Wise has secured regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) to bring its suite of products to the country.
Following this announcement, the licences will make international money movement and management essential for financial life and highlight the need for fast, secure, and low-cost cross-border financial services.
The CBUAE granted Wise licence approvals in two categories: Stored Value Facilities and Retail Payment Services - Category 2. This marks an important step in the process of bringing its services and products to personal and business customers in the UAE in the future, including Wise Account and Wise Business, which allow people and businesses around the world to send, spend, and get paid with more speed, transparency, and convenience.
More information on Wise’s Stored Value Facilities and Retail Payment Services licenses
According to the official press release, through these new approvals, Wise will have the possibility to further expand its global licensing footprint. At the same time, the company will be enabled to provide individuals and businesses with access to all its tools that aim to make international money management faster, cheaper, and more transparent. For the UAE’s overall diverse population, this strategy is set to provide access to a global financial account that works securely and efficiently across borders.
Earlier this month, Wise also announced that it has updated its users’ accounts, now providing Pix key and all the features that customers and users are already familiar with, directly in Wise. According to officials of the company, since it rolled out its account in Brazil, one of the most used capabilities by its customers has been adding money with Pix, which was developed to optimise the experience of adding, converting, and paying in another currency. The company aimed to further support its customers by providing them with Pix key and all the capabilities they know directly in Wise.
Shortly before this update, Upwork announced that it had introduced Wise Platform as a new infrastructure partner in order to optimise international payment options for freelancers. The move was set to enable users in selected markets to receive faster cross-border payments when withdrawing earnings to their local bank accounts. At the same time, freelancers in parts of South America, Asia-Pacific, and Europe were set to be able to have transfers routed through Wise’s network when leveraging the ‘Direct to Local Bank’ option.
