Yes but thinly. Ebury reported FY23/24 revenue of £220.6m (year ended April 2024) with EBITDA of £9m, a margin of roughly 4 percent, per its own January 2025 press release announcing the ArcaPay acquisition.

Banco Santander is majority owner. It first took a 50.1% stake for c.£350m in April 2020, then invested a further £50m in an April 2026 funding round led by Centerbridge Partners, lifting its stake to 55%.

Is Ebury going public?

Not yet. In November 2023 Ebury's CEO said it hired Perella Weinberg to explore an IPO as soon as 2025, but that did not happen; instead it raised c.£550m in private funding from Centerbridge in April 2026.

Who is Ebury's biggest competitor?

Wise is far larger and public, dominating the self-serve FX lane per its June 2026 full-year results, while Airwallex is climbing upmarket into Ebury's midcap FX, hedging and trade-finance segment.

Could AI replace Ebury?

Not the core business. Ebury deployed an internal AI Sales Academy built with ElevenLabs/ElevenAgents for 600+ staff in June 2026, but its licensed FX and trade-finance advisory work, spanning 30 regulated markets, remains human-led.

Is Ebury still growing fast?

Growth has decelerated. Revenue rose only 8% to £220.6m in FY23/24 (year ended April 2024), down from a 42% CAGR in prior years, even as customer count grew 24% YoY to over 16,700.

Payments companies · subsidiary of Banco Santander · United Kingdom

Ebury

ebury.com ↗

Cross-border FX and payments firm for SMEs, majority owned by Santander since 2020.

Protection under test

Assessed 21 July 2026 · Evidence as of 21 July 2026

Something worth protecting exists and is being tested right now.

On the recordSince 21 July 2026 · Checkable from Q1 2027 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Santander completes deconsolidation of Ebury via equity method accounting

The call

Ebury has real regulatory cover and Santander backing, but growth has slowed sharply and rivals like Airwallex are pushing into the same midcap FX territory.

Ebury helps businesses send money and manage currency risk across 30 countries, earning most of its money from straightforward currency exchanges and payments. It has real advantages: government licenses in many countries, access to Santander's huge customer base, and specialized data about trade finance that rivals cannot easily copy. But companies like Wise and Airwallex offer cheaper, simpler self-serve options that are winning the basic money-moving business, and new AI tools may soon automate even more payment tasks, squeezing Ebury's profits on its biggest revenue source. The question that matters most is whether Ebury can grow its higher-margin, harder-to-automate services (like hedging strategies for mid-sized companies) fast enough to offset the margin pressure from low-cost rivals eating into its commodity FX business.

Why

AI pressure: None apparent. AI payment automation could compress hedging and FX margins over time, but no specific agent is displacing Ebury's business yet. Could AI do the core job? Only partly.

Bigger players: Airwallex and Wise Business. Both are moving into midcap FX and hedging with self-serve platforms, squeezing the commodity FX volume Ebury depends on most. Could a giant copy it? No, they are blocked.

What protects it. Regulatory licenses across 30 markets plus Santander's balance sheet and distribution keep the high-touch trade-finance business defended.

What would change this call

Santander's deconsolidation of Ebury completes or stalls around Q1 2027. Shows whether regulators and Santander view Ebury as an independent, self-sustaining business or still reliant on parent support.
Ebury's next annual results show revenue growth above or below 15% with EBITDA margin near or below 4%. Indicates whether Ebury is closing in on Santander's 2028 targets or remaining stuck in low-margin commodity FX.
Airwallex publicly launches or expands a midcap FX, hedging, or trade-finance product targeting Ebury's core SME segment. Confirms Airwallex is moving upmarket into Ebury's defended, higher-margin niche, not just competing on commodity FX.

Key numbers

FY23/24 revenue £220.6m, up only 8% YoY (2024-04-30)
EBITDA margin around 4% on £9m EBITDA (2024-04-30)
£550m raised led by Centerbridge, Santander stake to 55% (2026-04-30)

Named risks

Revenue growth decelerated to 8% YoY in FY23/24 from a prior 42% CAGR. Severity: high
EBITDA margin of only ~4% in FY23/24 versus Santander's 2028 target of ~45%. Severity: high
Self-serve rivals Wise and Airwallex compress margins in commodity FX and payments. Severity: medium
2025 IPO target announced Nov 2023 was missed, delaying liquidity for shareholders. Severity: medium
Santander deconsolidation and Centerbridge deal completion depend on regulatory approval by Q1 2027. Severity: low

Rivals, as read in July 2026

Rival	Direction	Evidence
Wise	losing to	Wise is public and far larger, dominating self-serve FX per its June 2026 full-year results
Airwallex	gaining on	Airwallex is climbing upmarket into midcap FX, hedging and trade-finance as of 2026
Convera	contesting	Rebranded Western Union Business Solutions competes in overlapping SME cross-border payments space
Payoneer	contesting	Listed as alternative provider in cross-border payments and money transfer space through 2026

Questions people ask

Is Ebury profitable?: Yes but thinly. Ebury reported FY23/24 revenue of £220.6m (year ended April 2024) with EBITDA of £9m, a margin of roughly 4 percent, per its own January 2025 press release announcing the ArcaPay acquisition.
Who owns Ebury?: Banco Santander is majority owner. It first took a 50.1% stake for c.£350m in April 2020, then invested a further £50m in an April 2026 funding round led by Centerbridge Partners, lifting its stake to 55%.
Is Ebury going public?: Not yet. In November 2023 Ebury's CEO said it hired Perella Weinberg to explore an IPO as soon as 2025, but that did not happen; instead it raised c.£550m in private funding from Centerbridge in April 2026.
Who is Ebury's biggest competitor?: Wise is far larger and public, dominating the self-serve FX lane per its June 2026 full-year results, while Airwallex is climbing upmarket into Ebury's midcap FX, hedging and trade-finance segment.
Could AI replace Ebury?: Not the core business. Ebury deployed an internal AI Sales Academy built with ElevenLabs/ElevenAgents for 600+ staff in June 2026, but its licensed FX and trade-finance advisory work, spanning 30 regulated markets, remains human-led.
Is Ebury still growing fast?: Growth has decelerated. Revenue rose only 8% to £220.6m in FY23/24 (year ended April 2024), down from a 42% CAGR in prior years, even as customer count grew 24% YoY to over 16,700.

Timeline

2026-06-28Ebury launches AI Sales Academy with ElevenLabs/ElevenAgents for 600+ staff across 30+ markets
2026-04-30Ebury secures c.£550m from Centerbridge; Santander invests £50m more, stake rises to 55%
2025-12-31Ebury processed 1.9M+ payments in 2025, up 31% YoY, per its 2025 Wrapped recap
2025-01-14Ebury announces acquisition of Lithuanian payments provider ArcaPay
2023-11-06Ebury hires Perella Weinberg to explore IPO as soon as 2025
2020-04-29Santander completes c.£350m investment for 50.1% stake in Ebury
2009Ebury founded in London by Juan Lobato and Salvador Garcia

Revision history

21 July 2026

First assessed. Protection under test. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.

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