Wise executive says fintech FX edge is shifting to service design

Wise Platform’s Roisin Levine said fintech firms have changed foreign exchange markets over the past five years by pushing services toward faster payments and clearer fee disclosure, according to a FinextraTV interview at EBAday 2026 in Copenhagen. The shift has raised the competitive bar in cross-border finance as digital delivery becomes easier for a wider set of companies to offer.

Levine, head of UK and Europe partnerships at Wise Platform, told FinextraTV that fintech companies such as Wise have contributed to changes in customer expectations in FX. Finextra labelled the segment as sponsored and said it was produced by its editorial team with input from subject matter experts at the funding sponsor.

The remarks underline a broader issue for payments and FX providers: a digital product is no longer, by itself, a clear point of difference. Levine said the opportunity for fintech firms is now more nuanced because digitisation has made it easier for companies to build and launch financial services.

Instant payments and fee clarity

Finextra said Levine described a market shift toward instant payments. In cross-border finance, faster payment capability affects how quickly customers can move money and how quickly firms can complete the operational steps behind a transaction. The interview did not provide figures on volumes, pricing or market share.

Levine also pointed to fee transparency as a requirement shaped by fintech-led change, according to Finextra. In foreign exchange, fee transparency means customers are able to see the charges attached to a transaction before or during execution, rather than treating the final amount received as the only measure of cost.

For operators, that expectation can affect product design, compliance processes and customer communications. Providers need to display costs in a way customers can understand while maintaining the systems that price, route and complete payments across currencies.

Front end and back end as differentiators

Levine said companies will set themselves apart through the quality of the customer-facing experience and the systems that support it, according to Finextra. She described the point of difference as a smooth front end for customers, underpinned by a reliable and agile back end.

The front end is the interface customers use to start, review and manage a payment or FX transaction. The back end is the operational layer that supports that service, including the technology and processes that allow a provider to execute transactions and adapt the product over time.

That distinction matters because a polished interface can fail commercially if the underlying infrastructure is slow, brittle or unable to support customer demand. Conversely, strong infrastructure may be less valuable if customers encounter friction when initiating or tracking payments.

The FinextraTV interview was part of EBAday 2026 coverage focused on payments and foreign exchange. Related Finextra video programming around the event covered topics including payment standards, fraud controls, traditional payment rails, Wero, the digital euro timeline and operational blockers to speed.

This story draws on original reporting from Finextra Research.