Tag: banking

Wise vs Revolut Fees (2026): Which Is Actually Cheaper? 

If you’re choosing between Wise and Revolut, fees are probably your biggest concern.

Both fintech companies promise low-cost international spending and transfers — but their pricing models are very different. One focuses on transparency. The other blends banking features with subscription perks.

Here’s a clear breakdown of how their fees compare in 2026.

1. Exchange Rates: The Real Cost Difference

Wise: Mid-Market Rate + Transparent Fee

Wise uses the real mid-market exchange rate (the rate you see on Google).
Instead of marking up the rate, it charges a separate, clearly displayed fee — typically between 0.35% and 0.7%, depending on the currency.

You see the exact fee before confirming the transaction.

What this means:
You always know what you’re paying.

Revolut: Near-Interbank Rate (With Conditions)

Revolut uses a near-interbank exchange rate and offers:

  • Free weekday currency exchange (within your plan’s limit)
  • 1% markup on weekends
  • Monthly FX limits on the free plan (e.g., €1,000 equivalent)

After exceeding the monthly allowance, additional exchanges incur a fee.

What this means:
It can be very cheap — but only if you stay within limits and avoid weekends.

2. International Transfers

Wise

Fees typically include:

  • A small fixed fee
  • A percentage-based fee

For example, sending €1,000 internationally might cost between €4 and €8, depending on the currency route.

Wise is often cheaper for:

  • Larger transfers
  • Regular overseas payments
  • Sending money outside Europe

Revolut

Revolut offers:

  • Some free transfers depending on your plan
  • Possible SWIFT fees for certain currencies
  • Limits on free international payments

Revolut works well for occasional smaller transfers, but costs can increase once limits are exceeded.

3. ATM Withdrawals

Wise

  • 2 free withdrawals per month (up to ~€200 total)
  • After that: ~€0.50 + 1.75%

Revolut (Standard Plan)

  • 5 free withdrawals per month (up to ~€200)
  • Then 2% fee

Higher-tier Revolut plans increase the withdrawal allowance.

4. Card Payments Abroad

Both are excellent for travel compared to traditional banks.

  • Wise: Small conversion fee applied transparently.
  • Revolut: No weekday FX fee within limits, but weekend markup applies.

If you travel mostly during weekdays and don’t exceed limits, Revolut can be cheaper for everyday spending.

5. Monthly Fees

Wise

  • No subscription plans
  • No monthly fee
  • Pay only when you use it

Revolut

  • Standard plan: Free
  • Paid plans: Plus, Premium, Metal (monthly fee)
  • Includes perks like insurance, airport lounge access, and higher limits

If you want an all-in-one banking app with extras, Revolut’s paid tiers may justify the cost.

So Which Is Cheaper?

Choose Wise If:

  • You send large international transfers
  • You want full transparency
  • You don’t want subscription fees
  • You care about always getting the real exchange rate

Choose Revolut If:

  • You travel frequently
  • You exchange smaller amounts
  • You stay within monthly FX limits
  • You avoid weekend currency exchanges
  • You want banking features beyond transfers

Final Verdict

There’s no universal winner.

  • Wise is usually cheaper for international money transfers and large currency conversions.
  • Revolut can be cheaper for travel spending — if you stay within plan limits.

For many people, the smartest move isn’t choosing one — it’s using both.

Revolut is now Lithuania’s largest bank, after only five years


Revolut has achieved a remarkable milestone: it is now the largest bank in Lithuania by assets, just five years after securing its license there. According to the central bank, Revolut now commands 30.8% of the Lithuanian market, overtaking long-time leaders Swedbank (24.4%), SEB (19.6%), Luminor (10.5%) and the recently rebranded Artea (6.6%).

Licensed in Lithuania but serving 50 million customers across 30 EEA countries, Revolut has rapidly grown its local footprint with more than 650,000 Lithuanian clients. In 2024 alone, retail customers grew 24%, business clients 57%, and youth accounts 47%. This year, Revolut also entered the housing loan market, further cementing its presence alongside its full suite of digital banking, credit, investment, and savings products.

Bunq – Dutch online bank – fined €2.6 million by Regulators for anti-money laundering controls

  • Fine imposed: Bunq, the Dutch mobile-only bank, was slapped with a €2.6 million fine (about $3.04 million) by the Dutch central bank, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB).
  • Why: The regulator found serious flaws in Bunq’s anti–money laundering (AML) systems. Between January 2021 and May 2022, in four separate cases, Bunq failed to properly investigate and report suspicious financial activity.
  • Repeat issue: These weren’t isolated mistakes—DNB noted that Bunq had a history of similar compliance lapses and hadn’t addressed them adequately, even after previous fines and warnings.

Bunq’s response

  • Bunq disagrees with the ruling and has formally filed an objection.
  • They emphasized that they take their “gatekeeper” role seriously and are using advanced tech to continuously improve their systems and compliance.

via Reuters.

New KakaoBank Investment in Indonesia’s Superbank – Takes 10% Stake

South Korea’s KakaoBank has acquired a 10% stake in Indonesia’s Superbank, a digital bank backed by Grab and Singapore Telecommunications. This investment marks KakaoBank’s first overseas expansion and is expected to strengthen the bank’s position in the Southeast Asian market.

KakaoBank is known for its innovative digital banking products and services, and it is expected to bring its expertise to Superbank to help it grow its business and reach more customers in Indonesia. The investment is also seen as a sign of KakaoBank’s confidence in the Indonesian market, which is one of the largest and fastest-growing digital economies in the world.

NuBank vs Barclays – is NuBank Overvalued?

NuBank (Nu Holdings) is pushing the banking industry in Brazil, Mexico and Colombia.

I have been wanting to invest in NuBank for some time, but I have thought for the past year or so – that their market cap has become so large that they are simply just un-investable at these levels.

To prove this was the case I thought I would do a very simple side by side comparison with a legacy bank that is predominantly in key markets.

MetricNu HoldingsBarclays
Assets Under Management$10.2B$2.3T
Number of Customers30M48M
Revenues$1.2B$25.4B
EBITDA$-78M$9.3B
Countries350
Market Cap$35 billion$28 billion

I know NuBank is in 3 emerging markets – with at least 200 million people in those countries that are currently unbanked. However, even if NuBank was able to have 100 million customers – expand their product lines and then start to really focus on other markets – do you think they can really grow to the AUM or sheer network size of Barclays?

Or is this a perfect short sell position?

Banking Sector is Ready for Even More Innovation and Opportunities

A lot of people are talking about Banks at present with the recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and others.

The banking sector is always an interesting topic and they are actually very interesting businesses.

They are in the business of using other people’s money to generate more money and try to add value through different services. If everyone takes their money out of a bank all at the same time – then all the banks in the world don’t have enough reserves to cover this.

However, with the death of the local branch – it seems now there is a growing opportunity for banks to slim down their staffing requirements, capital expenditures and simply products and services to focus on value driven opportunities.

It will be interesting in the coming months if there are any more banking collapses, but its an industry that is going to be heavily upset by the new online only banks focused on a much wider variety of services – at a fraction of the high street bank prices.