Fintech player, Wise (recently rebranded from TransferWise) recently announced its intentions to go public on the London Stock Exchange. Companies generally do this to raise a significant amount of capital to bankroll their next phase of growth.
Interestingly, Wise has decided to go down the route of a direct listing rather than a traditional IPO. The key difference that investment banks will not be pre-selling large quantities of shares to institutional investors, meaning Wise’s share price can be set purely based on what happens in the first day of trading.
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Companies such as Spotify, Coinbase and Slack have all completed direct listings in the US, though they remain rare events in the UK.
So, to get you prepared for the Wise direct listing, let’s explain the key things you need to know starting with listing the best places to buy Wise shares in the UK and elsewhere.
Where to buy the Wise IPO (direct listing)
If you want to invest in TransferWise shares before the company goes public, you will not be able to buy actual shares. Instead, you can speculate on the value of virtual Wise shares on something called a grey market, though we do not recommend this for anyone other than investing experts.
If you are wondering where to buy Wise stock online once it starts trading publicly, the answer is a reliable stockbroker. These are low-fee platforms that allows you to build a diversified investment portfolio consisting of stocks – like TransferWise – commodities, forex, and even cryptocurrency.
Here are our two top picks for buying TransferWise stock during its direct listing:
eToro
eToro is a multi-asset investment platform with more than 2000 assets, including FX, stocks, ETF’s, indices and commodities. eToro users can connect with, learn from, and copy or get copied by other users. Buying stocks on eToro is free and you can invest with as little as $50.
CAPEX
CAPEX.com is an awarded fintech brand, globally recognized for a strong presence in shaping the future of trading. The company focuses on making the markets more accessible & transforming the way people trade online.
What is Wise?
Founded in London in January 2011 by by Estonian businessmen, Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus, it is a financial technology (fintech) company that was originally called TransferWise.
The company specialises in providing low-cost international money transfers for businesses transactions, remittance, and general retail purposes. Traditional banks charge consumers large foreign exchange fees, but with Wise, this cost is significantly reduced.
With Wise, all users have to do is upload money to their account using a bank transfer or debit card, then they can send money in another currency to a recipient’s bank account.
The company does have major rivals in the shape of MoneyGram and Western Union; however, while these two companies offer some useful on-ramp and off-ramp methods, they remain more expensive options than Wise.
Should I buy Wise stock?
If you are judging the company’s investment prospects based on its financials, investing may make a lot of sense. Its annual revenue is now up to $586 million from $422 million in the previous financial year, representing $57 million in pre-tax profit. These are serious numbers that have capture the attention of many investors, and they ensure the company remains profitable for yet another year since becoming so in 2017.
The company now has over 10 million customers who process $7 billion in total transactions per month, and with new revenue streams from additional products that have been added to the Wise line-up, this revenue should grow even further.
If you want to invest in a growth stock with strong fundamentals and a sensible roadmap to value creation, Wise shares could be something to seriously consider.
Social media reacts to the Wise direct listing
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