We’re Attending Money20/20 | 6-8 June 2023

We’re delighted that our Associate Sales Director, Oussama Kseibati, will be attending the upcoming Money20/20 live fintech conference in Amsterdam, and is excited to connect with prospects and valued clients.

If you plan to attend Money20/20, we’d love to set up a meeting and explore a possible relationship between RemitONE and your company.

Schedule a meeting with the RemitONE team by emailing sales@remitone.com

We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to connect with valued members of our industry and discover opportunities for a successful collaboration!

The Silicon Valley Bank Collapse: Challenges and Opportunities in the Money Transfer Industry? 

Silicon Valley (SVB) was the go-to bank for many tech startups and its recent fall has left a sense of uncertainty within the community, with many wondering if this will impact their own banks. In this article we’ll focus on the aftermath of SVB’s collapse, exploring what it means for the industry and the opportunities it offers for innovation and advancement in the payments and remittance spaces. 

First, let’s backtrack to how this happened in the first place, and explore the warning signs. The foreshadowing of SVB’s downfall began with their investment in treasury bonds which later hit them with a major blow as interest rates spiked up in an attempt to slow down inflation. The unprecedentedly sharp increase in withdrawals outnumbered their deposits as venture capitalists were investing less in startups whilst customers were withdrawing their funds at an accelerated pace. This made matters worse for SVB, as they had to provide the funds to compensate for the loss, and in desperation, they sold their bonds at a much lesser value, resulting in a huge loss of $1.8 bn.  

What effect has this had on the money transfer industry?  

Challenge #1: Slower Operations and Increased Costs 

SVB’s collapse caused considerable hindrances for payroll, resulting in delayed or unpaid payments to employees. This also may have led to a shortage of staff and disruptions to money transfer companies’ day-to-day operations, leaving businesses understaffed and unable to resolve customer issues or complaints.  

As a result of these setbacks, customers may have experienced missed or delayed transfers, which must have had a serious impact on the customer’s trust and confidence in the money transfer market. Businesses may have suffered from a decline in transaction volumes and revenue slowdowns as a result. 

Solution #1: Rebuild Customer Relationship 

Money Transfer Operators (MTOs) must win back customer trust. They can achieve this by investing in a secure and scalable technology platform that is built on a robust infrastructure. Additionally, offering a range of services beyond simply money transfers (e.g. utility bill payments, wallet transfers, airtime etc), can also help gain customer trust.

MTOs can also strive to offer even more competitive rates and lower transaction fees, which not only attracts new customers but helps retain trust with existing ones. Cost reduction can happen by investing in technology that automates processes and compliance procedures and opens up new revenue-sourcing channels such as mobile apps and online portals. 

Challenge #2: Difficulty for Immigrant Communities 

The remittance market thrives hugely on transactions by immigrants who send money to their home countries. 

With the exit of some smaller players, larger companies can gain more bargaining power to increase the costs of fees and charges; this burden is then passed onto the end customers, making it more difficult for the latter to send money to their loved ones.  

Solution #2: This problem may, in fact, prompt a change in customer behaviour. For example, challenging circumstances can often push people to explore alternate routes which they may have been hesitant to use before, such as mobile money. This may result in traditional banks losing some of their dominance over digital banks, allowing the latter to gain market share, especially as they often have lower fees and are more convenient.  

In addition, digital banks are continuing to gain ground in the money transfer market; this may likely continue as more people become tech-savvy and embrace its benefits. It is crucial for MTOs and digital banks to evolve and adapt to meet customers’ changing needs by monitoring the market and consistently updating their marketing strategy. 

Challenge # 3: Tighter Regulation 

The Federal Reserve introduced a new program to help tackle instability and safeguard companies impacted by SVB’s downfall. Similarly, this could inspire money transfer regulators to also introduce tighter rules and regulations around monitoring and tracking transactions using reliable technology platforms. 

However, there are some downsides as well, including a slowdown in operations and higher costs. A rise in compliance expenses may also result in companies having to exert more money to invest in new technology or additional staff to comply with regulations. This is especially challenging for smaller companies that may not have sufficient funds. It can also lead to increased delays in transactions as agents and companies need to perform additional checks. 

