Flywire
Flywire collects tuition from students abroad, and bills for hospitals, hotels and businesses, in the payer's own currency, and posts it straight into the client's books.
The scores
Growth3/4 ↓
Revenue grew 26.6% in 2025 and 27.2% in Q2 2026, partly Sertifi and processing ramps; the second half is guided to the high teens.
Business quality3/4 →
Integrated clients stay, at 110% retention and renewals without tender, but universities list rivals beside it and rivals pay revenue shares.
Financial position4/4 →
No debt, about $167M of its own cash, an undrawn $300M line and $160.2M of operating cash flow over twelve months.
Execution record3/4 ↑
Beat its 10% to 14% guide for 2025 with 16.4% excluding Sertifi, and has raised 2026 from 15%-21% to 21%-27%; the 2025 reset cut staff.
Per share capture3/4 →
Stock pay runs near 10% of revenue, but buybacks cut the diluted count about 5% in two years and deals were paid in cash.
Potential2/4 ↓
Student flows are large but shrinking at the four main destinations; no payment volume is committed and the 30% margin target is undated.
Risk profile2/4 ↓
Volume rests on four governments' visa rules, each changed in a single announcement, and an open OFAC matter.
Valuation3/4 ↓
About 11.7 times guided adjusted EBITDA, 19.8 with stock pay, and 25.8 times 2027 earnings: the plan as guided, nothing beyond it.
Evidence quality3/4 →
Results, retention and contracts are filed or in public records; the country and vertical mix and the long-term targets are management's word.
The Verdict
We rate Flywire Neutral. It is a solid business: universities that plug its payments into their student systems rarely leave, and it grew about 27% last year even as Canada's student cap cut its Canadian revenue by almost 30%. The price is fair: at about 12 times the profit management guides for this year, roughly 20 once pay in shares is counted, it is right if the plan arrives, with no cushion if it slips. The view hinges on student visas. The US, UK and Australia are now admitting fewer new students, and whether growth elsewhere keeps outrunning that is not yet shown.
The long caseStudents keep crossing borders and universities want tuition collected and posted by software, not wires; Flywire must keep winning outside the four destinations now closing.
The evidence under this - 6 claims
Neither figure is filed: the 10-K reports revenue only by region and by fee type, so the diversification the case rests on cannot be checked against a filing.
The decline over two years tracks the visa cuts in Canada and Australia rather than lost clients, but the filing does not separate the two.
If free cash flow lands at the guided 70% to 75% of adjusted EBITDA (C25), about $127M, the price is about 17 times it, which reads cheaper than the EBITDA multiple once stock pay is counted.
Each of the four assumptions is a forecast of a government's decision, and each government has changed its rules in a single announcement: Canada's cap and Australia's planning level both arrived inside a year.
The company
A student in India owes a British university their tuition. Without Flywire they would wire the money through a bank, pay fees on both ends and send a reference the university's staff then match by hand.
Flywire lets them pay in rupees through a page inside the university's own student system; the money arrives in pounds, already labelled and posted. It does the same for hospitals, hotels and businesses, for about 5,300 clients, and most of its education revenue comes from large universities.
The evidence under this - 3 claims
The full-year release issued the day before put enterprise clients at 80% of education revenue, not about 90%, and churn is management's own measure, never filed (S20).
How it makes money
Most of the money, 80.7% of revenue in 2025, is a fee on each payment, largely the gap between the exchange rate it gets and the one it gives the payer. The rest is software subscriptions, such as payment plans and receivables tools, plus a little printing and mailing.
So revenue follows the volume of payments: $37.6B passed through in 2025. New clients for whom Flywire only processes card payments are adding volume fast, at a lower margin.
The evidence under this - 2 claims
Management attributes most of the gross margin fall to new payment-processing clients, which carry lower margins, so it measures mix as much as pricing (S04).
