TransferWise Rolls Out Multicurrency Debit Card

In the United States, money transfer firm TransferWise has launched a Mastercard debit card along with an accompanying TransferWise Borderless multicurrency account. The card is said to work without balance limits in more than 40 currencies and its conversion fees are said to be in line with exchange rates that are current, VentureBeat reported.

CEO Kristo Käärmann said, according to the report, “Our goal is to offer bank details for every country in the world through one account — the world’s first global account — and we’re starting with five of the world’s top currencies. The 40-currency debit card completes the package, so we’re excited to be releasing the card in the U.S.”

The report noted that clients who sign up for the company’s debit card in the U.S., U.K. Australia, New Zealand and Europe can receive international bank details such as routing and account numbers. At the same time, the card brings push notifications through the mobile app of TransferWise summarizing transaction and syncs with digital wallets such as Google Pay, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.

Users of the TransferWise card can also “freeze” spending if their card is lost or stolen. They also have an automatic currency routing benefit: In the event that clients don’t have money in the currency they wish to use, the company will exchange it in the least expensive way through tapping into balances in currencies that have rates that are favorable.

The news comes after news surfaced in March that TransferWise was aiming to raise funds and would sell a stake in itself to do so. The company wanted to take in $300 million per reports at the time, which would take its valuation to $4 billion.

TransferWise was started in 2011 by Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus. At the time of the March report, the company reportedly had an upwards of 4 million customers and handled transfer volume of over $4 billion a month. The firm was also said to have 11 offices all over the globe and 1,400 employees.