Electronic money services provider Wise is being ordered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to pay $2.025 million in a civil money penalty for allegedly misleading U.S. clients about fees.  

The CFPB found that Wise sent false advertisements regarding ATM fees and free withdrawals, according to today’s release from the bureau.  

“By deceiving customers, Wise gave itself an unfair advantage over other competitors in the remittances market,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in today’s release. 

In addition to the $2.025 million, Wise was also ordered to pay $450,000 in redress feeds to affected customers, according to the release. 

That $450,000 has already been paid to affected U.S. customers in full — with a majority resolved by November 2022, a Wise spokesperson shared in a statement with Bank Automation News today. 

“In February 2022, the CFPB highlighted certain issues where Wise has inadvertently been operating in ways the bureau deemed necessary to address,” the spokesperson said. “Today, Wise reached an agreement with the CFPB to bring the matter to a close.”

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