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Wise deactivated my business account

I am sure it does lol but what if I want to receive a debit card and I am not in the address photoshop says? I am curious and I might end up doing this
I would worry more about that could be a criminal offense, which would cost you more than the hassle to move out 7 figures from a Wise account.

Hi guys, hope all is well.

I'm going to start off by saying I messed up by keeping this amount of money in Wise, just so we have that cleared up.

A few days ago, my Wise Business account got deactivated, as I apparently have exceeded their risk tolerance. Funny, given I've passed these reviews with a larger balance in the past. But that's that.
In the process of requesting the funds sent to an external bank account, I've been requested to provide a business bank account, in the same business name as the name registered on Wise. Problem is, I'm a sole trader, operating under my legal name, NOT the business name (this was never an issue for Wise when I registered initially, by the way) hooked up to the Wise account.

Have any of you guys gone through the same? If so, how did it turn out, and did you have to provide a business bank account?

I'm keeping low 7 figures in this account, so it's safe to say I'm eager to get it out as soon as possible.

Additionally, if anyone has any recommendations for EMIs (or other solutions) who would support a "high risk" business model in the marketing industry, I'm all ears.

Thanks in advance, and Merry Christmas!
I've used Wise with slightly less money than you, and it's the only EMI I would trust with that amount of money. Having said that, Wise does its interest, and runnency compliance checks is not what they make money with, they make money when you change currencies.
They always say "never put too many eggs in one basket" and I guess that in your case you were not moving money too much. I think that having a 7 figures account WOULD trigger issues in any sane banking institution, then it all depends on how much money the institution is making from you andf if the risk/reward align. Wise is not a bank, so having huge amounts on money sitting on account doesn't make them any good, because they can't use the money to borrow to other people, while a UAE/Swiss bank would be probably happy to have that money sitting there, as long as it's all legit. What I'm saying is that I feel you are using Wise for the wrong thing, whch is holding money, while Wise is more for receiving money from a few clients, and then converting them and sending them out. I am sure you will get out of this situation in a way or another, if the money is legit, you just have to find a better structure. Given the sum involved, pay a professional for a proper set up.
 
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why people still use wise for more than 100 euro, is a crap , as soon as you use it for normal businness the will block it and wait more than 6 mounths to get your funds back
I've used it for the last 4 years for a SVG company, which was an IBC and then an LLC. Company provides software development services, it's basically a shell company for me, which I am resident in the UAE. I had several rounds of KYC ( once because I used the account to send money to my mother ), moved close to 7 figures with 10 clients overall, never had any issue. I receive money in 4 different currencies and then wire them out to either my personal account, where I use lots of currencies, or my UAE account. I of course have contracts for every penny that entered the account, never put any personal money into it, and have big companies as clients, so I might be a perfect use case for them. And I change currencies a lot. As I said above, Wise is a for profit institution, it can choose its clients. Holding one million on the platform without converting it with a risky business makes then zero profit, lots of compliance expenses, and some risk. If you want to keep 1 million on an account, go to a bank, which can use that million to make profits and can tolerate the risk, Wise is not made for that
 
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My Wise personal account has been also deactivated.
I am also a sole trader. Since I have articles with affiliate programs related to video chats, i know my fate.

When you look at the list of prohibited activities at wise, you quickly understand that you aren't allowed to do much!


1.2.1 Regulated or illegal products and services​

  • Adult content.
    1. Pornography and other visual content depicting explicitly sexual acts.
    2. Services of sexual nature (webcam shows, live chats, prostitution, escorts, etc).
    3. Sexually oriented establishments (massage parlors, strip clubs, gentleman’s clubs).
  • Alcohol businesses.
    1. Payments for the sale of alcohol to retail customers are not supported.
  • Tobacco products.
  • Cannabis.
    1. Products containing CBD.
    2. Any other products or services related to legal marijuana trade.
  • Certain controlled substances or other products that present a risk to consumer safety.
    1. Smart drugs, nootropic supplements.
    2. Substances that provide similar effects as illegal drugs (kratom, khat, etc.)
    3. Anabolic steroids and peptides.
  • Drug paraphernalia.
    1. Any equipment, product, or material which is intended for making, using, or concealing drugs
  • Pharmaceuticals.
    1. Nutraceuticals, pseudo-pharmaceuticals, and other products which make unreasonable health claims not approved or verified by the applicable regulatory body.
    2. Online pharmacies.
    3. Prescription-only pharmaceutical drugs.
    4. Payments for the sale of pharmaceutical products to retail customers are not supported.
  • Chemicals.
    1. Commodity chemicals.
  • Counterfeit or unauthorised goods.
    1. Unauthorised sale of designer and/or brand products.
    2. Sale of illegally imported or exported goods.
  • Gambling.
    1. Lotteries.
    2. Fantasy sports with cash prizes.
    3. Games of chance with cash prizes.
    4. Sales of in-game currencies by unauthorised vendors.
    5. Any type of gambling payments or businesses related to Turkey, the United States, Canada, the United Arab Emirates or Singapore.
    6. Any other type of businesses related to gambling, up to Wise’s own discretion.
  • Intellectual property or proprietary rights infringement.
    1. Any product or service that directly infringes or facilitates infringement upon the copyright, patent, trademark, trade secrets, proprietary, or privacy rights of any third party.
  • Products and services which are not legal in the jurisdiction they are being offered in.

