Fintech Wise Agrees to Fix Money Laundering Controls After EU Orders

European regulators forced the British company Wise to fix anti-money laundering measures after the Belgian National Bank discovered the fintech lacked relevant information about its customers.

The story was revealed by the Financial Times today. Five anonymous sources shared more details of the remediation plan.

People familiar with the matter explained that Wise failed to collect proof of address of hundreds of thousands of users and this was noticed by the Belgian National Bank and reported in 2022.

Wise worked on a remediation plan, approved by the Belgian financial institution, requested users’ proof of address, and froze the accounts of those who didn’t comply with the safety requirements. Within days the fintech had to reorganize its staff to prioritize its anti-financial crime department.

“In 2021, the National Bank of Belgium carried out a routine review of Wise Europe as part of a market-wide exercise in the wake of Brexit,” explained the company to FT in an email. “We worked closely with our regulator in Belgium and have fully implemented their recommendations.”

FT’s report highlights how fast-growing companies can have difficulties dealing with their development and keeping a safe platform.

Multiple fintech companies have grown fast and faced challenges along the way. Earlier year, the American company Synapse froze over 100,000 accounts after declaring bankruptcy, and the U.S. senators urged the fintech to give people their money back.

Other companies have seen more positive outcomes. Revolut, one of Wise’s competitors, recently got a banking license in the United Kingdom.