LONDON/ISLAMABAD: Data from leading online money transfer service WorldRemit shows that the week before Eid-ul-Fitr was the company’s busiest period for transfers to Pakistan in 2018.
The State Bank of Pakistan recently revealed that Overseas Pakistanis sent home nearly $17.9 billion in remittances during the first 10 months of FY19 (July to April), a growth of nearly 8.5% compared to the same time last year.
Remittance inflows are likely to further increase over the coming weeks as millions of Overseas Pakistanis send money home to contribute to their family’s Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations.
In 2018, WorldRemit saw the highest volume of transfers to Pakistan during the week commencing 4th June (the week before Eid-ul-Fitr). The number of transfers made during this period was 44% higher than the average week that year, highlighting that Ramadan is an important time for the Pakistani diaspora to send money home to support their loved ones and communities.
Hamza Islam, Country Director for Pakistan at WorldRemit, said: “Ramadan is one of our busiest period for transfers to Pakistan, and we are committed to helping our customers get their money quickly and safely to those that matter most.
“We offer a variety of convenient ways for money transfer recipients with or without a bank account to receive money, including bank transfer, cash pickup, airtime top-up and mobile money. We also offer our senders and recipients notifications via SMS or Whatsapp when their transfers have been sent and delivered so they can track their money’s journey at every step.”
To help make the money its customers send home to go further, for every transfer made to Pakistan during Ramadan 2019, WorldRemit will donate a sum of money equivalent to an Iftar meal to a person in need through the Edhi Foundation.
Online remittances save customers time and money as they do not need to travel to an agent and pay expensive fees to send money home. Using the WorldRemit app, Pakistanis living in over 50 countries including the UK, USA and Australia, can send money home at anytime from anywhere in just a few taps.
To support Pakistanis living abroad and their loved ones, WorldRemit recently introduced zero fees on transfers of $210 or equivalent to Pakistan. The fee waiver was introduced as the company joined the Pakistan Remittance Initiative, a joint program by the Pakistan State Bank, Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Ministry of Finance to encourage Pakistanis living overseas to use formal money transfer methods to send money home.
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