Where the money comes from, stream by stream
| Stream | Share of sales (FY 2025) | How it earns it |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction fees | 80.7% | Fees and currency spread on each payment Flywire collects, including card and processing fees for new payment-processing clients. |
| Platform and usage-based fees | about 16% | Software subscriptions and usage fees: payment plans, receivables, hotel payment and student financial software. |
| Ancillary services | about 3% | Printing and mailing for clients, which management leaves out of its main revenue measure. |
Who runs it
Mike Massaro has run Flywire since 2013, through its 2021 listing, and owns about 2.2% of it; directors and officers together hold 5.0%.
Their yearly bonus pays half on growth and half on the adjusted profit margin. Most of their pay, though, is shares that vest simply with time, with no condition on returns or the share price, and pay in shares costs shareholders about a tenth of revenue.
The evidence under this - 3 claims
Why it wins, and who could beat it
Why customers come back
Once Flywire is wired into a university's student system, changing provider means rebuilding that link and retraining staff. Clients stay: existing ones paid about 110% of the year before in 2025, and two UK universities renewed or extended without inviting rivals.
But staying is not exclusivity. Indiana University offers students Flywire, Convera and PayMyTuition side by side, so the student can pick the cheaper rate, and that 110% was 125% two years earlier.
The evidence under this - 4 claims
The decline over two years tracks the visa cuts in Canada and Australia rather than lost clients, but the filing does not separate the two.
The full-year release issued the day before put enterprise clients at 80% of education revenue, not about 90%, and churn is management's own measure, never filed (S20).
The threat
The oldest rival is the plain bank wire or a remittance company such as Western Union. Private providers compete for the same students, and in the US Nelnet runs tuition payment plans for many colleges.
Flywire's own annual report warns that rivals now offer universities a generous share of the fees. Outside education, billing platforms such as Paymentus compete for hospital payments.
The evidence under this - 4 claims
The rivals: NNI, WU, PAY, IIIV, and 2 more that are private, in-house or listed abroad.
Who else does this, rival by rival
| Ticker | Rival | Where it competes | How far along | Priced against it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | Convera and PayMyTuitionPriced against it: Private | Education payments | On sale | Private |
| NNI | NelnetPriced against it: Different product | Education payments | On sale | Different product |
| In-house | Colleges' own systemsPriced against it: In-house | Education payments | On sale | In-house |
| WU | Banks and remittance companies, such as Western UnionPriced against it: Different product | Education payments | On sale | Different product |
| PAY · IIIV | Paymentus and i3 VerticalsPriced against it: Different product | Healthcare, travel and business payments | On sale | Different product |
How big it could get
How big this could get
About 6.9 million students studied abroad in 2023, up from 2.1 million in 2000. In the US alone about 1.18 million international students contribute $42.9B a year.
The direction has turned where Flywire earns most. New international students in the US fell 17% in fall 2025, and Canada will admit at most 155,000 new ones in 2026. Nobody publishes how much tuition crosses borders, so the market cannot be sized in dollars.
The evidence under this - 3 claims
The count is of students, not of tuition paid across borders; no outside source prices the cross-border tuition flow, so the dollar market cannot be composed.
Who has signed
Contracts usually run three years and then renew yearly. UK public records show what two cost: Hertfordshire awarded Flywire £350,000 for three years after it was the only bidder, and Kent pays about £60,000 a year for its student finance software. No student is obliged to pay through Flywire, though.
The evidence under this - 2 claims
The results
The numbers
Sales grew 32% over the twelve months to Jun 2026, faster than the 27% in the year to Dec 2025.
Operating margin is 5.5%, up from −5.3% in the year to Dec 2023.
Yearly sales growth has ranged from +22% to +53% over the last 5 years.
Each dollar put into the business earns 3.9% a year after tax, about where it was (−0.9%) in the year to Dec 2024.
It turned 22% of sales into free cash, $159M over the last twelve months.
Free cash flow was 4.7 times net income.
