Money transfer is a cashless mode of payment between a customer and a vendor, or between any two parties, generally using electronic means. Why do we think that you could be scammed here? It is simple. Cash transfers between people living in the same jurisdictional area are fairly easy and secure, with fewer chances of fraud. The problem arises with sending money overseas and across the border.
Electronic money transfer is probably the most efficient ways available to send money overseas. This is possible through a network of different banks communicating with each other and clearing the payment. While most cross-border payments are done by traders and businesses, we are only looking at personal money transfers, also called remittance payments.
While money transfer protocols are fairly safe, and there are know your customer (KYC) compulsions, people still fall prey to frauds. Generally, it is not the remittance service provider, but another bad actor using loopholes within the provider’s system to loot people of their money.
Domestic payments are fairly easy to set up. But with international remittances, service providers have to work only in specific regions as they first need to enter deals with local banks. Please note that each of these services may not be available for residents of all countries.
Here we list some of the popular money transfer services available across the globe and the number of internationally transferrable currencies they support.
Money transfer provider | Number of currencies supported |
Paypal | 26 |
TransferWise | 24 |
CurrencyFair | 17 |
WorldRemit | 70 |
OFX | 49 |
TorFX | 44 |
WorldFirst | 30 |
XE | 60 |
SendFX | 35 |
Moneycorp | 120 |
Western Union | 130 |
MoneyGram | 50 |