Wiremit partners with RIA to extend remittances to and from 190 countries

It seems like every other day we talk about remittances or a remittance company making a splash in Zimbabwe. Such is the importance of remittances in the country at the moment.

The remittance space is super competitive right now, how could it not when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade says we are on course to beat the inflows of US$1.8b we got in 2023.

We talked about Wiremit when they launched around this time last year. They have updates to share.

They partnered with RIA Money Transfer to expand their services to more locations globally. See, RIA is one of the big four money transfer services and by partnering them, Wiremit can now allows you send to send or receive money from 190 countries.

So, users can send money out from Zimbabwe with Wiremit and they can receive through either RIA or Wiremit.

Wiremit says,

The partnership between Wiremit Money Transfer and RIA Money Transfer represents a significant step forward in enhancing financial connectivity for Zimbabweans. By integrating RIA’s robust global network with Wiremit’s local presence, customers will now have greater access to fast, secure, and reliable money transfer services.

In Zimbabwe, Wiremit branch network looks like this:

• Harare: Our flagship branch located in the heart of the capital city.
• Mutare: Serving the eastern regions with efficient transfer services.
• Gweru: Central Zimbabwe’s hub for secure money transfers.
• Kwekwe: Facilitating transactions for the Midlands province.
• Beitbridge: Strategic border location enhancing cross-border connectivity.
• Bulawayo: Southern Zimbabwe’s key financial service point. [This flagship branch was launched recently and will serve as a central hub for their enhanced service offerings.].

Wiremit says all branches offer bureau de change services, providing currency exchange for EUR, GBP, ZAR, and USD. Additionally, they provide South Africa EFT services at a 1.5% fee charge,which they claim is the cheapest in the industry for remittances from Zimbabwe.

All good

I love how this space is competitive right now. I think Wiremit’s partnership with RIA is great and all but I feel there is still work to do on the Zimbabwean branch market. I think it will be hard to compete with EcoCash, for example, which has agents and a physical presence almost everywhere in the country.

When it comes to sending money to and from 190 countries, I think it will be a huge deal for those interacting with diasporans in locations that aren’t popular with immigrating Zimbabweans. Zimbos sending money back home from Afghanistan are not spoilt for choice like those in the UK or South Africa are.

So, the long list of countries will not excite those dealing with their South African based relatives but to those in need of options, it will be huge. How many Zimbos are in those other countries though? – I would imagine not too many.

So, for Wiremit, I don’t see this necessarily moving the needle that much in Zimbabwe. It’s good that they are now present (through the partnership) anywhere in the world but I think even for them, as regards Zimbabwe, the real motive was having a presence in just the few countries that Zimbos flock to.

That said, Wiremit is not serving just Zimbabweans and so the move is huge.

Also read:

• Remittances to Zim keep growing, govt and private sector trying to put them to productive use
• New player enters the domestic remittance market offering free transfers then 3% from October
• Econet extends offer to send money for free, working on adding other markets after SA, UK