GSMA, WU to create cheaper mobile fund transfer service
Sunday, 21 October 2007
International money transfer outfit Western Union (WU) and GSM Association (GSMA) Thursday announced an agreement to facilitate cheaper homebound remittance through mobile phone by expatriate workers of the developing countries, reports bdnews24.com.
They are developing a commercial and technical framework that mobile operators can use to deploy services that enable consumers to send and receive low-denomination, high frequency money transfers using mobile phones.
Western Union processed approximately 17 per cent of the world's remittance volume in 2006. Once connected to its service, operators will be able to use their own 'mobile wallet' software to enable person-to-person mobile money transfers over Western Union's cross-border remittance network.
The Mobile Money Transfer service will enable consumers to transfer money to or from mobile wallets and will offer a global network of Western Union Agent locations for cash-to-mobile and mobile-to-cash transactions.
Thirty-five GSMA operators with more than 800 million customers in more than 100 countries are participating in the mobile cross-border fund transfer scheme.
Led by India's Bharti Airtel chief Sunil Mittal, the "Mobile Money Transfer" programme is overseen by a steering committee made up of representatives from Bharti, Telenor, Orascom, MTN, Orange, Smart, and VimpelCom.
"This initiative will bring down the cost of lower-value and high-frequency mobile remittances considerably and also enable smaller amounts to be transferred in a fast and secure fashion, thereby benefiting millions of people in the developing world," Mittal said.
The first commercial services that make use of the framework are anticipated to be rolled out in the second quarter of 2008. Western Union and its affiliates provide money transfer services across 200 countries through a network of more than 312,000 agents.
The framework forms a key element of both Western Union's mobile strategy and GSMA's Mobile Money Transfer programme.
It aims to use the reach and ease of mobile money transfer services to expand the mobile financial services market and stimulate social and economic development.
Mobile money transfer services aim to make it simple, quick and affordable for more people to send small amounts of money through a conventional and regulated system.
Both Western Union and GSMA believe there is an opportunity to create and grow a large new market for low-denomination transfers.
"Mobile networks now cover more than 80 per cent of the world's population and three billion people have a mobile phone, creating an unprecedented opportunity to extend the benefits of financial services to the majority of the world's families for the first time." said GSMA chief executive Rob Conway.
"Our brand, extensive network, and compliance capabilities, combined with the GSMA members' market reach, uniquely positions Western Union in the mobile money transfer marketplace," said the Western Union's president and chief executive Christina Gold.
They are developing a commercial and technical framework that mobile operators can use to deploy services that enable consumers to send and receive low-denomination, high frequency money transfers using mobile phones.
Western Union processed approximately 17 per cent of the world's remittance volume in 2006. Once connected to its service, operators will be able to use their own 'mobile wallet' software to enable person-to-person mobile money transfers over Western Union's cross-border remittance network.
The Mobile Money Transfer service will enable consumers to transfer money to or from mobile wallets and will offer a global network of Western Union Agent locations for cash-to-mobile and mobile-to-cash transactions.
Thirty-five GSMA operators with more than 800 million customers in more than 100 countries are participating in the mobile cross-border fund transfer scheme.
Led by India's Bharti Airtel chief Sunil Mittal, the "Mobile Money Transfer" programme is overseen by a steering committee made up of representatives from Bharti, Telenor, Orascom, MTN, Orange, Smart, and VimpelCom.
"This initiative will bring down the cost of lower-value and high-frequency mobile remittances considerably and also enable smaller amounts to be transferred in a fast and secure fashion, thereby benefiting millions of people in the developing world," Mittal said.
The first commercial services that make use of the framework are anticipated to be rolled out in the second quarter of 2008. Western Union and its affiliates provide money transfer services across 200 countries through a network of more than 312,000 agents.
The framework forms a key element of both Western Union's mobile strategy and GSMA's Mobile Money Transfer programme.
It aims to use the reach and ease of mobile money transfer services to expand the mobile financial services market and stimulate social and economic development.
Mobile money transfer services aim to make it simple, quick and affordable for more people to send small amounts of money through a conventional and regulated system.
Both Western Union and GSMA believe there is an opportunity to create and grow a large new market for low-denomination transfers.
"Mobile networks now cover more than 80 per cent of the world's population and three billion people have a mobile phone, creating an unprecedented opportunity to extend the benefits of financial services to the majority of the world's families for the first time." said GSMA chief executive Rob Conway.
"Our brand, extensive network, and compliance capabilities, combined with the GSMA members' market reach, uniquely positions Western Union in the mobile money transfer marketplace," said the Western Union's president and chief executive Christina Gold.