Shares in fintech Wise have dropped by over 10% today after reports that it was being investigated over half a billion euros of suspicious transactions.
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported this morning that Wise was under investigation over concerns that its accounts have been used by criminals to launder the proceeds of fraud, corruption and drug trafficking.
The BIJ reported that prosecutors in Belgium opened the investigation last year after noticing that Wise accounts had featured in hundreds of requests for cross-border help in criminal proceedings from more than 30 countries across Europe.
Wise confirmed this morning that it was working with the Belgium authorities, saying:
Combating financial crime is an industry-wide challenge that Wise takes extremely seriously as a financial institution with over 80 regulatory licences globally, enabling us to serve more than 19 million active customers worldwide and process around 4.7 million transactions per day.
We are currently working with the Brussels prosecutor to respond to queries about our business, as we routinely do with regulators and law-enforcement authorities. His office’s enquiries are still incomplete and no specific findings have been shared with us to date. As such, it would be speculative for us to comment on any allegations. We will continue to engage with the Brussels prosecutor’s office if and when any specific findings are made available to us.
Wise’s shares are currently down 12.6% in London.
