P2P Firm TransferWise Seeks to Move Beyond Banks
TransferWise, a five-year-old P2P firm based in the U.K., plans to “scale back” its reliance on banks as it expands, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.
Instead, the company will seek to gain its own financial licenses, which would require TransferWise to do its own anti-money laundering and criminal checks of customers but also allow it more freedom than available now through its bank partnerships, according to the report. For instance, the company has run into hurdles in the U.S. because of state-by-state financial regulations that govern money transfers; New Hampshire earlier this year sanctioned TransferWise because it did not have an in-state presence, a move that required the company to repay at least $16,000 in customer fees.
The company has attracted top investment. Last year, for example, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz led a $58 million funding round for the firm. The company said it has customers in more than 50 countries.
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