INDIA: CBoP launches new remittance scheme for UAE clients

New Delhi, Aug. 15 (PTI): New generation private sector lender Centurion bank of Punjab (CBoP) on Tuesday launched a remittance option scheme 'SmartRemit - Gulf' for its non- resident Indian (NRI) clients in the UAE.
For easy and fast remittances service, the bank has entered into remittance agreement with exchange houses like UAE Exchange Centre and Alukkas Exchange, CBoP said in a release.

As per the agreement, NRI clients of the bank would be able to remit funds from any of the branches of these exchange houses which would be transferred to their accounts in CBoP across India within a day, it added.
"Our bank is also in discussion with other exchange houses to extend SmartRemit - Gulf to other countries such as Sultanate of Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia," CBoP Business Director Harpreet Singh said. [Source]

IFAD: Call for proposals: Financing facility for remittances

Background

Remittances help fight rural poverty in some of the poorest parts of the world. While the amounts are often small, remittances put money directly into the hands of millions of poor people. In addition, the impact of remittance services is dramatically enhanced when these are linked to other financial services such as savings, insurance and loans.

Promoting inclusive financial systems and innovative partnerships between rural financial institutions and remittance operators will provide significant benefits in terms of competition and cost reduction, thereby offering more resources to the poor and additional options for millions of families to use their capital profitably. For this purpose, the Financing Facility for Remittances (FFR) for Rural Sector Development has recently been established.

Building on the experience of the joint programme on rural remittances for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), a collaboration between the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the FFR was created to include new co-financing partners such as the European Commission (EC), the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), the Government of Luxembourg, and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). To maximize outreach to other regions where remittances play a crucial role in rural economic and social development, this facility will fund a second phase of the LAC programme of the IDB/IFAD programme, and will focus on the EU/LAC corridor and include African, European, Middle Eastern and Asian countries as well.

The FFR will facilitate the rapid approval of proposals and swift disbursement of funds for the implementation of identified activities. The FFR will launch competitive calls for proposals and then select and finance the most innovative projects submitted. [Read more]