What Is Wise?

Wise is a fintech company offering affordable, transparent international money transfers. Established in 2011 to simplify and reduce the cost of sending money abroad, Wise allows users to hold and spend in various currencies at the real exchange rate. The platform minimises fees by offsetting currency flows across countries. Known for its simple pricing and ease of use, Wise supports transactions in over 50 currencies, benefiting travellers, expats, and businesses with global financial needs.

How Wise Can Be Important in The Caribbean

Wise is vital for the Caribbean, offering an efficient, cost-effective solution for international money transfers, unlike traditional services with high fees and delays. It allows the creation of multiple currency digital bank accounts for seamless transactions. Additionally, Wise enables easier cross-border fund movement within the Caribbean, enhancing financial connectivity among residents and with the global community.

How To Set Up a Wise Account

To get the best of Wise whilst living in the Caribbean, it is best to have a family or friend address who is living in countries like the UK, US, Canada, etc. The reason is they have restricted giving out key things like the Wise cards to Caribbean addresses. Getting permission and using an address outside of the Caribbean will give you access to the cards, and you will be able to use the cards anywhere in the world. If you decide to use a family or friend’s address in the US, they will require you to show proof of that address. I have found that using addresses from your family/friends in the UK, Canada, etc, Wise has not asked for you to send in a proof of address. If you have something with your name on it in the US, then go ahead and use your US address.

How to set up the account:

1. Go to Wise.com

2. Click register

3. When you begin filling out your information, put the address of your family/friend outside of the Caribbean.

4. Wise will need you to verify your ID with your local documents (national ID, passport, driver’s licence)

5. You will then be asked to confirm your SSN…Select “Im not a US Citizen and don’t have an SSN”

6. On the main screen…click on “Open – Explore Ways to spend, save and grow your money“.

7. Choose the currency you would like to have an account…eg USD, Cad, etc.

8. You will be charged an opening fee of US$20 to open the account which you can pay via credit card, wire transfer and a few other options. Pick whichever one is suitable for you. The US$20 will be placed in your account for you to use afterward.

9. Once your account is opened, you can click on the Currency in your main screen, you will see a bank logo with an account number, once you click on it, the screen will load up with all of your banking details for that account.

After you set up the various currencies that you want, I suggest clicking on “Card” on the main menu, it will then present you with the options for both the digital and physical cards.

The digital card is free and available to create immediately.

The physical card needs to be mailed out to you. Select the physical card, It will ask you for the DELIVERY ADDRESS and this is where you can put in your home address in the Caribbean country you are living in if you would like the card to be mailed to your address or you can have it mailed to the same friend or family’s address that you used upon setting up the account, if you know you are going to be seeing them soon or they can mail it to you.

The Card Limits

ATM withdrawal limits: Daily limit of US$5,100 and monthly limit of US$5,100

Spending Limits: Daily limit of US$41,000 and monthly limit of US$41,000

To fund your account, you can use Western Union’s direct deposit to your Wise account (give Western Union your Wise account details and they will deposit the funds into the account), connect Wise Bank to your PayPal account, and friends/family can send money to your Wise account through wire and you can use your credit card to add money to your Wise account.

For more information, check out their website but this is something that every citizen in the Caribbean, should set up Wise to supplement their local banking.

Keron Rose is a digital strategist who works with businesses to build their digital presence and monetise their platforms. Learn more at KeronRose.com or listen to the Digipreneur FM podcast on Apple podcast, Spotify, or Google podcasts.