Verification of Payee (VoP) is a name-checking service that helps individuals and businesses verify if their recipient’s name matches the name on the account that they’re about to pay to. It applies to payments sent to IBANs from EU countries where you can send EUR to.
It's aim is to make sure that people are sending money to the correct account, and it’s part of a greater effort by European financial institutions to tackle scams and fraud.
Always double-check whether you’re sending money to the right person or business before finishing the payment.
Learn more about cancelling completed transfers.
Sending money to a EUR recipient with Wise
When sending to or setting up a new EUR recipient within the SEPA zone, we’ll tell you if the name you entered matches the one listed for this IBAN. We’ll also let you know if we haven’t been able to check the name
If you decide to continue without receiving confirmation of the name being correct, we may not be able to recover your money if it ends up in the wrong account.
Matching outcomes
When you set up a new EUR recipient using their IBAN, we’ll automatically check their name with their bank. You’ll receive one of these outcomes before sending your payment:
Match — the name completely matches the account holder’s name, so you can safely send your payment.
Close match — the name is similar, but it’s not an exact match, like ‘Mick Jager’ instead of ‘Mick Jagger’
No match — the name doesn’t match the account. Check the correct details with your recipient before sending money, as wrong payments can be difficult to recover
Could not confirm name match — this may happen if the VoP is unavailable, the recipient account is closed or doesn’t exist at the recipient bank. Double-check all the details with your recipient before sending.
When you select a saved recipient we previously checked
Name checks happen automatically each time that you add a new recipient or sending money to a EUR IBAN recipient that’s in the SEPA zone. This includes when you’re making a batch payment on your business account, and the batch includes transfers to EUR recipients.
You can still send out money regardless of the match result. However, if you choose to proceed with the transfer after receiving the No match warning, you’ll be liable for the transfer if it’s fraudulent.
Receiving money to your Wise EUR account
When someone sends money to your Wise EUR account, their bank might check the name they enter against your Wise account details. All information is transmitted securely between banks. Your name is only shown to senders when there’s a match or close match. If it’s a No match, your name won’t appear to the sender.
What to share with your senders
Give the sender your account name and IBAN exactly as they appear on your Wise account, including correct spelling and any middle names.