Sending Money to Bangladesh
The 2007/08 financial year ended in June, reporting a 32.8 percent rise over the previous year with $7.94 billion remittances being reported.
With the booming economy in the Middle East and Gulf region, and the improving skills of the Bangladeshi workers, there is an increasing demand for Bangladeshi laborers.
It is expected that remittances will reach the $10 billion mark in the current fiscal year. This extraordinary growth has helped to keep the country's balance of payments in surplus. Remittances are the number two source of income, with ready-made garments being on the top of the list. This boost in remittances is a key source of foreign exchange for this poverty-stricken, mostly Muslim country.
Ways to Transfer Money
There are a number of ways to transfer money to and from Bangladesh. Banks appear to be more expensive and offer less value than money transfer operators.
Banks usually offer their remittance services at a higher value for customers who have accounts with them. The rates on small money transfers are often higher than money transfer operators. Transfers through banks average 5 days, but this time can vary from 2 to 10 days depending on the method used to process the transaction from the receiving banks.
Money Transfer operators (MTOs) tend to have lower rates than banks for small remittances. There is also the convenience of longer operating hours and more locations. MTOs usually take less than 24 hours to process a transfer. In some cases, it can take as little as 10 minutes.
MTOs have better coverage in receiving countries with more outlets spread throughout the region. Some of the larger networks have over 60,000 outlets worldwide.
Security is the number one factor in choosing a money transfer provider. Many times immigrants choose a provider based on word of mouth from someone else that has used the service. Banks are viewed as more trustworthy.
Money transfer operators are viewed as offering better service mainly because this is their main scope of business. MTOs seem be targeted because of the low-value transfers that are the most common form of remittances sent to countries.
Prepaid debit cards are widely becoming a more popular way for people sending money home to relatives and friends. Because of their low cost and the ability to reload the card, it is convenient for the sender and receiver. Companies like ATMCASH offer fees starting as low at $5.00, and is fast becoming one of the leaders in the industry with flat-fee rates for transferring money.
Although banks and MTOs remain the number one choice for immigrants to transfer funds, the competition from debit cards (cash cards, prepaid cards), and online services are increasing in popularity and will soon take the number one spot for those working abroad to send money back home to the country of origin quickly, securely, and at a substantial savings.
