WorldRemit has partnered with Vodacom Tanzania to enable nine million M-Pesa customers to receive money directly to their M-Pesa wallets from friends and family living abroad.
The new service increases convenience for money transfer recipients in urban and rural areas of Tanzania as they can receive international money transfers directly to their phones, without the need for a bank account or internet connection. Using the WorldRemit app, Tanzanians living abroad in over 50 countries, including the US, UK and Canada, can send money home 24/7 in just a few taps. This saves customers time and money as they do not have to travel to a traditional money transfer agent and pay expensive fees to send money home in cash.
WorldRemit is a global leader in international transfers to mobile money accounts and is connected to over 190 million accounts across 30 countries.
“This new partnership with WorldRemit enables us to tap into their global payments network, and help customers receive remittances into Tanzania from more countries around the world. It will enable families and friends in the country to conveniently receive money through M-Pesa from across the world. This is just one more way we are making our customers’ lives easier,” Epimack Mbeteni, Vodacom TZ M-Pesa director said.
On her part, Cynthia Ponera, the Country Manager for Tanzania at WorldRemit insisted that the partnership would expand the firm’s footprint in the East African region.
“Our money transfer service to Tanzania is growing by over 100% year-over-year, and mobile money is the most popular way for our customers to send money to the country. We are delighted to partner with Vodacom to further expand our network and connect over nine million M-Pesa customers to our award-winning money transfer service. Our partnership will drive down the cost of sending money to Tanzania and enable recipients in some of the most remote locations to receive money from abroad in seconds,” Ms. Ponera said.
The majority of money transfers to Tanzania are sent through banks, which often charge high fees and can take several days to process payments. As WorldRemit does not have to pay charges associated with agent locations in sending countries, the company can pass these savings on to customers.
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