NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Incumbents such as Western Union and MoneyGram do it. Traditional players do it. So, still, do some banks. And Telcos do too in some markets. The “it” is enable people to move money to each other in and between countries. Hugo Cuevas-Mohr shares insights gleaned from his work with money transfer professionals from all over the world about the remittance market, the role of traditional players, banks and telcos and who has the edge as this $500 billion industry evolves.

Money transfer is a half a trillion-dollar industry and growing. Given your experience what factors are influencing the remittance market today, and how is this industry likely to evolve?

HC: The money transfer market is in influx right now because operators that have dominated the market for a long time like Western Union, MoneyGram, and others are still dominant today. Banks moved into the market – but some are pulling out and many others are now questioning their role in the market. And, more recently, telcos have moved into the market with their mobile wallets. Those three players are getting into very interesting positions all over the world.

It will take more time in the US for mobile wallets to claim a bigger share of the market domestically and internationally. But this isn’t the case in other markets like Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Regulation is also playing a key role. What will happen in the market will depend on how the battles will play out in every country and region in the world.