Western Union, Maxis to Launch Mobile Money Transfer Service in Malaysia

­Malaysian mobile network operator, Maxis has teamed up with Western Union to launch a service that would allow Maxis subscribers to send cross-border remittances directly from their mobile phones. The service is expected to be rolled out in early 2010.

With the launch of the service, more than 11 million Maxis subscribers in Malaysia will be able to send funds from their mobile phones. The recipient will be able to pick up the funds in cash at more than 345,000 Western Union Agent locations in 200 countries.

The joint service with Maxis will mark the first time that Western Union has enabled mobile money transfer transactions from a mobile phone outside the United States.

The new service will be priced competitively and will mainly benefit the large numbers of foreign workers in Malaysia, providing convenience and efficiency in global funds transfers. In 2008, more than US$6.4 billion in remittances was sent out of Malaysia. Many of these remittances were sent by the estimated 1.9 million foreign workers living in Malaysia - largely Indonesians, Filipinos, Bangladeshis, Nepalese and Vietnamese.

The service also will provide these workers with a more immediate option of transferring money to their family and friends.

"International immigrants living in Malaysia send money home to loved ones around the world anywhere from five to 15 times a year," said Matt Dill, Senior Vice President and Head, Western Union Digital Ventures. "This segment of the population also has high mobile phone penetration rates - more than 90% for all migrant groups. By combining these two trends - enabling migrants to send money across borders to their loved ones with just the touch of a button - we can bring the power of Western Union directly to Maxis subscribers."

Posted to the site on 5th October 2009