Wise, the London-based money transfer firm, is shutting down its Tampa office and laying off about 307 employees, the company said in a recent notice.
All affected employees have been notified of the dismissal and will be given at least 60 days as a notice period before they are let go, the company said. The termination process is expected to start on April 8 and continue on May 2 and Nov. 3, according to the notice sent Feb. 7 to the Florida Department of Commerce and Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.
The development comes on the heels of being hit with a $2.5 million penalty by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over remittance violations. However, the company designates the office closure as part of its efforts to strengthen collaboration across its teams as its business rapidly expands, particularly in the Americas, a Wise spokesperson told Banking Dive.
The company has decided to center its Americas teams in three locations: Austin, the primary full stack location that houses teams from all business functions — engineering, marketing, and operations; New York and São Paulo, Brazil.
Though the Tampa office at 4925 Independence Parkway will officially close its doors in November, most of these roles have been reassigned across the fintech’s other sites, the spokesperson said.
“We know this personally impacts our Wisers, especially in Tampa, and our immediate priority is to support each of our affected teammates during this time,” the spokesperson said via email. “The Americas is a key region for Wise, and we are continuing to invest in growing both our teams and our business in the region.”
Wise US, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wise PLC, is headquartered in New York and allows customers to send, receive, and store remittances through a mobile app, prepaid accounts, and debit cards. Launched in 2011, Wise has about 6,000 employees worldwide, with its global teams supporting around 12.8 million customers, and it processed approximately £118.5 billion in cross-border transactions last year, according to its website.
The impacted staff will be paid wages and other entitled benefits through their date of separation unless they resign from their position before that date, according to the notice. However, employees have been given the option to relocate or reapply to open roles. The job cuts will impact 43 due diligence senior agents, 40 customer support specialists and 37 customer support associates, among other roles.
“Because the Company does not recognize bumping rights for its employees, terminated employees are not permitted to displace remaining employees based on seniority or any other factor,” Wise said in its notice.
