will provide further detail on transactional efficiency gains and reinvestment plans at its first-half results.