Frequently Asked Questions
Where can money be sent?
In which countries are credit unions distributing remittances?
Why is IRnet better than a normal wire or the competition?
What marketing materials are available?
What is the market potential?
Who is the target market?
How do we sign up?
Where can money be sent?
MoneyGram
Coinstar Money Transfer
Vigo
In which countries are credit unions distributing remittances? Please refer to the Agent/Payer Credit Unions section of our website.
How do the money transfer products available through WOCCU’s program differ from a normal wire or the competition? - Existing wire systems in the United States were created for large-dollar domestic payments rather than the small international transfers made by most immigrants.
- Fees and the guaranteed rate of exchange are disclosed at the time the transfer is sent.
- Recipients are not required to have a credit union account to pick-up their transfer.
- There is no fee to the beneficiary for picking up funds.
What marketing materials are available? Brochures, posters, flyers, sample newsletters, articles and example radio/TV spots are available. For further information, please refer to the Marketing Tools section of our website. Who is the target market? Recent immigrants, especially Latinos, and expatriates frequently use transfer services to send money to friends and relatives back home. Many of these individuals are unbanked and therefore carry large amounts of cash in hand. Nearly 70% of these individuals send money back home.
Providing remittance services is a way for credit unions to attract new members and serve people who would otherwise not have access to traditional financial services. What is the market potential? - $267 billion was sent worldwide in 2006
- Nearly 42 million Latinos in the United States (2005), 14% of the U.S. population
- About 18 million of the Latinos are foreign-born, 6.2% of U.S. population
- About 10 million Latinos are undocumented
- Latinos make up about 15% of the U.S. labor force
- An estimated $61 billion in remittances was sent to Latin American and the Caribbean in 2006
- Nearly 50% of Latinos are unbanked
- FDIC projects that Latinos will account for more than half of U.S. retail banking growth in the coming decade and that Latino households with checking accounts will increase by 57% and those with savings accounts by 76% in the next two years
How do we sign up?Please refer to the Sign-up for Remittance Program section of our website.
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