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Tag: transfer

  • Microsoft’s Your Phone app possibly getting Drag and Drop

    Microsoft’s Your Phone app possibly getting Drag and Drop

    Microsoft’s Your Phone app has been growing in popularity over the past several years. The app offers a link between your Windows 10 PC and your Android smartphone (requires a phone with Android 7 or newer), providing useful features for managing your phone.

    Recently, Microsoft added support for RCS messaging for selected Samsung smartphones. Now, a Tweet by Aggiornamenti Lumia suggests that a new feature may be coming soon: Drag And Drop from your PC to your smartphone.

    We do not know whether the rumored Drag and Drop feature will be officially released or when, and whether it will be exclusive to selected Samsung devices.

    Other features of the Your Phone app include reading and sending text messages from your PC, as well as managing your notifications and calls. The functionalities available only for select Samsung devices are Content Transfer (copy and paste between PC and Android phone) and Phone Screen, which allows you to interact with Android apps and phone content while visualizing your smartphone’s screen on your PC.

    You can find whether your phone is supported on Microsoft’s Your Phone app help page which offers a list of supported phones for every referenced app function.

  • Payment Providers Could Shave $5 Billion From ASEAN Banks

    Payment Providers Could Shave $5 Billion From ASEAN Banks

    Banks in South-east Asia could miss out on as much as $5 billion, or 14.3 percent of their payments revenue by 2025, displaced by the growth of digital payments and competition from non-banks, according to a new report.

    As payments become more «instant, invisible and free, banks will face further pressure on income from card transactions and fees over the next six years. Free payments put 9.6 percent of payments revenue at risk in the region, according to professional services firm Accenture said in a report titled Banking Pulse Survey: Two Ways To Win.

    The world of instant, invisible and free payments is here to stay, squeezing margins further on a business that was already feeling a lot of pressure from new competition, particularly in South-east Asia with the proliferation of e-wallets,» said Divyesh Vithlani, who leads Accenture’s financial services practice in ASEAN. The survey polled 240 payments executives from the largest banks across 23 markets.

    Next, competition from non-banks in invisible payments, where payments are completed in a “virtual wallet” on a mobile app or device, will put 3.1 percent of bank revenues at risk, Accenture said. Card displacement by instant payments – an area where banks make little to no interest – is projected to put an additional 1.7 percent of payment revenues in jeopardy.

    Banks previously earned billions of dollars from some of these channels, and that’ll dry up eventually as competition heats up, so they’ll need to develop new digital business models to compete in this new era, said Vithlani.

    However, the industry is aware of the challenges posed by new technologies in payments. More than two-thirds (71 percent) of the banking executives polled in all markets agree that payments are becoming free. Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) believe that most payments are already invisible, or will become so over the next 12 months.

  • BigPay introduces international money transfers

    BigPay introduces international money transfers

     BigPay, an ASEAN-focused fintech company, has launched international remittance services enabling users to send money directly from Malaysia to bank accounts in Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, with no hidden fees or extra charges.

    BigPay is pioneering digital remittance through its mobile application, offering a seamless experience with instant money transfers. Users can deposit funds into BigPay through their bank cards or via bank transfer.

    In line with BigPay’s mission to deliver fair and transparent financial services, international remittances will be offered to customers at a fixed fee per corridor with competitive exchange rates. This is the first wave of BigPay’s international remittance rollout, with additional corridors to be announced in the near future.

    “We’re focused on democratising financial services in ASEAN, so it’s an exciting moment for us to be able to offer Malaysians a cheaper and better alternative to remit money,” said Chris Davison, CEO and Co-Founder, BigPay.

    “Technology can dramatically reduce the cost of remittance and we want to make it easy for people to move money abroad – whether it is sending money to family, friends or other overseas payments – without having to pay exorbitant exchange rates and transfer fees. Approximately US$25 billion is lost globally per year through remittance fees and with BigPay we can change that. Financial inclusion is a cornerstone of BigPay and offering low-cost, accessible money transfers is part of that strategy.”