Solution #3: Despite these challenges, this could in fact improve compliance practices in many companies. With reliable technology platforms to enforce transactional monitoring and process automation in place, companies can reduce the risk of fraud and improve their security measures. All of these improvements will aid in strengthening the money transfer industry and allow it to become more reliable than ever. 

The Outcome for the Industry: Innovation Opportunity  

Despite the challenges brought about by the recent instability in the payments and money transfer industries, this situation can also stimulate growth opportunities. 

As areas of weakness within businesses are revealed, a better understanding of how to improve processes and systems will also become apparent. In addition, the retreat of some tech companies will provide opportunities for new players to enter with fresh ideas, products and services. Simultaneously, it encourages industry players to collaborate in finding solutions as each can provide their area of expertise to resolve the problem, creating beneficial progress.  

RemitONE and other tech providers can help companies affected by the SVB collapse. 

Don’t miss out on industry insights – join our community of professionals and be the first to hear about trending topics, exciting events and more! 

Contact marketing@remitone.com to find out more. 

Video: Saving the Crucial Role of Agents and Banks in the Remittance Industry

Brought to you by RemitONE, the Innovation in Payments and Remittances (IPR) Global Hybrid event took place on 19-20 October 2022 and included a series of fantastic discussions.

Wallets have been on the rise in recent years which has forced banks to embrace technological advancements to keep up with the pace of digital innovations in the remittance industry. In this panel, we uncover the driving forces behind this change and the possible impact it may have on banks, agents, and the overall money transfer landscape in the coming years.

Moderator:

• Ababacar Seck, Managing Director – Africa, RemitONE

Our panellists include:

• Sharon Gibson, CEO, JMMB Money Transfer
• Leon Isaacs, Founder and CEO, DMA Global
• George Boateng, COO, Unity Link

Why are pay-out transactions shifting to wallets? 

There’s been an increase in the popularity of pay-out transactions through wallets, due to their accessibility and simplicity. This upward trend is particularly prominent in Asia and Africa. For example, in Ghana, the mobile money market reached $121.8 Billion in 2022 and is expected to grow to $590.7 Billion by 2028. George believes the reason behind this is attributed to factors such as convenience, as wallets are more easily within reach than banks, and overall save time and effort.

Leon also reinforces, wallets are often preferable as they’re easy to use which means people don’t require additional assistance. Other drivers are, the senders have more options, people have become more digitally savvy and most notably, it’s cheaper. Another key benefit of wallets is their increased security due to tokenization, which is a unique identification number attached to any personal information such as account numbers.

However, it’s not the same in every region. Sharon shares that in Jamaica there’s only one institute that offers mobile wallets, but that could change very soon. The recent launch of CBDC can possibly encourage more institutions to embrace digital wallets.

How can banks and traditional agents cope in the digital era?

Leon states in many cases it’s rare for agents or banks to be solely a remittance business. While they may have their core purpose, they should adapt and diversify their services to progress ahead in the competitive market. Sharon suggests that banks can collaborate with more agents to offer their products and services and satisfy client needs, however, there need to be adequate technology capabilities in place for it to be a success.

Data shows that customers prefer the physical contact of agents as they instil trust and provide clear guidance when a problem occurs, as opposed to communicating with a bot. A study even found that 64% of customers commented that they could not solve a problem when using mobile apps to transfer money. Overall, agents play a crucial role in building customer trust and loyalty especially as a large proportion of transactions are still carried out in stores and not through digital means, which proves they still hold a strong position.

There are different considerations for the send and receiving end for agents. The pandemic did accelerate a surge in people adopting digital payments and transactions which resulted in a lesser need for people to visit agents, and it’s likely that this will continue. As for the pay-out side, there is potential for agents to educate customers as online accessibility varies in countries where people are still hesitant about online banking and money transfers – this creates a good chance for agents to bridge the gap by acting as the intermediaries between clients and digital payments. Customers already trust these agents, which makes it more probable for them to adopt changes with the agents’ help.

