Nearly $55 billion in international remittances will be enabled via mobile devices in 2016, up from less than $12 billion this year, according to a new report from Juniper Research.

Growth is currently being led by mobile remittances sent across established migration corridors such as the United States-Mexico and intra-regional transfers across Africa and the Middle East, as migrant workers send money back home from foreign countries. However, substantial inter/intra-regional activity from and within Western Europe will see this region account for the largest remittance volumes by the end of the forecast period.

The report also highlights the opportunity presented in the medium term by the “trickle-down” of smartphone features and functionality into mass market feature phones, such as touchscreen interfaces, apps, and internet access.

“In markets with low literacy levels, money transfer applications on the handset based around easily recognizable icons may gain a far wider usage than services based around text-based menus,” says Windsor Holden, report author.

However, the report cautioned that the lack of regulatory engagement with service providers in many jurisdictions continues to inhibit service deployment and adoption of both domestic and international remittance services.

Other findings from the report include:

•    Service providers should introduce lower commission rates and flexible pricing structures to generate greater service uptake.

•    Potential service users are being deterred in many markets by limited or poorly trained local agent networks.

http://www.juniperresearch.com/viewpressrelease.php?pr=277