    BigPay is also one of the first fintechs in Malaysia to receive approval from Bank Negara Malaysia to use eKYC (electronic Know Your Customer) for remittance. This allows BigPay’s customers to submit all documents electronically within th

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  • Cross-brand file sharing feature announced by three phone manufacturers

    Cross-brand file sharing feature announced by three phone manufacturers

    As many Apple iPhone users know, AirDrop is a feature that allows them to share photos, videos and documents with nearby Apple devices without requiring an internet connection. This is achieved using Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity. A WeChat post published today by Xiaomi reveals that three Chinese phone manufacturers are teaming up to provide their customers with wireless peer-to-peer file sharing across the different brands.

    This new feature will apparently use Bluetooth to pair the devices, creating a peer-to-peer Wi-Fi network just like AirDrop does, and transfer files at speeds up to 20Mbps. Xiaomi says that other smartphone manufacturers are welcome to join the trio. By the end of this month, a beta version of the new file-sharing protocol is expected to be rolled out. According to Counterpoint Research, Vivo, Oppo, and Xiaomi made up 49% of the domestic phone market during the first quarter. Adding some additional manufacturers, especially Huawei, would allow the vast majority of handsets in the country to share files without the use of internet connectivity. There is no indication whether Huawei or other Chinese companies are or aren’t interested in joining the original trio.

    Google itself has had a feature since 2011’s Ice Cream Sandwich called Android Beam that uses NFC to share “photos, videos, contact information, links to webpages, navigation directions, YouTube URLs, and more” by tapping two devices together. But Android Beam is being phased out in Android Q, replaced by a Google Play Services feature called Fast Share. This will be similar to Apple’s AirDrop thanks to the use of Bluetooth. Android Q users will be able to share files, images, URLs and small parts of text messages even without an internet connection.

    The Files by Google app, available in the Google Play Store, uses Bluetooth to allow Android devices with the app installed to share files at speeds as fast as 480Mbps. Encryption is employed to protect the privacy of those using the app.

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  • Venmo borrows popular PayPal feature to expand on its Instant Transfer capabilities

    Venmo borrows popular PayPal feature to expand on its Instant Transfer capabilities

    PayPal has been doing pretty much everything in its power to keep the likes of Apple Pay at bay in the increasingly competitive online and mobile payment market, joining forces with Google on a number of mutually advantageous initiatives, vastly improving its main app, and making it easier and faster to transfer funds to a US bank account.

    Of course, the company’s arsenal includes a popular special weapon in Venmo, the 2009-released digital payments system that PayPal acquired in 2013 as part of Braintree. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that PayPal is attempting to unify the user experience across its multiple services in a way, adding the aforementioned Instant Transfer feature to Venmo’s already robust list of strengths.
    While Venmo picked up a similar functionality for both iOS and Android devices last year, that only allowed its users to send money to Visa and Mastercard debit cards “within minutes.” Now it’s possible to do the same for actual bank accounts, and once again, the only restriction you need to take into consideration is geographical. Otherwise, you’re looking at (almost) instant transfers in the US for a 1 percent fee that can’t exceed $10 or go under $0.25.
    If that feels too rich for your blood, fret not, as the free standard bank transfer option isn’t going anywhere. Just remember that might keep you waiting up to three whole business days. Depending on your bank, an “instant” transfer from Venmo could take up to 30 minutes as well, but unless your funds are frozen for some reason, you will never have to wait a second longer. The feature is being slowly rolled out to iPhones and Android handsets with the latest app version, which means it could take a few weeks before “wide” availability is achieved.
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  • PayPal-Backed Korean Fintech Raises $64 Million

    PayPal-Backed Korean Fintech Raises $64 Million

    South Korean fintech unicorn, Viva Republica, raised $64 million for its financial service platform Toss pushing the firm’s total value to $2.2 billion.

    The Seoul-based fintech has raised a total of $250 million, including $80 million in the December round, and new funding joins prominent existing investors such Singapore’s GIC and Sequoia Capital.

    Viva Republic was founded in 2013 and launched Toss in 2015 as a P2P money transfer service. It has since grown the platform to include various other financial services including banker, money transfer, credit score management and more. It currently boasts 13 million registered users with more than $42 billion of translation processed.

    This funding round was led by newly established Aspex Management (founded in 2018) which specializes in Asian equity investments in industries and firms with long-term structural tailwinds.

