WorldRemit and Digicel International Partner to Enable Mobile Wallet Transfers in Pacific Islands

Customers can send to mobile wallet accounts in Fiji, Samoa and Tonga

SYDNEY–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#digitalpayments–WorldRemit, a leading global digital payments provider and Digicel International, have partnered to enable international money transfers to mobile wallets for customers in Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga.

Globally, customers can now make international transfers via digicelinternational.com to Digicel MyCash mobile wallet accounts in Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. Money is received by the recipient securely into their mobile wallet within minutes, and is ready to spend on what they need by making purchases or transferring money straight from their MyCash wallet.

Digicel International is a digital one-stop-shop providing a suite of services, which enable transactions for people to support their loved ones, bringing them together from all corners of the world shortening the distance between them. This new website and app enables Top Up, Send Money, Bill Pay, and other transactions under one single platform. When customers visit digicelinternational.com, they will be able to send money directly to MyCash wallets, an important feature of the digital ecosystem in the Pacific Islands.

Scott Eddington, WorldRemit�s Managing Director for Asia Pacific, said: “We are proud of our history of helping customers send money back home to friends and family in the Pacific Islands, and this new partnership with Digicel will strengthen our offering and give even more choice to consumers. It couldn’t come at a better time – travel restrictions continue to impact on tourism and the movement of seasonal workers, and COVID-19 has created a step-change shift in consumer behaviour towards digital options such as mobile wallets.”

“Longer term, partnerships like this help us to reduce the costs of remittances to the Pacific, putting more money in the pockets of loved ones back home. It also helps to support our financial inclusion goals, ensuring funds can flow to recipients even where they do not have a traditional banking relationship,” Mr. Eddington said.

Pacific Island countries rely heavily on remittances for basic living expenses, with remittances to Tonga representing around 40 percent of the country’s GDP – the highest proportion in the world according to the World Bank.

According to the International Organization of Migration (IOM)*, there has been a significant shift to digital remittances in the Pacific Islands as lockdown measures in both sending and receiving countries have made it more difficult to send and receive cash remittances.

Christophe Justens, Digicel International’s General Manager says: “Digicel International is excited for this preferred-partnership with WorldRemit. We have been in the airtime remittance, or Top Up, business for many years and we wanted to find a way to provide to our customers the same experience when sending money.”

“We wanted to provide an easy and transparent way for people to send and receive money. With this partnership, we are doing exactly that for all our customers. Bank transfer and money remittance costs remain an issue in the Pacific Islands, end-to-end digital experience like the one we’re providing now via mobile wallets will reduce the cost of remittances significantly for our customers; improving their day-to-day,” Mr. Justens said.

The mobile money transfer service is available through the Digicel International website and App, which can be downloaded via Google Play and the App Store. To send money, customers only have to visit the Digicel International website or open their Digicel International app and chose the “Send Money” option and follow the steps on their screen. After choosing their destination, they will select “Digicel mobile money account” when making their mobile money transfer. Recipients receive the money directly through their Digicel MyCash wallets on their mobile phones.

*Reference: https://weblog.iom.int/now-time-reduce-remittance-costs

About WorldRemit

WorldRemit is a leading global payments company. We disrupted an industry previously dominated by offline legacy players by taking international money transfers online – making them safer, faster and lower-cost. We currently send from 50 to 150 countries, operate in 6,500 money transfer corridors worldwide and employ over 1,100 people worldwide.

On the sending side, WorldRemit is 100% digital (cashless), increasing convenience and enhancing security. For those receiving money, the company offers a wide range of options including bank deposit, cash collection, mobile airtime top-up and mobile money.

Backed by Accel, TCV and Leapfrog – WorldRemit’s headquarters are in London, UK with a global presence including in the United States, Canada, South Africa, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand.

For more information visit www.worldremit.com.

About Digicel

Digicel International is a digital one-stop-shop that provides a suite of digital services that enable daily transactions for people to support their loved ones wherever they are, bringing them together from all corners of the world.

Digicel International offers digital services such as Top Up, International Calling, Bill Pay, Digital Cards, among others, to strengthen our customers’ ties back home.

Digicel International is part of PRISM Holdings, a financial powerhouse in St. Lucia that partnered with Digicel in 2015. Since then, it has been growing and expanding its range of financial services. PRISM Group has been helping clients turn small ideas into large businesses since 1993.

Contacts

Kyara Kwan

APAC PR Lead

WorldRemit

kkwan@worldremit.com