The share count rose 72% in 4.5 years, and pay in shares costs 9.9% of sales.
All the numbers
Filed figures from the company's 10-K and 10-Q, read 2026-10-06. Fiscal years end in December.
| Dec 2021 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 | 12 mo to Jun 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Size and growth | ||||||
| Sales | $201M | $289M | $403M | $492M | $623M | $714M |
| Sales growth | +53% | +44% | +39% | +22% | +27% | +32% |
| Profit | ||||||
| Operating margin | −6.6% | −10% | −5.3% | −1.5% | 1.8% | 5.5% |
| Net margin | −14% | −14% | −2.1% | 0.6% | 2.2% | 4.8% |
| What growth costs, per sales dollar | ||||||
| Research and development | 16% | 17% | 15% | 14% | 11% | 10% |
| Sales and marketing | 26% | 27% | 27% | 26% | 25% | 23% |
| General and admin | 31% | 29% | 27% | 26% | 22% | 21% |
| Pay in shares | 9.4% | 10% | 11% | 13% | 12% | 9.9% |
| Capital spending | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| Cash | ||||||
| Cash from operations | $17.1M | $5.43M | $76.3M | $98.7M | $100M | $160M |
| Free cash flow | $16.1M | $4.07M | $75.3M | $97.7M | $98.8M | $159M |
| Balance sheet | ||||||
| Cash and short-term investments | $385M | $349M | $655M | $611M | $355M | $294M |
| Debt | $25.9M | $0 | - | $0 | - | - |
| Net cash | $359M | $349M | - | $611M | - | - |
| Returns and shares | ||||||
| Return on capital | - | - | - | −0.9% | 0.9% | 3.9% |
| Shares (diluted) | 71.2M | 108M | 115M | 129M | 128M | 122M |
What growth costs
Growth is getting cheaper. Selling, research and overheads have all fallen as a share of sales since 2024, and the operating margin moved from a small loss to 5.5% over the last twelve months. The one cost going the other way is what Flywire pays to move the money, as lower-margin card processing grows.
The evidence under this - 2 claims
The last report (4 Aug)
Quarter ended June 2026, filed figures.
In the June 2026 quarter revenue grew 27.2% to $167.7M and payment volume 38.2%. Much of the growth came from new clients for whom Flywire processes card payments, which is why gross margin fell to 53.4% from 57.0%. Education outside the four big destinations grew over 30%.
Management raised its 2026 growth guide again, to 21% to 27%, but said the second half would slow to the high teens. It now assumes 30% fewer new US student visas this year.
What it did to the thesisIt showed the business can grow through visa cuts, and the raised guide answered the doubt left by the 2025 reset. It left open whether growth outside the big four destinations can outrun the cuts once the processing ramps lapse.
The quarter in detail
Sales growth from the previous quarter, filed figures.
Earnings per share $-0.07 against $-0.02 expected; $-0.07 as filed, with no adjustments.
The evidence under this - 4 claims
Management attributes most of the gross margin fall to new payment-processing clients, which carry lower margins, so it measures mix as much as pricing (S04).
Management itself puts second-half growth in the high teens, and the mid-teens once the processing ramps are taken out (S04), so the full-year figure leans on a strong first half.
Each of the four assumptions is a forecast of a government's decision, and each government has changed its rules in a single announcement: Canada's cap and Australia's planning level both arrived inside a year.
Neither figure is filed: the 10-K reports revenue only by region and by fee type, so the diversification the case rests on cannot be checked against a filing.
What management did with the money
After buying Sertifi, hotel payment software, for $330M in cash in 2025, Flywire turned to buybacks: 12.1M shares since August 2024 at about $14.68, including every share held by its last pre-listing investor. About $123M of the programme is left.
Insiders in 2026Q3: 3 purchases and 33 sales, from their Form 4 filings.