    We like the large addressable market financial services offer and the unique leading position Toss occupies amongst mobile consumers, said Hermes Li, founder and CIO of Aspex Management.

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  • Fintech transforming B2B money transfer market

    Fintech transforming B2B money transfer market

    The cross-border B2B money transfer market is ripe for disruption, as new technologies and legislative changes redefine traditional banking practices across the globe, according to Juniper Research.

    Cross-border B2B transactions will exceed $218 trillion by 2022, up from $150 trillion in 2018, the company predicts.

    Disrupting traditional cross-border B2B transactions

    B2B Money Transfer: Cross-border Market Opportunities 2018-2022 Research author Lauren Foye explained: ‘While traditional banks still facilitate the vast bulk of B2B cross-border transactions, new technologies, such as virtual accounts, eInvoicing, and blockchain technology will aid in driving businesses to solutions which provide savings in time, efficiencies, and transparency’.

    The proportion of cross-border B2B transfer values facilitated by newer Fintech start-ups and disruptive technologies, will grow from 7.5% in 2017; equating to $10.4 trillion, to reach 13.3% or $29 trillion by 2022. This will occur as more businesses utilize these efficient and transparent methods in a notoriously cloudy industry.

    Juniper cited activities by Visa and Mastercard as beacons in this space. In addition to offering its own Visa B2B Connect’ service which utilizes blockchain-based Chain Core, Visa has partnered with Fintech start-up ‘Billtrust’ to provide virtual cards for B2B transactions. Likewise, Mastercard is working with Optal, to offer virtual accounts to businesses.

    Opportunity to lead innovation charge

    Juniper believes that banks are well placed to benefit from the opportunity posed in B2B transfers. For instance, legislative changes such as PSD2 in Europe, serve as a perfect opportunity to partner with Fintechs to deliver innovative services to companies; lest institutions fall behind and see Fintechs ultimately out maneuver them.

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  • Banks apply free on-net money withdrawal, account transfer

    Banks apply free on-net money withdrawal, account transfer

    Despite being allowed to charge on-net fees for automatic telling machine (ATM) transactions, some commercial banks have recently applied the exemption to on-net money withdrawal and account transfer to attract new customers and develop the retail banking segment.

    Platinum debit cards, while Viet Capital Bank and SCB have exempt money withdrawal fee for international and domestic debit cards.

    The exemption of money withdrawal fee at all ATMs nationwide is also being offered by other banks such as TPBank and BaoVietbank.

    Talking about the move, Viet Capital Bank said free money withdrawal via ATM will encourage people to make non-cash payments. This policy is being implemented with great support from banks.

    A representative from another bank said State Bank of Việt Nam approved commercial banks to charge on-net fees for ATM transaction since March 2013 to offset the cost of purchasing machines and periodic maintenance, however, some banks are now willing to offset the losses to increase customers.

    According to the representative, the bank having cardholders still has to pay VNĐ3,300 to their partner for each external money withdrawal. Therefore, ATM operations of the bank have never been profitable.

    Industry insiders admitted that ATM card service companies often incur losses because an ATM costs tens of thousands of US dollars besides large annual maintenance fees. In addition, the cost of renting sites to install ATMs is becoming more and more expensive. Interest from non-term deposits of ATM cardholders therefore is not enough to offset the costs.

    To offset the costs, the money withdrawal fee charged at other banks averages VNĐ1,000-3,000 per transaction and the fee for inter-bank money transfer is VNĐ11,000.

    According to banking experts, the fee exemption policy at some banks is within the banks’ retail banking development plan, and is also a way for banks develop individual customers as well as products and services for the customers.

    This is also the premise based on which banks can promote other products and services, such as Mobile Banking and Internet Banking, they said.

    The country currently has more than 17,000 ATMs nationwide.

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  • InstaReM launches free money transfers for HK users

    InstaReM launches free money transfers for HK users

    Singapore-based money transfer provider InstaReM is introducing free money transfers exclusively for users in Hong Kong.

    InstaReM, a Money Services Operator licensee in Hong Kong, is running this campaign until end of April 2017.

