Wise broadens Pacific coverage by launching transfers to Fiji

• Wise customers can now send Fijian dollars from 56 currencies.

• Money remittance service is fast, convenient, cheap and completely transparent compared to competing banks and service providers.

Auckland, Thursday 24 June 2021: Wise, the technology company building the best way to move money around the world, has enabled international transfers to Fiji today, expanding coverage in the Pacific region.

Over 222,000 Fijians who live abroad, including 95% of those in New Zealand, Australia, USA, Canada and the UK will now be able to send up to FJ$10,000 per transaction via the Wise app or on web, to anyone in Fiji who holds a Vodafone M-PAiSA mobile money account.

The Vodafone M-PAiSA wallet is a mobile wallet that will allow Wise customers to transfer money online to friends and family safely and easily at the Google mid-market exchange rate, and Wise’s transparent low fees. The recipient does not need a bank account to receive money, only their Vodafone Fiji mobile. Customers can hold up to FJ $10,000 in their wallet, and spend in Fijian Dollars for all services available on M-PAiSA such as; paying directly with M-PAiSA QR for shopping, make bill payments, make business payments, transfer money to friends and family, and withdraw from authorised agents.

Financial inclusion in the Pacific Islands has been recognised by the Group of Twenty (G20) as important for promoting development and reducing poverty as well as enhancing financial stability and integrity. 

More than 5% of Fiji’s GDP can be attributed to remittance payments, a number that’s likely to increase as the country battles the recent influx of Covid-19 and the ongoing decline of international tourism. 

The G20 and the New Zealand Government are committed to supporting accessible and affordable remittance flows. They are pursuing this through increasing market competitiveness, harnessing new and emerging technologies, enhancing transparency, and encouraging supportive regulatory environments. Wise’s movement into the region aligns with these goals.

Wise’s entrance into Fiji is offering customers a service that, in comparison to current providers is: 

• Transparent -  the service use the real, mid-market exchange rate seen on Google

• Fast - 100% of transfers to Vodafone M-PAiSA are instant (in less than 20 seconds) when using Credit Card and PoLI. 

• Convenient - 100% online experience from verification to the setting up and completion of transfers, with no need for recipients to leave their homes. All recipients need is an active Vodafone mobile number.

• Cheap - cheaper compared to standard banks and other service providers

Price comparison for sending NZ$1000 to FJD using the Vodafone MPAiSA wallet between service providers:

Tristan Dakin, Wise ANZ Country Manager: 

“We are excited to be able to offer our customers a new remittance route to Fiji from today; a cheaper, faster and more convenient way to send money internationally. Wise is the only company in the market to use the real exchange rate - the one you see on Google. Banks and other providers around the world hide their fees in exchange rate markups, making it very hard for customers to calculate exactly how much they are paying for the transfer. It is an opaque and outmoded practice that Wise opposes in every country we serve.”

He added: “We were getting a very high number of requests from potential Fijian customers, so we worked hard to enable our service as fast as we could. By allowing and encouraging more nonbanks to provide financial services in Fiji, we are ensuring there is a cheap and fast remittance product within the market, as its economy heavily relies on it, tying back into our mission of ensuring consumers benefit from better and more affordable services.”