Mobetize

How Mobetize Is Removing friction Within Remittance

With Canada becoming a more diverse and globalized country than ever before, newcomers are in search of efficient and affordable methods to send money to loved ones in their home countries. 

However, this search hasn’t been easy. Factors such as transfer fees, inconvenient sending/receiving options, and a low level of trust between members and institutions leave limited and expensive options for international money transfers. 

Celero’s fintech partner, Mobetize, aims to solve this issue. Through a seamless digital experience, Mobetize is empowering both financial institutions and members to transfer money across borders, easily, securely and affordably. 

And beyond ease and affordability, effective remittance solutions like Mobetize’s smartRemit, can actually solve larger societal issues, which a recent Forbes article explores. 

The Growth of remittance
As our global economy continues to grow, increasing importance has been placed on the efficiency and security of the money Canadians are transferring to in other countries. 

Dante Disparte, author of the Forbes article, says that international money transfers could be considered the world’s most important international cash flow, given the nature of the transaction being very different from international grants, FDIs, and other such cross-border cash flows. 

“Compared to other cross-border capital flows, such as foreign direct investment or official development assistance… remittances are not only a bigger overall figure, they are more persistent,” explains Disparte.

Credit unions that stay ahead of the trend and start investing in creating an efficient and secure process for their members will benefit from the opportunity that remittance represents. Mobetize can not only provide a more economical option compared to the credit union’s current remittance partners, it can also enable them to launch migrant specific products in their portfolio. 
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Remittance globally over the last three years:
  • $483 billion in 2017 (estimated transfer cost of $30 billion)
  • $529 billion in 2018
  • $550 billion in 2019 

According to a study on international money transfers from Canada, in 2017 alone, 37% of Canadian residents born in countries eligible for Official Development Assistance (ODA) sent money abroad to relative or and friends, equating to $24.5 billion in one year. On average, remitters are sending $2,855 a year!
As Canadians continue to support their friends and family in other countries, we have also seen a growth in money that is being sent through a business-to-business relationship. Not only is Canada sending this money to help support ODA, we are also continuing to receive remittance from other countries as well. To highlight one of our main remittance partners, the United States is currently sending Canada $1.1 billion USD, making up 66 per cent of the remittance sent to Canada each year. 

Remittance solutions and global impacts
It is no secret that Canadians are extremely fortunate to have the established financial system because of which, credit unions can look towards creating a portfolio of products and services that enable their members to help loved ones in other parts of the world that may be underbanked and financially impoverished. 
According to Forbes, some of the impacts of peer-to-peer remittance are:
  • Reaching the unbanked or underbanked in other countries. For example, 85% of people in Egypt do not have a bank account
  • Contributing to an inclusive banking environment
  • Avoiding the risks of sending money to people in countries where terrorism or corruption is a problem, as remittances are overlooked as a meaningful money source

Reducing friction
But the dominant forms of international money transfer are creating barriers to realising the benefits that remittance can bring around the world, including specifically around accessibility and cost. Mobetize understands the various pain points within the process, such as:
  • Physically attending a branch 
  • Carrying cash 
  • Strenuous paperwork 
  • Money/time involved in travelling to collection sites 
  • High transaction fees 

With the growth of remittance, the transfer fees have only continued to increase. Currently, it is 10 times more expensive to send remittance compared to domestic transfers.
Because of these pain points, Mobetize transformed traditional remittance into a simplified digital experience that allows consumers to digitally transfer money all over the world with multiple pickup options.

In addition, as the Mobetize solution reduces the friction within the process, it also adheres to all regulatory guideline, allowing your credit union to focus on increasing member satisfaction.

“Removing friction from official remittance flows can have a measurable impact on financial inclusion and keep the economic flywheel turning,” concludes Disparte.
Solving these pain points are part of the solution that Mobetize creates around remittance. Mobetize understands the importance of member satisfaction for every credit union, therefore they have placed it at the centre of their solution, with all factors of their solution contributing to it.

Originally published by Celero. Click here to read the original article.