The evidence under this - 2 claims
The price, and where we disagree
In short. Fair. The price pays for the 2026 plan as guided and for nothing beyond it, such as the 30% margin management targets.
The shares have risen 52.7% in six months and sit near their 52-week high, after falling 37.4% in a day in February 2025 when visa caps first cut the outlook. Most of the recent rise came from buyers paying more for each dollar of sales rather than from sales.
The next tests are close: third-quarter results on 3 November, the UK's cut to post-study work rights on 1 January 2027, and the 2027 guide in February.
The evidence under this - 4 claims
Management itself puts second-half growth in the high teens, and the mid-teens once the processing ramps are taken out (S04), so the full-year figure leans on a strong first half.
How we read the multiple
A buyer pays for this year's plan.
1. Management guides about $175M of adjusted profit before interest, tax and depreciation this year. 2. The company is valued at about $2.04B after its own cash, so about 12 times that. 3. Pay in shares, about $72M a year, is a real cost; counting it, the price is about 20 times that profit. 4. On analysts' forecast for 2027, the shares cost about 26 times earnings.
Fair for a business growing near 20% with no debt, little room if visas cut deeper.
Against its own history. Buyers now pay more for each dollar of sales than they did a year ago, after the business beat the outlook visa caps had cut.
The evidence under this - 4 claims
If free cash flow lands at the guided 70% to 75% of adjusted EBITDA (C25), about $127M, the price is about 17 times it, which reads cheaper than the EBITDA multiple once stock pay is counted.
Priced against its rivals
None of the listed rivals above sells the same thing to the same buyers as a large part of what it does. A price comparison needs at least two, so the price is judged against its own history instead.
Where we disagree with the market
A payments company hostage to student visas in four countries, on which analysts have cooled since June.
The growth outside those four is real and the 2026 plan credible, but the price already pays for it.
Flywire has already been through one round of visa cuts. In 2025 it guided growth of 10% to 14% and delivered 16.4%, excluding a purchase, while Canadian revenue fell almost 30%. Growth elsewhere is real, so we do not see it as a pure visa trade.
But the price has already risen with that evidence. Against us on the upside: the largest holder bought heavily below $15, and the 2027 forecast puts the shares at about 26 times earnings.
What analysts say, and the evidence
The evidence under this - 6 claims
Neither figure is filed: the 10-K reports revenue only by region and by fee type, so the diversification the case rests on cannot be checked against a filing.
Each of the four assumptions is a forecast of a government's decision, and each government has changed its rules in a single announcement: Canada's cap and Australia's planning level both arrived inside a year.
If free cash flow lands at the guided 70% to 75% of adjusted EBITDA (C25), about $127M, the price is about 17 times it, which reads cheaper than the EBITDA multiple once stock pay is counted.
What could go wrong, and how we would know
The risks
- Visas cut deeper Four governments set much of the volume, and each has changed its rules in one announcement; the guide already assumes 30% fewer new US visas.
- Rivals sharing fees Rivals offer universities a share of the fees, and existing clients' spending growth fell from 25% to 10% in two years.
- Margin on new volume Card processing for large new clients adds volume at lower margin, and it is not known whether those contracts renew.
- Sanctions review Flywire reported payments that may have come from sanctioned places to the US sanctions office, which has not ruled.
- Holders selling The largest holder sold over 540,000 shares near $19 in August, and executives sold through the summer under set plans.
The evidence under this - 6 claims
Each of the four assumptions is a forecast of a government's decision, and each government has changed its rules in a single announcement: Canada's cap and Australia's planning level both arrived inside a year.
The decline over two years tracks the visa cuts in Canada and Australia rather than lost clients, but the filing does not separate the two.
What we still do not know
- How much revenue comes from education, and from each of the four big destinations; the filings give only regions.
- What the US sanctions office will decide, and when.
- What margin the new card-processing clients carry, and whether they renew.
The evidence under this - 3 claims
Neither figure is filed: the 10-K reports revenue only by region and by fee type, so the diversification the case rests on cannot be checked against a filing.
