5 recent announcements on remittance services in Asia
By Edil Corneille
The remittance market globally was previously dominated by a few big incumbents. The industry has witnessed several developments with partnerships by banks, FinTechs, and other institutions. Remittance payment services play a major role in facilitating financial inclusion in countries that are developing who have a large segment of the population that are underbanked or underserved. The COVID-19 pandemic has also acted as a catalyst in the faster rollout of services by companies for individuals where social distancing has been the present norm and handling of physical cash is considered risky. Below are the recent announcements on the developments relating to partnerships and rollout of services in Asia.
TrueMoney and Thunes
TrueMoney, a Southeast Asian FinTech, has partnered with global cross-border payment company Thunes to expand its remittance services globally. The collaboration enables TrueMoney users to receive remittances from anywhere in the world via Thunes’ global partner network, which operates in over 100 countries and in 60 currencies. Myanmar is expected to be the first country to benefit from the partnership, and it will shortly enable all sending partners of Thunes to have access to TrueMoney’s agent network across Southeast Asia.
Bank Alfalah and TerraPay
Amsterdam-based TerraPay, a global payments infrastructure company, and Bank Alfalah have announced a partnership for offering remittance payment services in Pakistan. Citizens of Pakistan will be able to use partner networks of TerraPay for the instant deposit of money to any bank account in the country. The Pakistani bank is reinforcing its commitment to facilitate cross-border remittances through its overseas partners comprising of FinTechs, money transfer operators, and money service businesses among others.
TranSwap
Singapore-based TranSwap, a cross-border payments platform for businesses has launched an e-remittance service for employers of foreign domestic workers (FDWs). With the service, money can be digitally sent to families by FDW’s. The launch comes at a time where the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has made it challenging for individuals to access remittance services so that they can send money to support their families. The home-grown FinTech start-up provides services mainly for SMEs and businesses, but they are now stepping up to help FDWs affected by the circuit breaker measures.
Western Union and TrueMoney
Western Union announced its collaboration with TrueMoney today which benefits Filipinos to receive remittances from all around the world. Customers will initially be able to receive money at select TrueMoney locations, easily identifiable by the Western Union signage indicating service availability, and eventually at more than 5,000 locations across the Philippines. Western Union serves customers from a large network of agent locations offering convenience to customers in the country. Customers are advised to check the agent locator link for the status of the nearest locations.
Commercial Bank of Dubai and Thunes
The Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD) and Thunes have collaborated to facilitate real-time cross-border transaction flows between the UAE and the rest of the world. The bank will be able to cater to the corridors of India, Philippines, Pakistan, and Bangladesh as customers will be provided with real-time remittances to the bank accounts, mobile wallets, and cash pick-up services at various locations. CBD customers are enabled to transfer money in real-time to their respective countries in a convenient, quick, and secure way through the CBD Mobile App or CBD’s online banking platform.
IBSi FinTech Journal
- Most trusted FinTech journal since 1991
- Digital monthly issue
- 60+ pages of research, analysis, interviews, opinions, and rankings
- Global coverage