Off topic but sure, some good points. There are lots of companies coming up for IPO and there will be lots of opinions about the viability of them.

It's incorrect to assert you can't make money from independent, uncorrelated order flow. That's exactly what you want if you're a market maker. In fact, there are times when it makes sense to do the opposite to charging fees (i.e. rebates). The more you get, the higher your potential profitability so yea, it could make sense. And yes, even at mid, it's possible to make money however counterintuitive it may seem.

And apologies for taking it off topic but re-reading the original post, for a large transfer such as a house sale proceeds, go for a broker. I'm sure there's advice around for brokers to use. Breaking that amount up to use something like Circle to save some fees doesn't make any sense.

You must be a millennial. Profits are not created by opinions or "order flows", nor is the viability of a company ultimately determined by opinions. A company cannot survive if does not make profits.

A few internet companies are not viable long term, and have survived this long on cash reserves and cash injections, eventually both will dry up. There are a few mighty big collapses to come - unless they find sources of income that exceed their cost base - that's not an opinion, it's basic accounting, with a pinch of corporate law.

Sure. It may sound flow-ery but it’s actually the technical term for it And hey, there's nothing with the term leverage That's a good and proper word I work in the industry although not in FX or for Circle for that matter. Or for a FinApp/FinTech. No stake either ... just trying to pass on some money saving advice. Try it out. Put in a $1000 into TransferWise and Circle and see what you get. It's not a huge difference but I'll take it where it comes. At time of writing, I get 760.50 GBP through TransferWise for $1000 USD. I can buy that same 760.50 GBP for $993.06 USD on Circle. That's like half a slice of avocado toast. Even if their business model is to throw away venture capital on an unrealistic notion of scale, let me be the recipient of it for more multigrain avocado toast! I guess that's no different to me being a very frequent Uber user as they sure aren't making money either but as a consumer, I'm taking advantage of unrealistically priced transportation.

Let me be very clear, there's nothing wrong with using a broker either. In fact, I should be actively encouraging it given what I do! It really depends on your use-case. For a large transaction like this one, it makes sense to use a broker because any fee should pale in comparison to the advice they can give you. I personally wouldn't simply ask for the "dealing desk rate" ... I'd ask them what's going on right now and use them for colour. Maybe it's a bad day for it. What's going on in forwards and options? (I apologise but there's no way around obfuscation genuinely trying to be helpful ... Google FX forwards and FX options). If I was moving the proceeds of a house which sounds like a pretty big deal, I'd want to be informed and advised to get the best deal for myself. There's potentially a whole lot of avocado toast to be had by timing it. You then assume the risk that the market may move against you but at least it's an informed decision rather than flying blind. Bear in mind, it's been very volatile with Brexit, Trump trying to take over the Fed, etc etc so even more reason to seek advice. I work in the industry and wouldn't move the proceeds of a house without consulting someone smarter than me.

Also bear in mind that the quoted "dealing desk rate" isn't necessarily going to be a wholesale price either. It's just the rate they're willing to deal with you at. It will be a function of the size of the order and your relationship with your broker. If it's a firm quote for a minute or two, it's definitely not the best they can do. They have to protect themselves against market movement and with a small transaction, will possibly see opportunity with you. It may be better to ask your broker to "work it" and possibly advise using an algo to secure you a better price if it's a large transaction. They're the professionals and you're paying for a service.

Also, mid has a variety of meanings. For simplicity's sake, TransferWise and Circle are close enough without getting technical. My point of reference is as someone who has refreshed TransferWise and Circle apps an unhealthy number of times whilst watching a Bloomberg terminal and where real markets are.