Mastercard and Paysend solidify money transfer relationship to tap digitization demand

The news: UK-based cross-border payments fintech Paysend expanded its partnership with Mastercard to offer new remittance services, per a press release. The firms already work together in key regions like Latin America.

What this means: The expanded partnership helps Paysend and Mastercard build out their respective money transfer networks.

Paysend can use Mastercard’s cross-border payment services to reach more markets.

• Paysend can serve more customers by tapping Mastercard’s vast network of banks, fintechs, and merchants, which spans more than 100 countries and 90% of the world’s population. The expanded tie-up lets Paysend tap new corridors, including Ukraine.
• Working with Mastercard lets Paysend customers send money via multiple channels, including cards, bank accounts, mobile wallets, and select brick-and-mortar locations.
• Having a larger money transfer network can help Paysend compete with legacy remittance firms like Western Union and MoneyGram—which already span several countries—and other digital upstarts, like Wise.

Mastercard can increase its global payout capabilities with Paysend.

• Building out its payout options can make Mastercard a more attractive partner for firms that want to integrate its cross-border payment services—which were a key growth driver for the card network in Q3.
• Economic uncertainty makes it more important than ever for Mastercard to establish stronger relationships with banking and fintech partners because they can help diversify its revenue streams.

Why it’s worth watching: Worldwide remittance inflows are expected to hit $774.20 billion in 2022, per Insider Intelligence forecasts. Next year, we expect it to reach $810.79 billion.

Here are two major trends influencing remittance growth:

• Growing digitization. Digital payments are starting to push brick-and-mortar remittances out as consumers look for cheaper and more convenient money transfer options. Not having a physical presence lets players like Paysend offer more competitive pricing and easier access to their funds than legacy firms.
• Demand for faster payments. Depending on the service, remittance send times can span several days. But this can be a major issue for customers who depend on remittances from family members to get by. Instead of paying a premium for faster remittances from legacy players, consumers may opt for fintechs like Paysend, which offers same-day transfers without additional costs.

This article originally appeared in Insider Intelligence's Payments Innovation Briefing—a daily recap of top stories reshaping the payments industry. Subscribe to have more hard-hitting takeaways delivered to your inbox daily.

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