Singtel's Dash to expand mobile remittance services to Myanmar

Money transfers from Singapore to Myanmar through Dash will be available by March 2019.

Singtel’s mobile payments solution Dash will expand its mobile remittance services to Myanmar after the telco signed a three-year partnership with the United Nation’s Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in an effort to launch and promote safe and affordable remittances via formal channels amongst Myanmar nationals in Singapore, an announcement revealed.

Both parties signed a grant agreement under the UNCDF’s shaping inclusive finance transformations (SHIFT) programme which aims to increase access to formal and legitimate remittance channels in Myanmar.

Also read: Singtel's mobile app Dash welcomes Visa and Apple Pay

The partnership will see Singtel’s Dash facilitate money transfers from Singapore to Myanmar by March 2019, the telco revealed. Singtel Dash plans to establish a network of remittance cash-out points with banks, mobile wallets and cash pick-up services throughout Myanmar to allow more than 180,000 Myanmar nationals to remit money to their families via Dash with ease.

To use the service, customers can register their particulars and beneficiaries’ details, whilst the process of sending money can be done at foreign exchange (FX) rates on the Dash app on their smartphones to save time on queuing at remittance houses.

Singtel will also partner with other associations to drive education and awareness of the benefits of remittance through formal channels, the firm added.

Also read: Singtel rolls out QR code cross-border mobile payment in Thailand

According to the statement, foreign remittances by Myanmar nationals working abroad totalled approximately $8.37b (US$6.2b) in 2017 based on data from the World Bank. However, many workers tend to rely on informal channels such as unlicensed agents which pose time-consuming, expensive and unsafe risks.

“There are over 250 million adults in ASEAN who are still unbanked,” Singtel International Group’s CEO Arthur Lang noted in a statement. “With the rapidly growing number of smartphone users, we see tremendous opportunities to provide financial services at affordable rates to people and small business in the region.”

Dash already offers remittance services to the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh and China.