Fintech Wise’s shares fall on Belgian money-laundering investigation

By Elizabeth Howcroft and Sophie Kiderlin

PARIS, June 1 (Reuters) – Money transfer company Wise’s London-listed shares fell by more than 10% on Monday on news that the Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office is investigating its European entity in cases the prosecutor said reportedly involve more than half a billion euros ($582.5 million) in suspicious transactions.

Authorities in Europe are trying to crack down on illicit finance, following the collapse of Wirecard and a 2019 money-laundering scandal.

• The prosecutor’s office said the investigation, which began last year and is nearing completion, concerns potential money laundering offences, with alleged links to fraud, corruption and drug trafficking.

• Prosecutors are investigating whether Wise Europe’s services were used by international criminal organisations, and are currently finalising a direct summons before the criminal court.

• Wise <WSE.O>, which shifted its primary listing to the Nasdaq last month, responded to an earlier media report on the matter by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, saying, without confirming details, that it was working with the Brussels prosecutor.

• Wise said no specific findings had been shared with it.

• “We face the reality of increasingly sophisticated bad actors attempting to exploit our platform and we continually invest in tech-enabled systems and teams to stay ahead of ever-evolving threats,” it said.

(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus, Kirsten Donovan)