Management itself puts second-half growth in the high teens, and the mid-teens once the processing ramps are taken out (S04), so the full-year figure leans on a strong first half.
What would change our view
- Neutral→AttractiveA cheaper price on an unchanged plan
It needs:
- ○The company is valued at 9 times this year's guided adjusted profit, from about 12 today.about ≈$14.02 today, 23% below the last close
- Neutral→Attractive2027 is guided past the visa cuts
It needs all of:
- ○The 2027 guide calls for growth above 15% and an adjusted profit margin of at least 25%.checked at the next results, due by 3 Nov
- ○The company is still valued at no more than 11 times this year's guided adjusted profit when that guide arrives.about ≈$17.13 today, 6% below the last close
- Neutral→UnattractiveGrowth falls to the visa trend
It needs:
- ○The 2027 guide calls for growth below 12%, the visa trend winning.checked at the next results, due by 3 Nov
We would also be wrong if
- 2026 growth finishes below 21%, the bottom of the guide.
- Existing clients' spending growth falls below 5% in 2026.
- The US sanctions office imposes a material penalty or blocks a payment route.
What is coming
- 3 November 2026 Q3 2026 results: Growth against the 16% to 22% guide and whether the 2026 margin step holds as visas fall.
Every dated event ahead
- 3 November 2026 Q3 2026 results: Growth against the 16% to 22% guide and whether the 2026 margin step holds as visas fall.
- 1 January 2027 UK post-study work rights cut to 18 months: Whether UK applications for the following year fall, a quarter of revenue by management's count.
- 28 February 2027 Q4 2026 results and the 2027 guide: Whether 2027 is guided near 25% margin with growth above 15%, and the year's visa assumptions.
Since we wrote this
- 6 OctThesis writtenNeutral, medium convictionWritten a month before Q3 results, with the shares up 52.7% in six months and near their 52-week high.
Also checked 3 times with nothing new to act on.
Sources 21
Sources - 21
Every claim above cites one of these, or states the reasoning that derived it. The quote is frozen at the date it was read: a link can rot, and an agent fetch returns a reading of a page rather than the page. Backs counts the whole claim ledger, so it can name a claim this page does not surface.
- S01primarycompany filing2026-02-24what it sells, verticals, client counts, integrations and partners, contract terms, the competition classes, the revenue-sharing risk, visa policy in four countries, OFAC, licences, acquisitions, FY2025 statements and net dollar retentionbacksC01C02C06C09C10C12C15C18C21C24C34C35C37C38
- S02primarycompany filing2026-08-05Q2 2026 statements, cash, the revolver, goodwill, stock pay, the buyback and the non-voting share repurchase, the OFAC disclosurebacksC03C22C23C24C35C37C38
- S03primarycompany release2026-08-04Q2 2026 revenue, revenue less ancillary services, payment volume, margins, adjusted EBITDA, the 2026 and Q3 outlook, buybacks and client countsbacksC01C03C04C23
- S04primarytranscript2026-08-04Flywire Q2 2026 earnings call transcript (FMP), held 4 August 2026the visa assumptions behind the guide, growth outside the four big destinations, the long-term targets, free cash flow conversion, stock pay and dilution plans, the second-half growth shape and SFS results
revenue churn across enterprise clients in education and travel below 1% as of 2025
backsC04C05C07C11C25C36 - S05primarytranscript2026-02-25Flywire Q4 2025 earnings call transcript (FMP), held 25 February 2026enterprise share of education and travel revenue, churn, integrations, Canada's 2025 revenue fall, signed ARR and sales and marketing as a share of revenue
approximately 90% of our education revenue and over 70% of our travel revenue come from
backsC07C11 - S06primarycompany filing2026-04-23major holders, insider ownership, the bonus metrics and payout, long-term awards, and 2025 growth excluding SertifibacksC24C31C32C33
- S07secondaryvendor data2026-10-06Research pack (FMP market tier and FINRA short interest), fetched 6 October 2026price, market value, 52-week range, return and its split, analyst estimates and ratings series, earnings surprises, short interest, insider statistics and headcountbacksC26C27C29C30C31C34
