TransferWise, WorldRemit; Top 5 Platforms to Send and Receive Money Globally

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The internet has made everything digital as people and businesses can now easily transact or work with each other anywhere in the world. Similarly, the new nom of remote working created by the current pandemic has made it unnecessary for workers like freelancers to be in the same locality.

This means that people, workers and freelancers can no longer rely on local banks for their money transfer. Many international money transfer companies have sprung up to facilitate the easy movement of funds internationally.

From salaries to cash for transaction and services rendered, international money transfer platforms are filling the new financial gap.

TransferWise, WorldRemit; Top 5 Platforms to Send and Receive Money Globally
map world money traffic concept

Depending on where you are sending the money, what currency you are sending, the amount you are sending and how you are funding the transaction, the best service to use varies.

However, we have curated a list of top 5 international transfer platforms you can use depending on cost, popularity and transfer speed.

Transferwise

TransferWise offers one of the most affordable exchange rates you can find. Its services span over 70 countries including Nigeria and its service fees tend to be one of the lowest if you use a bank account (less than 1% of the transfer amount).

Sending limit can go up to $1 million per transfer, if using a wire transfer to pay on TransferWise.

TransferWise, WorldRemit; Top 5 Platforms to Send and Receive Money Globally

After a brief survey among 10 freelancers, 6 revealed that they use TransferWise frequently to receive payment for services. For speed, debit or credit card can arrive within minutes, but transfer using a bank account can take, on average, about 1-3 business days.

Worldremit

WorldRemit is one of the largest international money transfer companies in the world. It offers international money transfer in over 90 currencies and to over 150 countries around the globe.

Worldremit offers different channels like bank deposits, credit cards and mobile money to send money internationally. WorldRemit charges both transfer fee and markup charge of no more than 1%-1.5% on the mid-market exchange rate.

2 out of 10 freelancers surveyed reported having used Worldremit service.

TransferWise, WorldRemit; Top 5 Platforms to Send and Receive Money Globally

However, its platform offers near-instant fund transfer in most cases, especially when transferring cash. Bank transfers can, however, take 1-3 days to be completed.

XE

XE is one of the most trusted money transfer companies in the world. It has a presence in over 170 countries across the globe. Its is popularly known for offering bank-beating rates.

The platform supports payments through online banking and over the phone transfers but not through card. It charges no transfer fees, instead only applying a small markup range of 0.5-2% on top of the mid-market exchange rate.

For speed, most fund transfers happen the same day but for bank transactions, it may take 2-4 days depending on the currency.

TransferWise, WorldRemit; Top 5 Platforms to Send and Receive Money Globally

Xoom

Xoom offers international money transfer to more than 120 countries. The platform offers low upfront fees of about $5 with bank accounts but its exchange rate markups can be up to 3% when using cards.

Compared to some other online money transfer, Xoom’s service is pricey but still well cheaper than bank transfers.

For speed, most transfers can arrive within minutes, regardless of the payment method but it could take up to a few days for bank transfers.

Skrill

Skrill is an international payment service that is highly popular with online gambling customers, freelancers and forex traders. It boasts of over 120,000 online merchants and is available in over 200 countries worldwide.

Skrill focuses on providing quick transfers and the ability to transact with cryptocurrencies in addition to regular money transfers.

Skrill fees and exchange rate structure can be very complex. The amounts you will pay can vary considerably depending on the payment method you use.

Currency conversion costs about 3.99% above the mid-market rate, which is more than many other providers, but no transfer fees for international transfers.

For speed, Skrill usually takes 2-3 business days to transfer funds but the withdrawal of funds from your bank account happens instantly.


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