Wise Business and Revolut Business are the two London-built names a UK SMB weighs when it wants a modern, multi-currency account — and they split cleanly. Wise is the cross-border specialist, the tool a business reaches for when foreign-exchange cost is the problem, and it carries the longest affiliate cookie in UK fintech (365 days). Revolut is the all-in-one platform — cards, expenses, treasury, banking in one app — with a rare 2-year revenue-share for affiliates. The cards above show Wise at a $3.04 EPC (grade B) and Revolut at $2.10 (grade B−). This guide decodes which fits which reader. The shared caveat to state up front, because it governs both: neither is a bank — both are FCA e-money institutions, so business balances are safeguarded, not FSCS-protected. FintechPays earns a commission where a programme is live; it does not move the rank.
The one-line verdict
Choose Wise if the business is cross-border — international payments, multi-currency holdings, the real mid-market FX rate — and, for affiliates, if you want the longest attribution window in the category. Choose Revolut if the business wants one all-in-one platform — and, for affiliates, if you want recurring revenue from a 2-year revshare. The product split (FX specialist vs all-in-one) and the affiliate split (long cookie vs recurring share) point the same way.
Product — FX specialist vs all-in-one
This is the core decision for the end user. Wise Business is built around cross-border money: send and receive in dozens of currencies at the mid-market rate, hold balances in multiple currencies, and get local account details in several countries. For a UK business that pays overseas suppliers, invoices foreign clients, or runs multi-currency operations, Wise’s FX cost advantage is the reason to choose it, and little else competes on that axis.
Revolut Business is built around breadth: business accounts, corporate cards, expense management, treasury features, and more in a single platform. It also handles multi-currency well, but its pitch is consolidation — run the whole financial stack in one app — rather than best-in-class FX specifically. For a business that wants one tool for everything and values the integrated workflow over squeezing the last basis point off an FX conversion, Revolut is the fit.
The honest framing: a genuinely FX-heavy business takes Wise; a business that wants an all-in-one operating platform takes Revolut. Many use Wise for the cross-border leg even while banking elsewhere.
The affiliate economics — two opposite bets
For affiliates, Wise and Revolut are interesting precisely because they monetise in opposite ways, and the choice is a genuine strategic bet.
Wise pays a £50 CPA on a business account’s first cross-currency transaction — a one-time payout, but behind the longest cookie window in UK fintech: 365 days. That ultra-long window is the entire edge: a reader who clicks today and opens an account ten months later still converts on your cookie. For evergreen, top-of-funnel content where the research-to-conversion gap is long, a 365-day cookie captures conversions a 30-day window simply loses, which is why Wise lands the higher EPC despite a one-time payout.
Revolut pays a 20% gross-profit share over 2 years (or a £20–£500 CPA), behind a standard 30-day cookie. This is the recurring bet: a thinner near-term payout, but one that keeps paying across two years of the referred business’s activity. For an audience that converts quickly (a short cookie is fine) and retains, the 2-year revshare can compound past Wise’s one-time CPA — though it depends on the referred business staying active, where Wise’s CPA is locked in at the first transaction.
The two are almost mirror images: Wise is one-time payout, ultra-long window; Revolut is recurring share, short window. Wise’s $3.04 EPC edges Revolut’s $2.10 on our model, but the right pick depends on your content’s funnel shape — long research cycle favours Wise’s cookie; fast-converting, retaining audience favours Revolut’s revshare.
The shared FSCS caveat
Both are London-built and both are FCA e-money institutions — and neither is a bank. Business balances at Wise and Revolut are protected by safeguarding (customer funds segregated at partner banks), not by the FSCS £85,000 deposit guarantee. For a business holding significant operating cash, that is the same distinction that separates the EMI cohort from a full bank like Starling, and it should be disclosed plainly in any comparison. Both are reputable, well-capitalised firms; the point is not that they are unsafe but that “safeguarded” is a different and weaker promise than “FSCS-protected,” and a business parking large balances should know which it is getting. (Revolut’s UK banking-licence status has been evolving; verify the current position directly rather than assuming, and describe the account the reader is actually opening.)
The stack strategy — and what it means for content
Because the two lead on different things, the most common real-world outcome is not “Wise or Revolut” but both, used for different jobs: Wise as the cross-border/FX rail that moves money internationally at the mid-market rate, and Revolut (or a full bank) as the all-in-one operating account that runs cards, expenses, and day-to-day banking. A UK business that pays overseas suppliers but banks domestically is a textbook case for holding both. For an affiliate, that complementarity is the highest-value content angle: a comparison that explains when each is the right tool — rather than crowning a single winner — converts a reader who opens both, which is two conversions from one piece. It also lets you play each programme to its strength: feature Wise in evergreen “best for international payments” content where the 365-day cookie captures the long research cycle, and feature Revolut in “best all-in-one business account” content aimed at fast-converting readers whose two-year activity feeds the revshare. The honest both-tools framing is not a hedge; it is the structure that matches how UK businesses actually use these products.
Which should you choose?
| Your priority | The pick |
|---|
| Cross-border / multi-currency / FX cost | Wise — mid-market rate specialist |
| All-in-one platform (cards, expenses, treasury) | Revolut — consolidated stack |
| Longest affiliate attribution window | Wise — 365-day cookie |
| Recurring affiliate revenue | Revolut — 2-year revshare |
| Long research-to-conversion funnel | Wise — cookie captures late conversions |
| Fast-converting, retaining audience | Revolut — revshare compounds |
Common questions
Is Wise or Revolut FSCS-protected?
Neither. Both are FCA e-money institutions, so business balances are safeguarded (segregated at partner banks), not FSCS-protected to £85,000. For significant deposits, a full bank (e.g. Starling) is the FSCS-covered option. Disclose this distinction in any comparison.
Which is better for an affiliate?
It depends on your funnel. Wise’s 365-day cookie wins for evergreen content with a long research-to-conversion gap (and edges the EPC at $3.04); Revolut’s 2-year revshare wins for fast-converting, retaining audiences where recurring revenue compounds. They are opposite bets.
Which is better for international payments?
Wise, clearly. It is built around cross-border money at the mid-market rate, with multi-currency holdings and local account details abroad. Revolut handles multi-currency but leads on all-in-one breadth rather than best-in-class FX.
Can a business use both?
Yes, and many do — Wise for the cross-border/FX leg and Revolut (or a full bank) for the main operating account. The products are complementary, which is also why an affiliate comparison that frames both honestly can convert a reader who signs up for each.
The bottom line
Wise and Revolut split cleanly on both axes that matter. For the end user: Wise if the business is FX-heavy and cross-border, Revolut if it wants one all-in-one platform. For the affiliate: Wise’s one-time CPA behind a category-leading 365-day cookie, or Revolut’s 2-year revshare behind a short cookie — a real strategic choice driven by your funnel shape, with Wise edging the modelled EPC. Whichever you feature, disclose the shared caveat plainly: both are e-money institutions, safeguarded but not FSCS-protected, so a business holding large balances should understand exactly what protection the account carries.