- S08primarycompany release2025-02-25the 2025 outlook of 10% to 14% FX-neutral growth excluding Sertifi and the 10% workforce restructuringbacksC31
- S09primaryindustry data2025-11NAFSA: Fall 2025 International Student Enrollment Snapshot, economic impact overview NAFSA: Association of International Educatorsthe fall 2025 decline in US new international enrollment, and the 2024-25 count of 1,177,766 students contributing $42.9B
survey findings revealed a 17 percent decline in new student enrollment, contributing to a 7 percent decline in total enrollment minus students on Optional Practical Training (OPT)
backsC08C19 - S10primarygovernment data2026Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: 2026 allocations under the international student cap Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship CanadaCanada's 2026 study permit cap and the fall in permit holders from over 1 million to about 725,000
IRCC expects to issue up to 408,000 study permits, including 155,000 to newly arriving international students
backsC06 - S11primaryotherundated, retrieved 2026-10-06Indiana University, Student Central: paying in a foreign currency Indiana Universitya client university offering three international payment providers side by side
If you're an international student, you may pay your student account from your home country by using PayMyTuition, Flywire or Convera.
backsC13 - S12primarygovernment data2026-01-16Find a Tender (UK Cabinet Office): University of Kent direct award to Flywire for Student Financial Software UK Cabinet Office, Find a Tender servicea £300,000 direct award, an annual software fee of £60,000 including VAT, five years with a break after one
The University currently contracts with Flywire for its online credit/debit card payment processing. The University is looking to implement Flywire's Student Financial Software (SFS) Solution which will integrate with Unit 4 ERP.
backsC14 - S13primarygovernment data2025-09-23Find a Tender (UK Cabinet Office): University of Hertfordshire online payments and student debt management, notice 059034-2025 UK Cabinet Office, Find a Tender servicea £350,000 award to Flywire Payments Ltd on one tender received, three years plus two
It is intended that the contract will run for an initial period of three years with the option to extend by a further two years in one-year increments
backsC14 - S14primarycompany filing2026-02-26Nelnet Business Services' tuition payment plan and payment processing revenue, and who it says competes for campus payments
In this market, the primary competition is from a relatively small number of campus commerce and tuition payment providers, as well as solutions developed in-house by colleges and universities.
backsC16 - S15primarycompany filing2024-11-22a rival naming Flywire among its competitors, beside Paymentus and Waystar
Paymentus Holdings, Inc., Flywire Corp
backsC17 - S16primarycompany filing2026-02-24bill payment for billers including education and healthcare, used by about 53 million payers
We are a leading provider of cloud-based bill payment technology and solutions.
backsC17 - S17primarycompany filing2026-02-20the remittance class Flywire's 10-K names as its primary competition
is a leader in cross-border, cross-currency money movement, payments, and digital financial services
backsC18 - S18secondarynewsundated, retrieved 2026-10-06The PIE News: internationally mobile students triple in 20 years (reporting UNESCO data) The PIE NewsUNESCO's count of internationally mobile students
According to new data released by UNESCO, the number of internationally mobile students reached nearly 6.9 million in 2023, marking a 228% increase from 2.1 million students in 2000.
backsC19 - S19primarycompany filing2026-10-06each open-market trade with its Rule 10b5-1 flagbacksC30
- S20primarycompany release2026-02-24the first 2026 outlook of 15% to 21% growth and 150 to 350 basis points of margin, and enterprise clients at 80% of education revenuebacksC04
- S21primarycompany release2026-08-04the corporate cash walk: $217M to $167M in the quarter after buybacks, and $467M of liquidity with the credit linebacksC22