Leveraging technology is another technique agents can utilise to enhance efficiency and strengthen their role further. For instance, many people have formed personal relationships with agents but sometimes lack financial literacy. In such cases, agents can take advantage of innovations such as card readers to increase customer security and reinforce the trust clients have in them. This can solidify the bond between the agent and client as well.

MNOs are taking over transactions led by banks, is this healthy? What does this mean for the future of final inclusion?

There is no denying that competition drives innovation and MNOs gaining the lead has pressured banks to also step up their game to progress ahead. MNOs often educate the underbanked on how to use their products, an area where banks are lacking. There’s also greater flexibility with MNOs, as people can instantly access their digital funds from the comfort of their homes without the need for documentation and physical visits to the bank, helping them to save precious time.

MNOs particularly boast a good distribution of agents across both send and pay-out. However, their products excel in locations where there is a vast digital presence (although they still have a huge potential to increase penetration of financial services, which will continue to encourage financial inclusion). In locations where there is good digital infrastructure, the need for agents to pay out cash is also lessened, this creates a window of opportunity for them to diversify their products and services. One example is M-pesa in Africa, where digital wallets are the primary method of payment. As a result, customers rarely use physical cash, which suggests that people will only need to visit a branch for a specific need unrelated to money transfers or cash-outs.

The changing face of remittance clients requires a new approach, how can MTOs keep on top of the needs of clients and how will this affect the business model?

In contrast to the past, migrants are more skilled individuals and therefore less reliant on agents, demonstrating increased digital literacy. As a result, the power balance has shifted to the customers, with the internet providing easy access for them to quickly switch to other companies if they are unsatisfied with the service.

Clients also tend to focus more on convenience, such as banking being available everywhere at any time and more demand for receiving immediate results. This places a heavy burden on banks – they often have to increase their costs to expand their workforce and enhance their operations more robustly. However, with the increasing popularity of social media, email, live chat and phone, it becomes challenging for the banks to meet the demand – this can lead to dissatisfaction, complaints and negative reviews, overall damaging the brand’s reputation.

To minimise this problem, Sharon proposes a collaborative relationship between banks and agents, to exchange knowledge and expertise and gain a thorough understanding of the client’s needs. Leon explains that companies need to rethink their strategies to maintain a close connection with clients whilst keeping pace with their changing needs. However, a positive takeaway is that customers are benefiting from having their needs finally met and the industry continues to thrive.

Can technology help agents preserve their role?

Whilst technology can be costly, it can be a useful tool to streamline operations more effectively. One way is gathering accurate data in a more interactive way instead of relying on traditional surveys. Social media platforms like Twitter polls can help analyse consumer behaviour, identifying factors which motivate them to pick specific agents over others.

As the rapid surge of digitalisation continues, more businesses are having to adapt. At RemitONE, we play a pivotal role in helping banks shift to the online realm. Our software empowers agents to provide customers with user-friendly portals whilst providing an array of options for them to choose from, such as airtime top-ups, prepaid card services and more. By utilising our industry-leading software, you can increase your transaction rates whilst maintaining top-notch security through our AML and KYC checks. This results in a seamless process from send to pay-out. You can also gain access to our global network of clients and partners that we have built over decades for you to access right away, saving you time, cost and headache. 

Interested in powering up your business? Get in touch with our experts to provide your customers with a secure, convenient, and exceptional money-transfer experience.

Tap into our experts and schedule a free consultation.

References

https://www.imarcgroup.com/ghana-mobile-money-market

https://www.westernunion.com/blog/en/leery-of-how-digital-wallets-work-let-us-break-it-down-for-you/

https://thefinancialbrand.com/news/digital-banking/mobile-banking-trends/what-consumers-actually-want-from-their-banks-mobile-app-120754/

Video: Mobile Payments and Remittances – Understanding the impact and the opportunities

Continuing our recent discussions exploring the evolution of the remittance sector, RemitONE hosted their IPR EMEA event on 2-3 March 2022. The 90-minute panel session centred around the evolution of mobile payments and remittances and how they are going to impact the industry.