1.2.2 Financial and other professional services​

  • Binary options.
  • Escrow services.
    1. Using Wise Borderless account as an escrow account.
  • Companies involved in the exchange or trading of cryptocurrencies, or any other virtual currencies.
    1. Including payments for the purpose of purchasing cryptocurrencies.
  • Marketplaces from countries outside of European Economic Area and/or European Union or the United States.
  • Money service businesses, or any businesses that carry on the activity of:
    1. Operating a bureau de change or currency exchange service.
    2. Transmitting money, or any representation of monetary value, on behalf of third parties.
    3. Cashing cheques.
    4. Payment processing.
  • Platforms allowing the trading and/or exchanging of FX/CFD/options.
  • Shell banks.
  • Superannuation funds.
  • Syndicates.
  • Trust and corporate service providers that are involved in:
    1. Opening accounts on behalf of other businesses.
    2. Offshore company formation.
    3. Using nominee directors and/or shareholders to obscure company ownership.
  • Any other financial services operating without a licence where one is required.

1.2.3 Other restricted activities​

  • IPTV and VOIP services.
  • Individuals, entities, or countries subject to international sanctions.
  • Weaponry, military and semi-military goods and services.
    1. Weapons (including weapons of historic significance), military software, or any other goods or services intended for military use.
  • Nonprofit organisations and charities from countries outside of Canada, European Economic Area and/or European Union, Switzerland, USA, Australia, or New Zealand.
    1. Unregistered charities are not supported from any regions.
  • Trusts and foundations from countries outside of Canada, European Economic Area and/or European Union, Switzerland, USA, Australia, or New Zealand.
  • Trade of restricted and/or endangered animal species and products derived from them.
  • Multi-level marketing, pyramid schemes, get rich quick schemes, referral marketing.
    1. Including any other services promising unreasonably high rewards.
  • The United Arab Emirates-based oil, gas and shipping companies, as well as related activities.
  • Businesses with relations or activity directly or indirectly linked to Cuba
  • Surrogacy businesses.
  • Currency-based restrictions as outlined in various FAQ pages.
 
why people still use wise for more than 100 euro, is a crap , as soon as you use it for normal businness the will block it and wait more than 6 mounths to get your funds back
Maybe because for some people there is no affordable alternative. Majority EMIs only work with Europeans or charge $100/mo even if you're a startup that may have no income for 1-2 years.
 
Wise deactivated my personal account. if Wise asks you to provide a proof of fund if you aren't able to provide it initially. You have a month to move out your money. I didn't receive any warning for a month and then they locked my wise account.
Then, the support team is very slow to answer. Several days before getting an answer.
So for your information, i have a business account linked to a company, this account isn't locked. Only my personnal account is locked. i used the personal account as sole trader account.

Here is what happened to me, in december, I received a request from wise to justify my source of income. I sent a bank statement of wise itself. I thought they could not have access to my bank statement. In the list of source of fund there were no option for sole trader.
They expected me to provide payslips and tax return as if I was an employee.

Hopefully, Wise isn't my only account. This shows that you must have SEVERAL EMI accounts. The more accounts you have and the better you can mitigate risks.
 
Keep on using Wise, the best EMI rof/%
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As usual it's pretty clear that there is good reasons why someone may get kicked out. Wise is an extremely big and successful company that is used by hundreds of thousands of people and businesses.

The notion that they'd need to keep your funds for a while to stay afloat... Shows you take yourself way too serious. They don't give a f**k about you or your money because there is an abundance of more trustworthy and lower maintenance customers, that's why they close your account. Simple as that.
 
Wise deactivated my personal account. if Wise asks you to provide a proof of fund if you aren't able to provide it initially. You have a month to move out your money. I didn't receive any warning for a month and then they locked my wise account.
Then, the support team is very slow to answer. Several days before getting an answer.
So for your information, i have a business account linked to a company, this account isn't locked. Only my personnal account is locked. i used the personal account as sole trader account.

Here is what happened to me, in december, I received a request from wise to justify my source of income. I sent a bank statement of wise itself. I thought they could not have access to my bank statement. In the list of source of fund there were no option for sole trader.
They expected me to provide payslips and tax return as if I was an employee.

Hopefully, Wise isn't my only account. This shows that you must have SEVERAL EMI accounts. The more accounts you have and the better you can mitigate risks.
don't put all your eggs in one basket, right?
 
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Maybe because for some people there is no affordable alternative. Majority EMIs only work with Europeans or charge $100/mo even if you're a startup that may have no income for 1-2 years.
Not true. Check eg. HK EMI's (Airwallex, Currexie, Statrys).

The end. The money is now in my account.
A big congratulation! :)

(BTW, if you search for a new banking, feel free to ask here for advice or help.)