Hassle-free remittances to India

The Federal Bank played a vital role in the steady inflow of money into the Asian nation

Federal Bank is a key player in the remittances business and it continues to gain market share in this important service. In 2020, despite the pandemic induced concerns, Federal Bank reports that remittance flows to India from the UAE increased by nearly 18 per cent. The bank's continued focus on relationship management of existing remittance partners and tie-up with new partners has been instrumental in seeing the flow increase. Federal Bank has a strong network of remittance partners in the GCC area, and UAE is the top remitter country.

Digitalisation

Federal Bank's entire mantra is 'Digital at the fore, human at the core'. Its remittance business is a great example of this mantra. Federal Bank offers various modes by which partners can remit funds to it. It has a full-fledged API backed remittance solution that offers instant credits to beneficiaries, using channels like Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) and Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The bank also offers the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) based remittances. It is the only bank that offers a blockchain-based remittance solution and the bank's partners are supported through a strong team of technology and operational experts who ensure seamless processing of remittances.

During the pandemic, there has been an exponential increase in the percentage of remittances originated by its partners through digital means. Nearly 50 per cent of the remittances now reaching us in India originate via the web or mobile applications. The digital channel has replaced the traditional branch channel in a big way.

Remittance potential

GCC will always be a key contributor to the Federal Bank's remittance service. Having said that, there seems to be an increase in remittances from other geographies like the USA, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand in particular. During the last couple of years, the bank has added new remittance partners from the USA, UK, New Zealand apart from the GCC. The increased network of remittance partners has enabled it to gain a greater share of remittances from non-GCC countries.

Outlook for 2021

Federal Bank is continuing to gain share in the remittance business. Its market share grew to 17.5 per cent in September 2020. In fact, it processed remittances exceeding Rs1 trillion during the financial year of April 2020 to March 2021. Given the bank's investment in technology and relationship management, not only will remittances to India as a destination country increase but Federal Bank's share thereof will also increase.

 

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