The panel consisted of experts from both RemitONE and our friends and partners in other global companies. In case you missed the discussion, here is a summary of the key insights.

Webinar moderator:

• Ababacar Seck, Managing Director of Africa, RemitONE

Panellists:

• Sukhi Srivatsan, Head of Sales, AZA Finance
• Edward Chidavarume, General Manager of Business Development, CashPesa
• Muhammad M. Jagana, CEO, Kuringo
• Clinton Leask, Business Development Lead, Pay@

Time Stamps

00:00 Introductions

06:32 Why does financial inclusion matter?

11:15 Who delivers financial services in the market at the moment?

14:35 What obstacles and legal infrastructure regulations are agents, MTOs and banks facing to catch up with mobile operators in Africa?

24:32 What roles do technology and mobile payments play in financial inclusion? What are the main challenges?

35:02 How will interoperability between Telcos benefit the end users?

42:22 What role do central banks and governments play in financial inclusion?

47:12 How can we improve the user experience and make it seamless for the unbanked population in Africa?

53:54 What progress should we expect to see in the years to come? What advancements need to happen?

Why does financial inclusion matter? 

Sukhi: Financial inclusion matters today because it is our greater responsibility to ensure everyone has equal opportunity, whether you are a business or an individual, to access affordable and timely financial services and products. Especially if you look at the world of mobile payments and remittances. We need to empower communities, give them access to basic needs, like food and shelter, but also increase the economic output of the country and level the playing field between developed in frontier markets.

Muhammad: Financial inclusion is one of the fastest ways to change lives, by empowering the unbanked or the underbanked; especially women and young entrepreneurs who find it very challenging sometimes to have access to financial bank accounts. I think digitalisation of the financial system makes it much easier for people, especially in Africa. As we all know today, mobile phone penetration is huge in Africa, and the majority of people know how to use things like WhatsApp, so it makes it easier for them to use their phone and to be included in the financial system.

Who delivers financial services in the market at the moment?

Muhammad: Today, companies like Kuringo and other fintechs are expanding their reach to the unbanked and providing financial inclusion services, simply by offering them an app – they do not need to have a complicated banking system or anything else for them to be able to access the payment systems. But generally, it’s the fintech companies and mobile money operators that are disrupting this market.

Sukhi: I think one important point to highlight here is a provider like RemitONE is looking to bring everything together and do a one-to-many integration. So, through the RemitONE platform, an MTO could connect and push all the remittances with one integration, but in many markets. So, there are fintechs that are really growing in each of these separate markets, but the hardship and the obstacles in each market are so unique. So, I think providers like RemitONE really look at that aspect.

What obstacles and legal infrastructure regulations are agents, MTOs and banks facing to catch up with mobile operators in Africa?

Clinton: I think the biggest challenge is that it’s always difficult for underserved incumbents. So, whether it is mobile apps and mobile operators in Central Africa, or whether it is tier one banks, like we have in South Africa, changing things without regulation or unforeseen market changes is very difficult to do. The way compliance is shaping up these days, those burdens are growing. It is getting more onerous to comply with various things around AML, CFT, FATF, particularly for onboarding and monitoring end customers, especially as new entrants and smaller players catch up – you must comply with these from the get-go.

Muhammad: These are the challenges that can create obstacles because only the big guys are there already. They have a bigger balance sheet and a bigger team. But the good thing is, especially in Africa, there is a lot of ‘plug and play’ technology coming in. If you look at it in terms of, how do I partner with somebody who specializes in providing a platform, who specializes in providing tech, who specializes in something else, and you focus on the user experience, it will help you grow your footprint.

Edward: We’ve also seen the regulator shift into a more risk-based approach when it comes to KYC on customers, which now gives the fintech players the opportunity to come up with solutions that enable them to onboard customers easily with a risk-based approach. You can have API integrations for verifying documents that you get from the customers digitally which makes onboarding easier and cheaper.

What roles do technology and mobile payments play in financial inclusion? What are the main challenges?

