WorldRemit raises $ 175 million as the global money transfer market is in full swing

The global remittances market shows no signs of slowing down. Recent data from the World Bank indicates that remittances – payments made by people working abroad to a person from their home country – reached $ 689 billion in 2018, which represents an increase of about 10% over the previous year.

As a reminder, remittances represent more global payments each year than foreign aid, constituting a crucial aspect of international development financing.

And it is in this context that we have seen a series of investments in companies that help people move money from one country to another. The latest one is WorldRemit, based in London, which has just announced a $ 175 million Series D round, led by Accel, TCV and Leapfrog Investments. This brings the company's total funding to more than $ 400 million and follows its $ 40 million Series C round since 2017.

Founded in 2010, WorldRemit targets migrants with a global money transfer service that helps them send money back to their home country. Of course, renowned incumbents such as Western Union and MoneyGram already offer such services, but WorldRemit promises a number of benefits, such as clearer fees, faster transfers and more.

Above: WorldRemit App

WorldRemit does not yet make a profit, but it revealed last year that it was planning to do it by 2019. With an additional $ 175 million, the company said it plans to continue its expansion while planning to launch a new remittance service specifically for companies operating in international markets – with a particular focus on emerging markets.

"For more than eight years, our main goal has been to help migrants send money to their families, friends and communities," Breon Corcoran, CEO of WorldRemit, said in a press release. "Our customers play a key role in the economies in which they work and their remittances are important to their home countries. Our mission is to help them transfer money securely and quickly while reducing costs for our customers. "

We see a lot of activity in the space of remittances lately. Last year, TransferGo collected $ 17.5 million and Azimo, $ 20 million, while PayPal began deploying its Xoom money transfer service internationally. And a few weeks ago, TransferWise raised $ 292 million worth $ 3.5 billion.

WorldRemit said it now helps about 4 million people send money from 50 countries to 150, and that last year the United States became its largest "sending" market after getting a license to operate in all states.

The United States is in fact the largest source of remittances in the world, while India, China and Mexico are among the largest remittance remittance markets.