Help your money grow with Wise Business

As inflation and interest rate rises continue to take their toll on the economy, businesses of all sizes, from freelancers to scale-ups, are looking for ways to boost margins and grow their money. Most companies hold working capital to cover outgoings, but this cash can lose value in real terms due to rising costs, from wage growth to the price of supplies and raw materials, which can eat away at profits and stifle growth.

At Wise, we’re committed to helping you make the most of your money as you take your business to new places. That’s why we launched Interest, a feature of the Wise Business account that enables you to invest * your GBP, USD and EUR balances in a low-risk fund that holds government guaranteed assets and tracks central bank interest rates. With Interest, businesses can earn a variable return on their balances, giving their money a boost, with current rates displayed on our website.

The fund is designed to manage risk, but as with all investments, capital is at risk and growth is not guaranteed.

When you switch on Interest, there’s no need to lock your money away either - you and your team can continue to send, and spend anytime while your money works harder for you. Read on for more information about investing with Interest.

Learn more about Interest

*Capital at risk. Growth not guaranteed. For full 5 year past performance of funds, please visit the link above.

How it works

When you switch on Interest on the money held in your balances or Jars in GBP, USD and EUR, your money is invested in an interest-earning fund that holds assets guaranteed by the government. The fund tracks central bank rates, so when they change, ours change automatically.

Interest is offered in partnership with BlackRock and through Wise Assets. The funds aim to maximise current income through a portfolio of high quality short-term money market instruments. As this is a form of investment, you may have to pay tax on your earnings — for example, capital gains tax.

Is it instant access?

Yes. When you switch on Interest, your money is invested in the fund, but the balance remains liquid, so you and your team can continue to send and spend as normal while your money is put to work.

Once your money is invested, you’ll be able to see and spend any gains every working day, helping you to manage cash flow. Plus, the variable rates you see already include our fees.

To view the 5 year performance of this fund and FAQs, see our website.

What’s new about this?

Previously, this kind of investment in instruments called ‘Money Market Funds’ was only available to large scale investors such as pension funds and financial institutions who had millions to invest. Thanks to innovation in the financial sector in recent years, these kinds of investments can now be made available to consumers and businesses of any size.

With Interest, Wise Business customers are able to invest any amount they like to start earning a return, with variable rates available on GBP, USD and EUR balances.

What are the risks?

When you switch to Interest, we hold your money in a Public Debt Money Market Fund. This type of fund is trusted by banks and large corporations to keep their money safe and accessible, while giving them a return.

The main risks that can cause the value of the fund to decrease are the government defaulting or interest rates dropping to 0% or lower. Government defaults are unlikely. This means that while your investment is not guaranteed, the risk is low.

What’s the difference between Balance and Jars?

With Interest, customers can invest their balances held in GBP, USD and EUR in an interest-earning fund that holds assets guaranteed by the government. While your money is invested, you and your team can keep spending from your balance as if it was held in cash.

However, businesses sometimes need to keep savings separate from their balance to cover unexpected costs, pay taxes or to fund the next big expansion project. To help them do that, we rolled out Jars, which can be used to set aside money in multiple currencies. They can then be closed and returned to your balance when you need to spend from them.

Business customers can now choose to use Interest to invest the money held in Jars in GBP, USD and EUR, helping them to grow their money while it’s not being used.

How to Switch on Interest

By default, all of the money in your Balances and Jars is held as Cash.

You can decide how you'd like to hold the money in your Balances or Jars. Currently, you can choose Cash, Interest or Stocks. Interest is only available for Balances and Jars held in GBP, USD and EUR.

To change how your money is held, first go to the Balance or Jar you want to change. Next, select the Cash, Stocks or Interest icon (right under the Jar/Balance Information section) and click on switch how the Balance/Jar is held on the next screen.

If you change how your money is held in a Balance or Jar, the icon will show as ‘pending’ while we make the change. This can take up to 2 working days — but it can take an extra working day if you’ve still got transactions in progress, or if we’re still processing a change.

Can I switch off Interest?

You can switch Balances and Jars back and forth between Interest and Cash any time you want. Simply repeat the process above and switch your balance or Jar back to Cash.

Learn more about Interest

Disclaimer: Interest is offered through Wise Assets. Wise Assets is a trading name of TINV Ltd, a subsidiary of Wise. TINV Ltd is authorised as investment firm and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Our FCA number is 839689. We do not give investment advice, and you may be subject to pay tax. If you’re not sure, seek qualified advice. You can find more information about the funds on our website.