Edward: We are now shifting from the brick-and-mortar. The brick-and-mortar banks were the ones dominating the financial services market. But now we’re looking at the mobile app and the way that it’s increasing in Africa – by 2025 it has been expected that at least 80% of the population in Africa will have mobile phones. So, now with the technology and the mobile penetration building within Sub-Saharan Africa, it becomes easier with technology for us to offer financial solutions to these markets where you can offer mobile money solutions.

Clinton: Mobile payments are the future. There is no other way to do this and to solve what needs to be done in Africa in terms of financial inclusion. The devices aren’t a problem anymore, unlike a few years ago. It is really about ensuring that the cost of data is being tackled effectively by regulators across all countries to promote the usage of mobile payments.

Sukhi: One example is if a fintech is starting out and wants to build a mobile app. Initially, there needs to be a focus on building one thing and doing it well and gaining user attraction. And then once that is underway, and you have that retention of users, it is important to start to diversify the products and services you offer. So, not just being able to receive money, and me being able to send it to you in a P2P manner, but also, can I do other things with this wallet? Can I go and can I buy a coffee? Can I go to the merchant? And can I pay for my scarf? So, lots of different things, lots of different use cases. But, the initial steps are to start small, build focus, and then eventually build up and add more products and services. So, you can diversify and create an entire user experience within your product and within your service.

How will interoperability between Telcos benefit the end users?

Muhammad: Today, if you do not have interoperability, a certain segment of society or a certain community will be left out. The cost of doing business or the cost of providing the last mile of the financial inclusion journey to them is expensive. So, to reduce the cost of transactions, interoperability is a must. Lowering costs of transactions, increasing volumes and expanding footprints can lead to people being able to pay for basic things in life that they need. It allows farmers to sell their produce, and they don’t have to travel miles to a bank to cash their cooperative checks. I think the interoperability we’ve seen in the UK, with the open banking system, has really allowed fintechs to explode, much more than any other European or US system. So, it is essential in Africa for governments to look at interoperability as a key to open access to finance, allowing the underbanked to have access to financial inclusion, and allowing the unbanked to come on board.

Edward: It is such a key thing for end consumers. We’ve seen it in South Africa, for the mobile operators it has created a boom in terms of customers because people are now able to upgrade and do things much easier. So, there is a strong benefit for interoperability, not only for the consumers but for the Telcos as well. They will see a rise in transactions for sure.

Sukhi: So, there is a lot of hesitation when it comes to this from many of the Telcos or the bigger players. They’re asking: is my business going to be taken away? Am I going to lose revenue over this? But thinking a bit longer term, you will get more user traction and it will create a better user experience. More importantly, it increases the frequency of a user using your product.

What role do central banks and governments play in financial inclusion?

Clinton: Financial inclusion is quite a broad term and means many things to many people and industries. But, central banks and governments are key in driving financial inclusion. It comes from clear and transparent regulation that needs to be put in place with participation from their side and the industry. So, whatever they are putting into place, they need to ensure firstly, that it is going to be cost-effective for everyone. Secondly, they have to drive competition and innovation. So, we must ensure that there is a level playing field, in terms of how people can tackle it and how industries can get involved. We touched on interoperability quite a bit. We know it goes hand-in-hand with reducing costs and accelerating competition, but also making the offering bigger for everyone.

Muhammad: In addition to this, the role central banks can play is to push for government payments to be digitalised. In the Gambia, they started talking about pensions and a scheme to be paid digitally. I think this will also help push financial inclusion and would allow people to be onboarded much easier.

How can we improve the user experience and make it seamless for the unbanked population in Africa?

Edward: When it comes to user experience, the first interaction that you have with the customer is onboarding. I believe when it comes to the information that the customer must share with a service provider, it is confidential information, and there must be some level of trust. So, the customer must feel comfortable sharing that information and there must be some form of transparency on the product that makes the client comfortable. Also, the experience must be as easy to use for the customer as possible.

Sukhi: You need to make onboarding seamless. Users should be able to start using the platform quickly, whether they are individuals or businesses. For that, you need to balance both security and compliance along with a positive user experience, which a lot of fintechs have done really well. Compliance also plays an important role. So, we cannot forget about what it means to stay compliant with the regulators, what it means to stay compliant with all the financial authority bodies, and how you incorporate that as you grow from one stage to the next as a company.