    By offering interbank rates directly from the exchange rates provided by Reuters.com, InstaReM will charge zero margins. InstaReM also doesn’t charge any handling or transaction fee for money transfers as a rule.

    “We are keen to introduce our new way of money transfer to Hong Kong residents. We feel remittance services should be easier, quicker and more cost effective. Traditional services are costly. InstaReM enables individuals, SMEs, and financial institutions to send across payments at the lowest possible cost and fastest possible time,” said Prajit Nanu, InstaReM co-founder and CEO.

    InstaReM also provides a separate service to help corporations and SMEs to make bulk payments to its payees in the quickest possible time.

    Individual users can sign up with basic personal information, with a simple upload of valid HKID copy and residential address proof on www.instarem.com. Upon verification, users could immediately perform money transfers online. The payees will receive the exact amount in the designated currency on the same or next business day.

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  • Money transfer firm WorldRemit eyes new markets, growth

    Money transfer firm WorldRemit eyes new markets, growth

    WorldRemit, an online service for overseas money transfers, is looking to expand into new markets and add services like direct payments for bills and school fees, its president said on Friday.

    The UK-based financial technology start-up, which has raised $192.7 million since its founding in 2010, also wants to grow in Canada and is open to taking the company public, Andrew Lee said in an interview.
    “We think about it, we think about other options as well,” he said. “It’s not on the radar at the moment. We’ve got plenty to do before we worry about that.”

    WorldRemit, which caters to migrants and people with no bank accounts, allows money transfers to over 100 countries. Growth is fastest in mobile transfers, though bank deposit and cash pick-up options are also available.
    Online payment service providers are shaking up the remittance industry and retail-based operations like Western Union Co by offering fast, secure service with lower fees, saving recipients travel time to pick up deposits.

    Over 2 billion people in the world do not use banks or are unlikely to have access to retail banking, said Lee, but the vast majority have mobile phones, allowing them to receive and store money, or pay bills.
    WorldRemit, which has partnerships with 34 mobile companies in 26 countries, also lets senders add air time to the prepaid phones of family members, for example.

    WorldRemit is seeking to add domestic transfers and primary banking, Lee said, and is applying for licenses in areas like Singapore, where foreign workers send a lot of money to their home countries.
    WorldRemit expects in the coming months to secure licenses for a few U.S. states that it does not already serve, Lee said. The United States is WorldRemit’s fastest growing market, and is soon expected to account for at least 10 percent of its revenue, he added.

    Canada, with 20 percent of its population born overseas, is WorldRemit’s third-largest market after Australia and Britain. That proportion is the highest among the Group of Eight industrialized countries, according to Statistics Canada.
    Canada has great growth potential, Richard Meseko, the company’s Canadian director, said in the joint interview. About 60,000 WorldRemit overseas transfers are made from Canada each month, but the 55,000 users over the last 12 months is a small number for the size of the immigrant population, he noted.

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  • Indonesia to speed up EU CEPA negotiation

    Indonesia to speed up EU CEPA negotiation

    Indonesia will speed up negotiations on the Indonesia-European Union (EU) Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), aiming to have an agreement with the EU come into effect within two years.

    The two parties had discussed the implementation of the CEPA in a meeting with EU trade ministers during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos last week, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong said.

    “It has been decided in a Cabinet meeting that we will have a trade agreement with the EU. We must start it immediately because the President gave us two years to complete the agreement,” Thomas said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

    In contrast to the discussion of trade agreements in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TTP), which still required time for assessment to solve the challenges, Thomas underlined that there were no special constraints on the Indonesia-EU CEPA discussion.

    The planned Indonesia-EU CEPA has been stagnant since 2013. Vietnam, which started free trade agreement negotiations with the 28-member trading bloc in the same year reached an agreement in August last year.

    The EU CEPA covers issues of trade and business, including the reduction of trade barriers and liberalization of government procurement. The two points are also included in the TPP framework.

    Aside from the two agreements, Thomas continued, the ministry also held meetings with trade ministers from several countries to discuss bilateral trade agreements.

    “We are exploring bilateral trade agreements with Australia. Also with the EFTA [European Free Trade Association] which consists of Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein,” Thomas said.