Amid the increased interest of Brazilians to send and receive money from abroad in recent months, the global company specializing in international remittances Wise (ex-Transferwise) this Wednesday (8) launches its international card in the country.
Issued under the Visa brand, the card allows users to spend in more than 200 countries, whether traveling abroad or shopping online, says Kristo Käärmann, co-founder of Wise.
Central Bank data show that, from January to October, personal transfers originating in other countries and destined for Brazil totaled US$ 3.18 billion (R$ 18 billion), growth of 16.9% compared to the same period last year.
On the other hand, personal transfers from Brazil to other countries totaled US$ 1.29 billion (R$ 7 billion) in the same period, an increase of 10.2%.
According to Käärmann, the Wise card is a natural extension of the digital account already offered in the local market since 2016, which allows the user to access current account services in 11 currencies, such as the dollar and euro, functioning as a kind of exchange office via cell phone.
The account also offers maintenance of the balance in the account and conversion to around 50 currencies, with the real having been included among the options with the launch of the card in the country.
The executive explains that, when the customer makes a purchase with the Wise card abroad, the operation will already be transacted in local currency, because he will have converted the money before spending it with the card.
Therefore, the foreign currency purchase IOF does not apply to Wise card transactions, as the amount was previously converted and the customer is spending his balance in local currency.
The Wise card charges a fixed IOF of 1.1%, applicable to foreign exchange transactions, since it is linked to all Wise accounts simultaneously, and of 0.38%, from other currencies to reais.
In international purchases with credit and debit cards from traditional financial institutions, the IOF charge is 6.38%, explains Pedro Barreiro, leader of banking partnerships and Wise expansion in Brazil.
with Ricardo Balthazar (interim), Andressa Motter, Ana Paula Branco e Lucas Bombana
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