Ababacar: We know that our population maintains very specific services and all the players who experience growth have very simple to use platforms and, as a result, are successful. People use their mobile phones to connect to others and to sell and pay. Now we also see QR codes that some operators are offering and all of this is very easy to use.

What progress should we expect to see in the years to come? What advancements need to happen?

Sukhi: This is a very exciting question because we can talk about some very creative ways of what the future is going to look like. Obviously, there is a lot of scope and there is plenty of opportunity. But it is going to require a lot of collaboration as we just covered. How can governments help? How can central banks help? How can the regulator help? And how can the fintechs and everybody else work together in this ecosystem? I also think traditional digital currencies and cryptocurrencies are something we all need to be aware of – the adoption is already starting to happen. We see it in many of the markets, but we still have a long way to go. And I am personally very excited about the opportunity here.

Edward: I think the one to watch out for is what the central banks are going to do with the CBDC. The whole ambition is that they are the custodians of these individual wallets and there will be an impact downstream for everyone in terms of MTOs, mobile operators and banks because it is shortcutting everyone out of the flow. So, that will be an interesting one to see.

For more information or to request a free consultation with one of our money transfer specialists, please email marketing@remitone.com

What next?

Now that you’ve read our article we want to help you get the most out of it and plan for the rest of 2022.

Tap into our experts and schedule a free consultation.

Video: Better Together – The money transfer ecosystem

Continuing our recent discussions exploring the evolution of the remittance sector, RemitONE hosted their IPR EMEA event on 2-3 March 2022. The 90-minute panel session centred around the money transfer ecosystem, partnerships and collaboration

The panel consisted of experts from both RemitONE and our friends and partners in other global companies. In case you missed the discussion, here is a summary of the key insights.

Webinar moderator:

• Selim Mohamdi, Business Development Manager, RemitONE

Panellists:

• Wayne Gould, Head of Direct Sales and Financial Services, Trust Payments
• Priscilla D. Friedman, COO, CrossTech
• Muhammad M. Jagana, CEO, Kuringo

Time Stamps

00:00 Introductions

03:55 How significant is the remittance industry and who are the traditional and new players in the ecosystem?

07:55 How does partnering with payment gateways assist money transfer operations?

12:31 Can you provide some examples of other successful partnerships, and why they work?

16:57 What are the developing trends within our ecosystem and what is RaaS?

19:55 What do you see as the future of payment gateways? And what can we expect to see in this space?

27:40 How can MTOs leverage partnerships to expand their networks without necessarily having a presence in that country?

29:55 What are the critical questions to ask when evaluating a payment vendor or a technology partner?

How significant is the remittance industry and who are the traditional and new players in the ecosystem? 

Priscilla: The remittance industry has transformed rapidly in the last five years, and is becoming very digital. With this new transformation and globalisation, specifically during the pandemic, many money remittance service providers must focus on digital remittances to enhance their business and provide faster transactions to clients, and agents must also provide services digitally to their clients.

But the industry has become much more than just remittances. With new services such as B2C fuelled by the gig economy and B2B fuelled by e-commerce, those markets are 10 to 20 times larger than remittances. Money transfer providers are using their technology and experience to grow into segments. The traditional players in the markets are MoneyGram and Western Union, and some of the new players are Wise, Azimo and Currency Direct. As I navigate this industry, I learn every day, that new FinTechs are coming into the market with new solutions involving money transfer, digital banks, and many more.

So many different types of partnerships exist in the remittance ecosystem. How does partnering with payment gateways assist money transfer operations?

Wayne: I think the first key thing here is that the payment gateway provider needs to be able to cover all of the payment touch points. For these merchants who did not have payment methods like a simple POS machine to collect payments, they really struggled. Now on the other side of this, we collaborate very well with our merchants, enabling them to collect payments not just face to face, but also helping them digitalise their entire platform.

