Wise Shares Plunge Following Belgian Prosecutor Probe Into €500M Transactions
Wise Faces Investigation Over Suspicious Transactions
By Elizabeth Howcroft and Sophie Kiderlin
PARIS, June 1 (Reuters) - Money transfer company Wise's London-listed shares were down around 15% at 0900 GMT on Monday, after a report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism said the company is being investigated by prosecutors in Belgium over €500 million ($582.5 million) worth of suspicious transactions.
Wise, which shifted its primary listing to the Nasdaq last month, responded to the report in a statement, without confirming the amount cited.
Wise's Official Response to the Investigation
Here's what Wise said:
Cooperation with Authorities
• "We are currently working with the Brussels prosecutor to respond to queries about our business, as we routinely do with regulators and law-enforcement authorities," the firm said.
Status of Findings
• "No specific findings have been shared with us to date."
Nature of Law Enforcement Requests
• Requests for information from law enforcement agencies and suspicious activity reports "are a normal part of operations and are not, in themselves, indicative of non-compliance with anti-money laundering requirements or of any wrongdoing," it said.
Efforts to Combat Financial Crime
• "Like every financial institution, 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."
Reporting and Editorial Credits
(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus)