In addition to all of this, the right payment partner would also allow you to process funds in different currencies, as well as settle them in a multi-currency account. This is a very crucial SLM, simply because with remittances, the competition is quite rife now and margins can be quite low. So, to partner with a payment gateway, who could provide not just the technology, but also a solution that is very cost-effective, is a match made in heaven.

Can you provide some examples of other successful partnerships, and why they work?

Muhammad: Partnership is how we built our entire company. We believe that today, with technology, you do not need to build, you just need to plug and play. What we have done over the last 12 months, as a start-up, was to focus on how to expand our footprint. How do we plug in technology easily? How do we go to market where we are not? It is either you raise a multibillion-dollar fund, or you go and partner with people. Today we have seen instances where technology has made it more accessible for customers and to deliver a vast distribution network. As a result, it is uncomplicated and straightforward because we don’t have to worry about building the technology; we partner with it.

What are the developing trends within our ecosystem and what is RaaS?

Priscilla: So, innovation is improving, as we have been discussing. Digitalisation, the rise in mobile-based platform channels and cross-border transactions, and the decrease in remittance transfer time and cost drives the growth of the market.

RaaS (Remittance as a Service) is a go-to solution for many MSBs, Fintechs and small businesses and is a solution that we recommend to clients in our consulting division. So, we have the solutions that are focused on technology providers, we have some that are focused on licensing and reporting, and we also have some that are providing banking as well. Right now, we are seeing a new trend where we see a one-stop solution. But one point that is important to say is that some clients may already have some part of the solution developed. So, it is good to partner with companies that can marginalise what your need is, instead of just giving everything.

What do you see as the future of payment gateways? And what can we expect to see in this space?

Wayne: Payment gateways will always form and will always be an integral part of card payments because that is what is bridging the gap between our MSBs and their customers who want to pay. In terms of keeping up with trends, crypto is something that is picking up a lot of pace in a lot of areas and blockchain-based pay-outs, are something that is being pioneered by Ripple now. These are things that we’ll be seeing for payment methods of the future when it comes to things like payouts. In the days to come, as businesses start to evolve, requirements start to evolve. It is very critical that payment gateway or technology providers within the payment space can adapt and rise to the demands of our customers and our merchants.

How can MTOs leverage partnerships to expand their networks without necessarily having a presence in that country?

Muhammad: What we have seen, especially with our experience over the last year, is that technology has brought down the cost of integration and there is a lot of interoperability. Now, people have realised that you do not have to be a big standalone and everybody seems to be building their own small, quiet part of the jigsaw puzzle. When there is somebody who has already built a network and aggregator, this is your way in. So, you can just plug into their platform. Our clients from Europe, for example, can easily send money from a wallet or mobile phone account to your bank account, and we can also easily be in about three or four countries just by switching on a plug somewhere.

What are the critical questions to ask when evaluating a payment vendor or a technology partner?

Wayne: I think the first one is do they understand your business? I think that’s very important because everyone wants to help everybody but help needs to come in the right way. To work with a payment provider that understands the ins and outs of the business is very, very crucial. And things like, what certification or who regulates them as an acquirer, or as a technology provider is also very important.

When it comes to things like the technology, and asking them the types of platforms they work with, for the pay-ins and pay-outs, as well as what kind of security features that come with the gateway. Does it offer fraud screening? If it does, what does it run? What does it check for? And so on. These are some questions that could be interesting for an MSB to ask their provider. Another feature, which is quite important, is how soon can they settle their funds? Obviously, with remittances, we understand that funds coming in is as important as funds going out. So quicker settlements are imperative when it comes to this industry.

Priscilla: One of the things that I always ask Fintechs or MSBs who are looking for solutions is how many transactions are you looking to transact to your start-up? Are you a midsize business? That is very important because different payment providers have different tools, and they are also looking for a specific target. In addition, from a payment provider view, one of the questions that I also ask is module customisation, do you have modules for different clients? How flexible are the payment provider solutions in providing modules that are specific to that client’s needs?

For more information or to request a free consultation with one of our money transfer specialists, please email marketing@remitone.com

What next?

Now that you’ve read our article we want to help you get the most out of it and plan for the rest of 2022.

Tap into our experts and schedule a free consultation.